Nehemiah E-Community Podcast

Building a lasting legacy entails having a long-term impact on your community or the world at large, and family is critical in this regard. 

 Many couples start businesses together, and this is an important unit to have if you want to leave a lasting legacy. This isn't to suggest that divorced couples can't leave legacies; it just means that doing so in the context of a family makes it bigger, better, and more successful. 

 Succession is essential when it comes to developing something that will last. The ability to effectively pass on whatever you're working on to the following generation. Succession refers to individuals who will inherit the business and pass it on to the next generation, and the success of this depends on who they look up to outside of the family.  

The people we look up to as role models have a big influence on our ability to develop something that has an impact on the community. Having positive role models can assist us in developing a clear vision and direction for what we want to leave as a legacy.  

In order to leave a lasting legacy, the foundation on which we construct it must be strong enough to serve future generations even if the continued legacy shifts its goals to adequately serve its purpose. The changes, on the other hand, must occur while maintaining the underlying ideals on which they were based.  

Building a great organization also takes more than having a great leader. A solid foundation should be established institutionally rather than by an individual. Also, it is about more than just making money. The legacy can last longer if it is founded on a core concept and purpose. Although we may desire a specific workplace culture, getting there requires a lot of trial and error. This means that, while developing systems, maintain what works and discard what doesn't.  

When planning for succession, we must ensure that those who succeed will be excellent stewards of the legacy we leave for future generations.

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Register for EC Seminar – Doing Business in Your God-Given Sweet Spot 14 October @ 7:00 am – 8:00 am PDT: https://nehemiahecommunity.com/event/e-community-seminar-oct-2021/ 

#Legacy   #NehemiahProjectKenya   #CouplesInBusiness

Kingdom Business Tour Review

Starting a unique and unusual business that is considered “unconventional” in one’s communal setting can be quite a challenge.  

Rodney & Angela Kihenjo Founders of Pet Paradise, a kingdom business that offers grooming, play dates and boarding services for household pets state that having the courage and patience to build such a business from scratch in terms of getting customers and asserting yourself as a business owner is what leads to the success of the business.  

Certain factors can motivate one to pursue their business goals one of them being a strong support system when it comes to family, friends, or other people you associate with. However, the passion is not entirely fueled by external factors, loving what you are doing and owning it no matter the circumstances enables you thrive even in uncertainty.  Apart from the skills and support needed to give life to a new business idea, prayer is another stronger tool. 

Often times we tend to feel like all good business ideas have been taken but when we pray and establish strong faith in God He will show us our purpose and place in this world. The peace and certainty that comes with praying enables us turn dreams into reality.  After establishing a unique kingdom business and involving God throughout the process, we are sure of a breakthrough beyond human understanding. This same business that is considered unique or unconventional can be used to change people’s perceptions about certain services that are not so welcomed communally. 

Having visually appealing value to outstanding operational procedures greatly propels the business to a better position in the market.  We can all agree that it is not all the time that things go the way we intended them to and sometimes we may hit a rock bottom but having mentors to guide us throughout the journey can help ease the pressure and they may help us get through the toughest of times. 

#ThriveThroughCrisis #KingdomBusinessTour  #PetParadise

International Business Plan Competition Winner

It is said that beginnings are the hardest part of growth. 

For the first time ever, Kenya has won the business plan competition two times in a row with Rina Hicks winning the International Business Plan Competition. Although Kenya now holds three winners, this is the first back-to-back victory for the team.  Rina Hicks, Operations Director of Faida Investment Bank and 2021 Business Plan Winner tells us her career journey and the impact of being a Biblical Entrepreneur student in the course of winning the competition.  

Although sometimes we want to explore our full potential, we tend to hold back to explore and see other people’s strengths before we can really see how good we are. This however does not mean we cannot achieve our goals. The realization of our dreams comes when we truly and fully know our identity and purpose. When we know our identity and know our purpose, we realize our full potential with clarity and without conflict. 

As leaders, it is essential to create a trustworthy and transparent system that enables us to create, motivate and strengthen other people’s abilities. Together with customizing a coaching strategy, incorporating an A-Team creates winners effortlessly. When all the strategies and systems are put in place, winning becomes intentional and not accidental. Human beings are tailored in a way that we are constantly in survival mode instead of trying to find our purpose and the direction God wants us to take in order to fulfill that purpose set for us. But when we are in a constant state of stress and anxiety, we focus on the stressful situations and it blinds us from seeing our purpose and helping others find out theirs.  

  #NW2021 #StateOfTheMinistry #JobCreation

International Business Plan Competition Recap  

As part of the Biblical Entrepreneurship (BE) Program, the International Business Plan Competitions bring together several BE Students selected to represent their respective countries and regions. Each student presents their ten-minute summary plan presentation at the annual International BE Business Plan Competition held during Nehemiah Week.  

