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. #FindMyCalling #EnhanceFocus

Whenever there’s been a huge shift in the direction of my business life, there was always a short period of agony and pain. The frustration wasn’t so much about what had happened in the past, but more about not knowing what’s coming up. But the beautiful part about these periods has been the amount of time I get to spend with God and waiting for His directions for me. In 2014 I had a time when I shifted my entire business our of serving the nightlife industry. It was one of the darkest times of my life. Now that I look back though, it was an amazing time because I drew closer to God than ever before! In 2016 I had another major shift. Once again, a deep amount of uncertainty was met with frustration and pain, but it was a time where I drew closer to God and lining up my will with His calling. In a rapidly changing world with so many opportunities and distractions, we entrepreneurs face a challenge: move on to the next thing and not wait for instructions. We think that we know what we’re doing. We’ve even convinced ourselves that we’re doing God’s will. Entrepreneurs don’t wait, right? We attack. Action!  Hunt and kill. We have to bring back food for the family.  We think that nothing good will come from waiting. But what I’ve learned is that the most valuable time in my life has been the short season between one calling and the next calling. This is the season of alignment to God’s purpose for me and you. This season is the tune up for the next 50,000 miles on our engine.  It’s a very exciting time if we have the right attitude. That sounds great for you Alex, but how do we embrace the challenges of this changing time and overcome the RESISTANCE that wants to convince us that we can move on our own? The Bible says "Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world." James 4:8 NLT The times that you’ll do your most personal development is the “in between” time. Why? Because once it’s go time, it’s GO TIME!  A military doesn’t train during war. They train to be in the war!! In the battlefield for our attention, it’s no wonder God has to change things up on us. There’s a big enemy that wants to take you from opportunity to opportunity and not give you a chance to have some water. In entrepreneurship, you’re either in a time of expansion, waiting, or contraction. It’s a rollercoaster, and you’re either up, down, or steady and waiting for the next twisted turn. Instead of being depressed (which is what the enemy wants), you have to draw closer to God and be thankful for this time of intimacy. This is a time where you drop bad habits and bad people so you can move up into new levels with God.  It’s a time where God tunes the guitar to his melody. More often than not though, we are trying to fit God into our busy lives.  A waiting period has us realize that we’ve drifted and we need to come back to face north. God’s greatest desire isn’t for you to do things for Him, His greatest desire is to draw close to us.  When we allow God to take over all of us, He can then fulfill His calling over our lives. Godpreneur Rule #37:  In times of business uncertainty, Godpreneurs draw close to God. #TimeManagement #EnhanceFocus

I go through seasons in my business. I’m not just talking about the 4 seasons of summer, winter, spring and fall. I’m talking about the ups and downs, the lefts and rights, the expansion and contraction, the growth and decline. The frustrating thing for me is that you really can’t predict the seasons. Sure, there’s a day that summer starts on the calendar, but it’s not precise. We entrepreneurs want to know when the turn on the rollercoaster is coming. We wish that our businesses weren’t susceptible to the seasons, we wish this rule skipped over us. Share on Instagram The reality is that seasons serve two amazing purposes. Seasons make me 100% dependent on God.  Since I don’t know what’s next, I need God to guide me and walk beside me along the path. Seasons keep me changing and adapting to fit the wants and desires of the market, which are in line with the changes God wants me to make. Although seasons are awesome, they are still uncertain, and uncertainty kills us. Why?  Because we want to be God…we want to be in control…which is the original sin. In the last 11 blog posts I’ve been taking us on a journey through the book of Acts. Acts shows us the manual for expansion of the church, which I also see as how we can expand our businesses and our influence. In Chapter 12, the the Apostle James is beheaded by Harod, Peter is freed from jail by an angel, and Harod ends up being killed by God for thinking he’s God. None of these 3 central figures in this chapter knew what was coming, neither could predict that God was going to do something in their life, and ultimately, we don’t know when things will happen either. I’ll leave you with this amazing reality from Ecclesiastes 3: "There’s an opportune time to do things, a right time for everything on the earth: A right time for birth and another for death, A right time to plant and another to reap, A right time to kill and another to heal, A right time to destroy and another to construct, A right time to cry and another to laugh, A right time to lament and another to cheer, A right time to make love and another to abstain, A right time to embrace and another to part, A right time to search and another to count your losses, A right time to hold on and another to let go, A right time to rip out and another to mend, A right time to shut up and another to speak up, A right time to love and another to hate, A right time to wage war and another to make peace." Godpreneur Rule #75: God determines the seasons of my business, there is no better place than under his providence. #WorkLifeBalance #GainConfidence

