In my post-college proclivity, I desired nothing more than to start a great idea, grow it, and cash out so I could retire in my twenties. My first, second, or third ventures didn’t work out and I was now into my thirties…and still no fortune and fame. Around 2008 is when I started going back to church and gaining a new perspective on everything in life. One mindset shift I began to feel was that my ambition began to shift from selfish desires (fame and fortune) to wanting to help others and feel significance in my work. My struggle was that I still wanted fame and fortune, but I also wanted to serve others and be in God’s will for my business life. As Christians, is it possible to be ambitious in our entrepreneurial ventures and still have our self-worth and identity firmly rooted in Jesus Christ? Tons of self-help books and motivational coaches tell us that ambition is essential to accumulating wealth, fame, and glory for ourselves. The general consensus of entrepreneurship today is that it is the primary means by which we make a name for ourselves in this life and prove to the world that we are important, valuable, and worthy. Of course, this is nothing new for entrepreneurs. After Adam and Eve, human beings have been using work to make a name for themselves, rather than to glorify God and serve others. Take the Babylonians as an example. In Genesis 11 we read the account of these ancient entrepreneurs discovering the incredible technical innovation of brick-making. With the invention of the brick-making process, the Babylonians could build better homes, roads, and cities—all wonderful things; but driven by pride, the Babylonians’ ambition wasn’t to glorify God through their work. Genesis 11 reads Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. As people moved eastward, they found a plain in Shinar and settled there. They said to each other, “Come, let’s make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar. Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered over the face of the whole earth.” Genesis 11:1‭-‬4 NIV Their ambition was to make a name for themselves. They said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens so that we may make a name for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered over the face of the whole earth” (Genesis 11:4). And if there was ever a question as to whether or not our motives matter to the Lord, the rest of the passage provides the answer. “The Lord scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city”. Genesis 11:8. Creating a new business is not inherently bad. Our entrepreneurial ventures can and do reveal God’s character and love to serve others. But when we create a business out of a motivation to make a name for ourselves, we are attempting to rob God’s glory that is rightfully His. In Proverbs we read: All a person’s ways seem pure to them, but motives are weighed by the Lord . Proverbs 16:2 NIV While Scripture makes clear that creating to make a name for yourself constitutes improper ambition, the Bible makes equally clear that ambition can indeed be God-honoring, so long as it flows out of a response to the work Christ did on your behalf on the cross. As Godpreneurs, this mindset could be the very thought that will turn everything around for us if we truly believe it. My prayer for Godpreneurs today is that you would re-align your ambitions to be healthy and in the direction of your born-to-do identity – your calling to do God’s will in the marketplace. #EnhanceFocus #StrengthenIntegrity

As an entrepreneur, I’m living in a constant state of awareness that a product launch might not be a hit, a big client could leave me, an employee could steal from me, or a lawsuit could fall on me. Although all of these things have happened to me in my businesses already, as a Godpreneur, I’m still supposed to look up to God and trust that He’s got a plan for all of the twists and turns in my business. It’s not easy for us to trust God always. Especially when the bank account inches closer to zero and we’re not sure how to cover payroll on the 15th. For most people, trust is a delicate subject and extremely difficult to find given our past hurts and experiences. We’ve all been burnt by the stove of lies, disappointments, and let-downs by people or circumstances. We’ve trusted people in our business and have been betrayed. We put all our hopes into a certain product, service, or marketing campaign, and it flopped. It doesn’t matter how big or small the company is; I’ve witnessed entrepreneurs who are insanely skeptical, to the point where it paralyzes them. Trust is one of the most important pillars of the Christian entrepreneur’s walk. Trusting the processes that God takes us through, and having faith that he’s in charge regardless of the outcome, is key to the success of our businesses. But for many of us, the past experiences leave us scared, unsure, and insecure to make a move. Luckily, God’s given us a whole bunch of encouragement on the is of trust. Let’s first understand WHY entrepreneurs need to trust. The Bible says: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones". Proverbs 3:5‭-‬8 NIV This Proverb explains why you need to trust God. God is like the Chairman of the Board of Directors of your company. You’re the “president” of the company, He’s the CEO. In this posture, you acknowledge that He’s powerful, deep, and perfect in His plans. Close your eyes and imagine you’re walking into His office in the morning and trusting that whatever has already happened, His plans are in motion to course-correct; and He’s going to use You to see the plan though. When you can embrace that His plan and process for your business, you’ll be headed in the right direction for something great to happen, and the direction will be towards what you were born to do. As Godpreneurs, we put God in front