We had quite an interesting session learning about redemptive approaches to capital raising and business investment through the competition. At the competition, the winner from 2020, Nina Mutegi, would return with the trophy that will, later on, be awarded to the 2021 International Business Plan Competition Winner.  

This year’s competition had four competitors Rina Hicks(Kenya, Africa), Steve Harris(Australia, Asia), Denitsa Yeroteeva(Bulgaria, Europe) and Francie Wilson(U.S.A, North America) pitch their business plans for a grand prize of 5000 U.S Dollars and the People’s Choice Award that comes with 1000 U.S Dollars prize whereby the audience voted for their favorite business idea. 

Owing to the fact that every year’s competition is a bit tight, after successful training, this year’s competitors demonstrated their understanding of creating profitable and sustainable business which was quite impressive. For every entrepreneur and business owner, it is essential to be well conversant with every aspect of your business. From your growth plan to marketing and many other aspects which are drawn from real-life case studies. 

From sustainable food supply to financial literacy to children’s support to women’s financial consultancy, the four contestants pitched their ideas and the audience voted for whom they thought had the greatest idea and Rina Hicks from Kenya with her financial literacy project won the People’s Choice Award and 1000 U.S Dollars. The winner of the grand prize was announced the next day.  Knowing your purpose and having a desire to build a Kingdom Business propels one in the best direction. 

#NehemiahWeek2021 #BusinessPlan #AccessToCapital

Investors Forum Recap | Nehemiah Week 2021

The fourth day began with an awesome worship session followed by an uplifting devotion from Pastor Gabriel Oleko who talked about “The Protocol of Success in the Time of Crisis”. There are 3P’s of protocol to get through any crisis you might be facing. Promise. Plan. Perseverance.  This day marked the Kingdom Investors Forum where the investors' network was established to match qualified Biblical Entrepreneurs with trusted Kingdom Impact Investors to finance all of the selected entrepreneur's needs including furnishings, software, fitness, education, and transportation. 

Hosted by Robert Fukui, this year we had four kingdom entrepreneurs, that is: Nina Mutegi, Pastor Gabriel Oleko, and Malalaniaina Ratianaharisoa pitch their ideas to a panel of investors for capital. Other than that, a panel of Kingdom Entrepreneurs shared their insights on how to Thrive Through Crisis. On the panel, was Robin Geertz, John Thiong’o, and Chuck Proudfit who gave their take on how to thrive through crisis. 

John’s take was one must have proper economic drivers to be able to get through crisis. Robin on the other hand advised businesspeople to do what they have to do in order to survive the crisis even if it means cutting costs and adjusting agreements. Chuck on the other hand drove his point home with three words, protect, pivot and pioneer. As people’s needs change marketing conditions need to improve change in order for one’s business to stay relevant. Take an example of the emergence of the Covid-19 Pandemic. 

So many businesses struggled to stay afloat and eventually ended up closing because the owners were not creative enough to shift according to the market needs. Innovation helps one easily identify people’s problems and solve them no matter how big or small they are. Another tool that can help one stay afloat is an economic engine that helps you with pricing to be able to save for a crisis and stay efficient. It also helps fuels your business. According to Mick Owens, the speaker of the day, knowing your gifts and knowing how to use them help you stand for what you believe in even in a crisis. Following the Biblical principles to financial success encourages us to hold what we have with loose hands because we are STEWARDS NOT OWNERS.

Nehemiah Week 2021 Day 3 Recap  

The third day began with a devotion session from Pastor Anthony Moore who talked about “Living with Limited Resources”. Sometimes entrepreneurs experience a sense of lack but even so, listening to God’s voice makes us understand that even in scarcity we can move forward. God does not intend for us to not have what we need in life but sometimes that lack directs us to listen to God’s direction and allowing Him to take us to where we will not lack. Chief Servant Patrice Tsague touched on “How to Thrive in Crisis” and stated that our mindset affects how we speak and talk to ourselves. When we are focused on listening to what God has for us, we will be able to create breakthroughs and through the right mindset directed from God, we will be able to create what we need with what we have. Dr.Shelette Steward talked about Pivoting which is the change of strategy without changing your vision. When pivoting, start with your strong points which include the kind of relationships. Pivoting helps one pursue prosperity and not profitability. Andy Mason, another great speaker touched on “How to Find Hope in Crazy Times” stating listening to God’s voice enables us to invite hope in times of crisis. Then came Jeniffer and Tom Mears who talked about “Thriving in Serving in Love” the key takeaway being that we should look for relationships that protect our missions. Shae Bynes concluded the speaker’s session with “Thriving in Grace over Grind”. Grace is God’s divine favor. It is only with God’s grace that we can be able to operate successfully. When we have the Grace of God, everything else is a resource. We are told to always seek God’s Grace and not idolize work too much. Take your plans and seek God’s heart for them then you will experience success even in the midst of crisis.