I’ve learned an amazing skill that I want to share with you today. There are times in our entrepreneurial life where the problems and attacks are going to come from many directions. For example, not only do you have problems in the business, but also problems at home. It’s not just the lack of funds to pay your contractors, but it’s the lack of love and support from your spouse. Can I encourage you? God is setting you up for amazing things when the attacks get heavier. I’m reading Acts 23 and here is Paul, the most decorated and stories apostle, he likely sits right next to Jesus in heaven because this man is a LEGEND! You would think that he lived an amazing life if he’s such a man of God. Nope. Instead, second to Jesus, he pretty much suffered the same exact treatment and persecution, even eventually got killed for his faith. What I love about Paul is his faith, always looking beyond the reality of his current situation, and staying focused on the real-life that was in him, a life that became more alive the more he was persecuted. Paul knew that he need not be anxious about anything, because God, the Almighty, gave him life and no man could snatch it from him apart from God’s will. Do we Godpreneurs have this same confidence? Do we fret and fear in the face of the ups and downs of our business and personal lives? Do we trust our own strength and resolve to make our way in the world. Remember, it is God who gives us our identity, our joy, our happiness, and our freedom. No power, human or spiritual, can snatch us from His care. Though we Godpreneurs may be afflicted, perplexed, and persecuted, we can yet walk in hope, joy, and confidence, knowing that we are accomplishing the job that God has set out for us to do. Godpreneur Rule #34: Godpreneurs see conflict and persecution as a sign that we’re doing the right thing. #FindMyCalling #FindingMyPurpose #SharpenLeadership

My company makes logos and websites for clients.  There’s a clear beginning: you give me deposit, I’ll start.  There’s also a clear end: you pay your final bill and I hand over the working website. Clearly there are hundreds of other steps in between that need to happen in order to satisfy the client, and even some opportunities to go above and beyond and deliver a wow experience. I’ve had clients begging me to keep working with them after we’re done.  I’ve had other clients not pick up my calls anymore because they want to hear nothing about me ever again. I began to analyze what were the differences between both experiences, and what could I have done differently. We all want our clients to talk great things about us, be happy with our service, and feel like they got everything they paid for. Although we can’t please everyone always, I feel there are things we can do to be working towards 100% satisfaction. In the book of Acts chapter 20, Paul is saying his final goodbye’s to certain cities that he preached at.  He knows that his time on earth is coming to an end and that this could be the last time he sees people. He spends as much time as he can with them, keeps teaching and healing until the final moments, and as he’s leaving, they are crying. The goal in the end is that your client is practically CRYING because it’s over.  They wish it could continue, they will miss the time spent together, they will tell others about their experience. In order to create this outcome, I’ve discovered a couple of keys to consider. It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.  I’ve had moments in the middle of a project where I thought I was going to get fired.  But we course-corrected, made up for the problems, and over-delivered in the end.  Clients will forget what happened at the beginning and middle as long as they get what they wanted in the end. Over delivering:  it’s important to give clients more than what they paid for.  I love the Baker’s dozen.  The Baker throws in an extra bagel or two.  You paid for 12, but you get 13 or 14.  That feels great Everytime.  It never gets old.  I always feel like I’ve been over delivered. Life changing: your service needs to do one of 4 things.  It needs to either help your client save time, save money, learn a new skill, or provide them clarity in their life.  If you can nail this, you’ve got a client for life! You and I have the ability to do this in our business. But we really have to CARE that our clients experience our product or service, and you have to believe that what you have will help them and that you were born to bring this service to them. We have to feel called, purposed to do this.  Having a calling for it will force us to create the meticulous tasks and process that it takes to creating a crying experience! Godpreneur Rule #76: Godpreneurs look to create a life-changing experience for their clients. #BusinessBibleStudy #FindMyCalling