of and connected to the word entrepreneur because there’s a direct correlation between acknowledging Him and the direction of our businesses. I know it’s hard for us to trust what we can’t see or put an ROI on, but we must use the power of trust in God. When we don’t trust God in our day-to-day business lives, we are taking the future circumstances out of God’s control and leaving things up to the marketplace to decide our fate; the marketplace doesn’t want you to exist, that’s a bad place to be guided by. Today, take some time to visualize God as the CEO, and you as the President. Trust Him, even if He doesn’t draw out the plan for you to fully understand. Wait and see that God will come through more than you’ve imagined. Trust in God’s processes, regardless of the waiting period or situation. This is business; we don’t understand or know what will happen…ever! Godpreneurs must trust. Period. It’s not something we do once. It’s an every second of the day thing. We must constantly be aware that God has a plan for our business in the marketplace. God’s 100% in control, even when we’re not. Let’s trust in Him. #WhatBusinessIShouldStart

One of my business partners walks into the office and says “Hey dude, you gotta get on TikTok, it’s the funniest thing ever! People post videos of themselves in extremely creative and entertaining ways.” I’m curious. So I check it out. He was right. It’s fun. It’s addictive! People WILL BE INFLUENCED by the content creators on it. The question is: what’s the best strategy for us Christian entrepreneurs to develop our personal brands on TikTok so that our message can be one that is heard…even if it’s a younger demographic. What is TikTok? We all have teenage and early-twenties friends that have mentioned TikTok, it’s the newest rage. And it’s not just for teens. God brought this powerful branding platform for us Christian personal brands the same way He allowed for Instagam, YouTube, and Facebook to exist. Welcome to a Christian entrepreneur’s introduction to TikTok through the perspective of leveraging TikTok for growing your God-first personal brand and influence for the Kingdom. TikTok is a Chinese social network that puts video first. People can post short videos, edit them, add music, and post them to their TikTok followers. It’s estimated that over 500 million people use TikTok, meaning the network is larger than Twitter and Pinterest. WOW!! TikTok (Douyin抖音) is an amazing platform to promote our Christian personal brands because if it is true that spreading our message is our calling, then short videos give us the chance to influence others with our skills, art, abilities and inspired ideas in a fast and smart consuming way. I use TikTokmyself for 2 main reasons: To promote my @DailyGodpreneur Personal Brand To study this trend and adapt my B2C marketing strategies to brands that I consult and my own companies In personal branding and marketing, things change quickly and we can’t rely on a single platform. Today we need to concentrate not only on Instagram and YouTube, but also on Tik-Tok to reach new communities online with Kingdom-minded thoughts and inspiration. The bible says, He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.” (Mark 16:15) Our primary calling as Christians is to spread the word. Our SECONDARY calling is to use our business and personal brand as a means to do that. I’ve put together a mix of strategies, tips, and advice on building a Christian personal brand on TikTok. We focus on China, a powerful country that offers incredible possibilities for foreigners able to adapt to the social media ecosystem. For more insight about Personal Branding for Christian Entrepreneurs, click here. Who is Behind TikTok? TikTok is for short videos mostly 15 seconds long, but with the ability to make 60 seconds long clips. While using this platform, you’re supplied with a number of songs and many filter options to customize the videos. TikTok is owned by ByteDance. That’s the privately held company, founded in 2006, that is, according to reports, now the most highly-valued tech startup in the world. It just raised a $3bn round of funding that valued it at $75bn. So TikTok has a lot of capital behind it, which could make it more difficult for incumbents to quash it. TikTok burst out in 2018 and became the most downloaded iPhone app, getting the nickname of “China’s Snapchat”. Chinese adore it and they use it to show their life, passion, and talents. Its audience is extremely young and active. According to a survey, nearly 67% of TikTok’s users are under 30 and 56% of them are students. At the same time, data shows that 43% of users live in first and second-tier cities, the developed metropolitan areas. There are so many users and they are so different, different ages, different income, different interests that almost any Christian brand could find here its target and any creator — his audience. As far as it’s a short-video app, it is often compared with Vine (remember that!?) Vine was actually acquired by Twitter in October 2012 prior to its official launch. In 2016, however, thanks in part to growing competition from other apps including Instagram and Snapchat, it was shut down. Vine became popular with content creators who used it to create comedy and music shorts, and it eventually grew to 200m active users. Not surprisingly, brands were eager to get in on the act as well. 6 Reasons Why You Should Use TikTok for Your Christian Personal Brand 1) Videos are easily “digested” by your fans People love video. Our society is hectic and TikTok offers quick bits of consumption without unnecessary complications. Short videos force you to show interesting things about your talent without tricks; the storytelling must be simple and the skills easily recognizable. This makes the platform extremely natural and interesting to follow. 