Nehemiah Week 2021 Day 2 Recap  

The second day of the event Nehemiah Week-Thrive Through Crisis began with a devotion from Pastor Noella Lumande whose topic was “It’s Time”.  He spoke about not just sitting there during a crisis but doing something to deliver yourself from your plight. During a crisis, our feelings tend to take over and control what we say, and sometimes we may not necessarily mean it. We however need to proclaim our strengths and not our failures because the power of life and death comes out of our words. 

Declare God’s promises instead. Inherent to crisis is risk, which determines our mindset.  We learn from making risks which provide both sides of learning. Knowing your purpose is key in making risks because once you know your identity, risks will be less scary. Systematically identifying the risks, openly talking about the risks, and building the required systems to be able to risk provide a cushion in case anything goes sideways.  Remember that uncertainty will always be there, it is constant. 

As a leader or business owner, one needs to accept the occurrence of a crisis but have the strength to stick to their principles and know their values no matter the looming loss. In matters of identity and destiny, discovering what God wants you to do pushes you in the right direction. Even in crisis, having a purpose and knowing your purpose, you will be able to see through God’s assignment for you. 

Remember that your assignment is not your identity. Crisis involves financial implications, from loss of jobs to investors leaving but you should be able to stay true to the alignment of personal investments and assets. God takes us through difficult situations for us to be able to know that He is in control and that we can trust Him through all. Stay true to your mission statement!

Risk Worth Taking | Thriving in Uncertainty  

Nehemiah Week is an eventful week designed to equip, inspire and help entrepreneurs come together to reflect on how God is impacting their businesses with this year’s theme being THRIVE THROUGH CRISIS. On the first day of Nehemiah Week, a deep and personal worship session by Pastor Mamie Lumande kick-started the day followed by a devotion led by Pastor Anthony Moore who held an insightful and highly relatable talk about “The Fear of Failure”. Another exciting part of this day was an interesting virtual tour to some Kingdom Business Centers some of which have faced crises before and learned to thrive through it all. In this session, we learned quite a lot from the Kingdom Entrepreneurs who shared their journey from the conception of their business ideas to the birth of their businesses and how they have been able to implement de-risking methodology within their strategic planning. Understanding the intentionality of a business enables one to identify with their purpose and helps one bring the gospel of Christ through the marketplace. This way, one will be able to bring more people to Christ.  To be able to navigate through a crisis and overcome it, one needs a Global Positioning System (G.P.S) comprising of relationships, mindset, tools and resources. No matter where one is or the type of crisis they are facing, having the right relationships with God and man they can and will be able to flourish through it. To sum up, we had a Kingdom Entrepreneur, Ivan Papish narrated about the impact of the Nehemiah Project in Eastern Europe.

Thriving in Creating an Economic Engine  

Thriving in creating an economic engine. An economic engine is a system that supports or sustains the infrastructure of a company. It is what enables a company to work out their financial needs in a way that money generated goes out of the company instead of giving money into the company through donations. This is called Collaborative Laboratories also known as Collaboratories. 

Chuck Proudfit, Founder and President of AtWork on Purpose hosted by Chief Servant Patrice Tsague, shares his story about how he created an economic engine that funds ministries on a sustaining basis without going out to ask for donations from revenue-generating companies. He says that although at some point donations are part of resourceful funding, one can opt for seed capital that will be self-sustaining on their own. 

For successful entrepreneurship, one has to create economic engines with more than successful business startups like local churches which might be quite a challenge because churches are reluctant to accept entrepreneurship as a pillar of the church. It is also hard to find a congregation that believes entrepreneurship can also be a spiritual endeavor.

Creating a successful economic engine involves both visible and invisible components. The invisible being the small unseen but very essential components while the visible components are what attracts your target market. What it looks like on the outside. It is about how you are making the industry better. One should translate a visionary idea into practical terms that a marketplace will get excited about.

Creativity and innovation help push one to be better in terms of being more imaginative in order to have something good to offer to the market and be able to sustain it. Economic engines are used to fund entrepreneurial ventures.

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Our Host Patrice Tsague is pleased to reinforce communities not just within the United States but throughout the world. In doing so he has gathered Kingdom Business leaders nationwide and beyond, to share with you practical principles applied through years of application with faith and a desire to reach business excellence.   

Enjoy devotions, training, and updates FREE by signing up for bronze membership https://bit.ly/NehemiahMembership