I go through seasons in my entrepreneurial career. There’s a season where I expand on my ideas and bring them to life. Then there’s a season where I’ve pulled back on the expansion to hunker down on what I have in front of me and I'm waiting on the next move. But I get frustrated in the season of waiting. I’m not done with all the ideas I want to bring to life. I have the plans all written out, the right people to call, and the enthusiasm and determination to get them done, but something is saying “wait”. (And one time I ignored the call to wait and lost a whole lot of money.  That’s a different story for another blog post.) We entrepreneurs are visionary, which makes us impulsive at times.  We’re very connected to the spirit, that inner ‘feeling’ or gut instinct that guides us. Sometimes our own desires get in the mix of the gut feeling and we rush into things prematurely. But what if this waiting period was actually meant to be a period of growth….inner growth. Maybe this is a time that God is calling you to be much closer to Him than ever before! I learned something profound while participating in a Bible study of the book of Acts. God had the apostles wait 10 days in Jerusalem after Jesus’s death before sending them out to spread the gospel. Acts 1:4‭-‬5 in the Bible reads: On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about.  For John baptized with  water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” The apostles knew the plan, knew what they had to do, but were commanded to wait. You may have these amazing plans of reaching so many new customers with your amazing product or service. Your offering might even be something ministry-related that will help the church so much! But God sometimes asks us to wait….to build us up, make us stronger, bless us with an anointing that we needed to receive or a lesson we needed to learn. We Godpreneurs can think that it’s all GO, GO, GO all the time, that there’s no time to waste, that we must ACT NOW! Can I share with you that the most growth I have done spiritually is in the season of waiting, hunkering down, stacking chips, refining my process, calling my customers more, providing more value, but most importantly, gaining more insight into the person of God…while I wait on His next move for me. Godpreneur Rule #16: We regard every day as a precious gift of time to spend in preparation for what He will do through us. #BusinessBibleStudy #SharpenLeadership

When I first started going back to church in 2008, it was with one foot in and one foot out. It felt good to go on Sundays and check church off my checklist of great ways to start my week. As I began to grow in my faith, I learned that in order to include God more in my business and find out what the CEO has in store for me, I needed to get to know Him more. I began reading the Bible in the mornings periodically. It started out with small devotionals, daily emails, and blogs like the one you’re reading. Eventually, that turned into wanting to read through the entire Bible. Then something incredible began to happen. I started to see the Bible as one big business book! It was like I was at Cornell all over again. Now, I read the Bible daily and God has an incredible message for me and my business every time. When we want to know things more, we spend more time with them. More time at the gym will lead to better bodies and health. The more we learn about diets and exercise, the more we begin to see our habits change and, over time, we become healthier as long as we stick to it. Some of us don’t have the habit of reading the Bible daily. I get it, I was there. Others have realized it and do it once in a while. Still, others haven’t connected their businesses and their relationship with God. Here is what I’ve learned: God wants to permeate our businesses and become the catalyst for our success as we look to grow and conquer. He wants us to prosper. He wants to lead the charge into growing your business beyond your imagination. He wants to fill your heart with visions that will take the rest of your life to accomplish. That’s the amazing business partner that we have waiting for us every morning. But this doesn’t happen by chance or luck. God has told us how this is going to happen. And today I’m going to share the formula you have to follow from this point forward if you’re serious about having your business succeed and prosper. I’m writing a parallel through the book of Joshua as it relates to us stepping into our entrepreneurial promised land. Joshua has been commanded by God to conquer the land promised to his ancestors. Joshua 1:5-9 says: “No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you. Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them. Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go. This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” First off we are given assurance that God will be with us and ride with us during the roller coaster ride of entrepreneurship. He knows that the journey won’t be void of battles and hardships, but He promises to stand with us. But then the word “only” comes into the picture. Here He wants to throw an asterisk and say that He wants to be by your side and give you victory, but you have to keep to the law He has set and meditate on it day and night. This may seem challenging at first, but it becomes easier over time when you purpose to develop the habit of daily reading. And then God says we will have success if we can keep to His laws. “For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” You can try to run your business on your own. Many, including myself, have gone out to fight the battle of growing the business on our own. You may have had success, but you’re likely burnt out and overworked. What would it look like if all Godpreneurs took God with them into every new business venture, every new negotiation, every new idea? What if we all took the time every morning to draw closer to God? If we can know that God wants to go with us and meditate on His word daily, we are setting ourselves up for prosperous and successful businesses. #WorkLifeBalance #FindMyCalling

