Becoming a Godpreneur – Part 2: Seeking Approval
I had to curb my enthusiasm for social media recently. I found myself going on just to see how many people liked my photos. I spent little time actually looking at the feed and most time in my own feed.
Why is that? I guess I judge my popularity by likes.
We entrepreneurs can tend to do this, especially if we’re doing heavy marketing. It’s all about email opens, likes, followers and reviews, right?
Although those things are great indicators of “connecting” your message to your audience, we must be careful to not let it DEFINE us as ‘who we are’. God forbid one campaign doesn’t work and your life comes to a screeching halt for a day or two as you recover from the blow on your self-esteem.
To become a Godpreneur, we must take on a new identity. This new identity seeks it’s approvals and popularity from one source: God.
It can be tempting to let what others say about us define who we believe we are and where our businesses can go. But that’s not where our identity comes from. As a Godpreneur, you are not what others say and think you are; you are what God says and thinks you are.
The Bible says:
"But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7 NIV
You are not on your own; you belong to God. You are His, and always will be. Some clients, vendors and even employees will always look at us on the outside. They’ll think who we are depends on how many clients we have and whether we’re landing big accounts or not. But God looks at our hearts, and we’ll only have peace when we believe who God says we are: His amazing creation that He loves.
Who are you trying to please in your business, God or man? While it’s important to please our clients, trust me that our clients would much rather be working with someone or a company that is ‘true to themselves’.
The Bible says:
"Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ." Galatians 1:10 NIV
Did I get teased for changing my business identity from the nightlife? You bet. People closest to me thought it was a dumb move, and I’ve lost friends from it. And I still struggle with this sometimes. I still feel like I get teased behind my back for being Christian, and I do have a self conscious side that wants to be popular.
I don’t always love who I am, and I do sometimes go on social media to feel good about myself.
But now we know the truth, and our true identity will continue to set us free from the approval of man.
Godpreneur Rule #29: Godpreneurs seek the approval of God alone in their businesses.