I read a lot of motivational books, attend personal development seminars, and watch successful entrepreneurship videos.  Can’t I admit….its all a bit frustrating sometimes.  I know what I need to do, I’m pumped when I learn something new, but if I only had the TIME to implement it all. Wanting to implement everything I learn leaves me more frustrated because I know it takes time…time that I’ve convinced myself I don’t have. We can take the lessons from the last 4 posts on Overcoming Busyness in Business and get the same feeling.  Yeah, this all sounds awesome Alex, but its another thing on my ‘to do to be perfect’ list. Can I share something deeply impacting that I’ve learned over the last year:  God didn’t intend for us to be a ‘solopreneurs’.  He never wanted us to walk this journey on our own.  Instead, its made difficult on purpose – so we always rely on His help Philippians 4:6-7 says "Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life." God wants us to 1) Not worry, and instead 2) Pray and ask God for help 3) Praise God for all he is, has done, is doing, and will do in your life. When God is our CEO, its not just to bark down commands to you.  CEO’s help their people grow, find solutions, work in the background to get things done.  That’s the ‘boss’ you work for!  He wants to partner with your success. When we develop our prayer life to God and lay down our wants and desires to grow into better Godpreneurs, God honors that and see our hearts are in the right place.  Your big growth is coming, in Jesus name! Let me pray for you: Dear God I thank you for the gift of entrepreneurship you’ve given us.  You’re the best boss we’ve ever had and we just want to please you.  Help us to overcome the lies of Busyness that can hurt our families, our bodies and our businesses.  We know we have a lot of work to do, so at this time we bring that to you, lay it at your feet, and trust that you will inspire us to bring the change you so desire for our hearts and minds to be the best Godpreneurs we can be.  In Jesus name! #TimeManagement #WorkLifeBalance

I’m horrible at accounting. Ok, let me rephrase this.  I took finance and accounting in Cornell and lets just say that I loved the marketing and business organization classes better. In the early days of my company, I ran us into a lot of financial problems.  Backed taxes, overpaying employees, bad accounts receivable, you name the financial mistake, I did it. But I never admitted it to anyone. Mr. Cornell business graduate needs to know everything there is about business and can’t look like a failure. Only my accountant knew the extent of the problems. He tried to sell me on a monthly package where I would come in for consulting but I always declined it and committed to doing better that year.  Things got worst. We have difficulty accepting help from others. It makes us feel weak, incompetent, and vulnerable. Receiving help requires letting go of my self-sufficiency – even if it’s just for a moment, its uncomfortable. Instead of feeling vulnerable, many of us prefer to hide behind a mask of confidence and capability. Sadly, this affects our relationships with our employees, business partners, vendors who want to help, our customers, and even God. Sometimes we have it so “together” that it’s hard for anyone to see we are Christians and we need a Savior. We may think we are being strong, but when we fail to admit our needs and struggles, our employees and partners are often reluctant to share theirs. They may feel inadequate in comparison and compelled to hide behind their own masks. This verse in the bible has helped me tremendously grow as an entrepreneur: “But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.” (2 Corinthians 12:9) When I realized that all God wanted from me was for me to admit my need for Jesus, then He could begin helping me out. Furthermore, when I showed others my need for Jesus, I was allowing God to work through them to help me out. In 2014 I hired an accounting agency to meet with me every week.  Money is an area of weakness for me, and now my employees know and they step up to help with accounting too.  Since meeting with my accounting firm, my profits have gone up 4000%.  Yes, you’re reading four-thousand.  It’s incredible what God can do when we admit our weaknesses. Godpreneurs, ask God to reveal where you’ve been depending on yourself instead of Him and remember He often meets our needs through others…even the lowliest employee on your team. Godpreneur Rule #44:  Godpreneurs take risks and allow others to help them in areas of major importance — maybe even one of your employees! #HiringtheRightPeople #AccountingHelp #DebtFreedom

Mystery movies are fun!  I bite nearly all of my nails off thinking WHAT’S NEXT!? But the mystery of owning a business is not so much fun, right?  We don’t really know what tomorrow will bring us. We try our best to predict and prepare. We long to prevent dips in the income, unsatisfied clients and preventing our employees from destructive choices. But even though we do our best to honor God in our business, we will almost certainly face the pains of owning a business. The truth is that we have two options with every marketplace challenge – to follow God’s plan or our own. Most times our plan fails because we try to control our circumstances – and God, when we should be trusting God’s eternal plan and purpose for our entreprenurial careers. Godpreneur Rule #25: Trust in God’s goodness and live with the mystery of entrepreneurism. #NewEntrepreneurs #IncreaseEnergy