15-second videos are an extremely easy way to promote your inspired ideas, make people think and awaken their interest. People adore these videos because they are easy to understand and can help them to relax. By you recording your day-to-day business life and sharing unique points of view on God via vlogs, Christian entrepreneurs can boost their personal brands and fill an unsatisfied educational, motivational, or entertainment niche in their industry. 2. Your Fans are Millennials You can just use simple in-app tools of TikTok and create original and authentic content which immediately will be delivered to a huge number of users and your customers. Are you looking for a fresh and young audience? They’re looking for your brand here. With the average age of a TikTok user being 13- to 24-years-old, mostly girls, TikTok is a gold mine when it comes to getting your #GodFirst message in front of Gen Z’ers. Very creative and active, they will promote you to their friend and families, if they like you. They are looking for new things, so you can absolutely find new followers and customers here. 3. Personal Branding to Buying Your Products – Making the Switch Ok, you’ve started and got your first audience. And what’s next? Enjoy the easy conversations with them! This audience is so affable you can receive feedback as soon as you post things. The fastest and easiest way to engage them is by using daily challenges and a wide network of hashtags. Some of the big western brands already have created their own highly welcomed challenges. Not so long ago fashion brand Guess launched its #InMyDenim hashtag challenge, the first-ever branded partnership with TikTok. Guess posted several “Official” videos accompanied by Bebe Rexha’s “I’m a Mess,” and then let the content creators do their work. NBC Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon lauded the app and created the #Tumbleweed Challenge. Users posted more than 8,000 videos using this hashtag. If you want to be involved with something buzzy, something shining brand new, operate in a different way and on a platform that has the potential for visibility in a less-crowded space. TikTok was definitely created for you. 4. Learning as a process on your Personal Branding Pilgrimage After downloading the TikTok app you’ll find yourself in the brand new world of lifestyle and culture. Actually, it’s a good way to understand the 15-24 year-olds, what they want, what they’re looking for, what they are used to. Just spend some time scrolling through videos and soon you’ll understand how your potential audience thinks. 5. Christian Speakers: use TikTok as your Online Stage Do you have the gift of teaching? Simply show it. Film a few short videos about yourself, your life, your work. Let people get to know you as a speaker and exhibit your skills of influence. You can take short videos when you’re at an event, you can even have your team go LIVE with you on stage. 6. Collaborate with Other Christian Entrepreneurs Nowadays young, highly-influenceable Christian entrepreneurs are presented with a lot of options and alternatives of similar type teachings. So we have to collaborate to present new and innovative thoughts to those that will listen. I’ve been collaborating more with other Christian business influencers, it’s definitely on the rise within our industry. If you want to TikTok together, let me know! Since we share common goals, values, target market, and business objectives, it’s a no-brainer. Together, we could reveal the one thing our audiences never done which could transform their business life forever. Everyone wins! Conclusion and Tips on using TikTok for Christian Personal Brands At the moment, TikTok is a new and unfamiliar territory for us Christian business owners. Many companies are still afraid to step on unstable soil. But for Christians who want to spread their message to the world, especially the young, the return on investment might be high for the months to come! I suggest approaching the platform with a Personal Branding Strategy that leads to a clear God-First Business Branding Focus. Step by step. Don’t be boring on TikTok, be influential! TikTok has the potential of being a major platform like Instagram and Facebook and shouldn’t be easily dismissed. The app is still in its infancy, but the number of users joining is impressive. It’s still too early to tell the future of the app, as it may continue to rise in popularity or it could plummet. If you are looking for your way to reach a young, new audience, an easy way to understand it and gain some interest from it TikTok is for you. Get more Tiktok fans and strengthen your brand on this platform by checking out this infographic from Digimush. P.S. I did a Business bible study called 7 Steps to Launching Your Christian Personal Brand. Check it out: 7 Steps to Launching Your Christian Personal Brand This business Bible study will help you launch a God-first personal brand that will help you strategically, financially, and personally. Developing your personal brand starts with launching something new and completely different from what you already have. Also, coaches and Christian business leaders, you can use, edit, and repurpose the teachings for your own tribe! Check it out. #GainConfidence #SharpenLeadership

I have a big struggle when it comes to hiring employees and delegating work to them. Let’s get one thing straight. I’m good at what I do. I know I was gifted with the abilities I have to brand and launch businesses. Are there others that can do what I do? Yes, of course. But I’m very talented at it, so it’s very difficult for me to let it go… We entrepreneurs always struggle with this tug of war of letting go more and more of the company in order to grow. But how do we balance this out? When have we let go too much? Just how much is too much? God provided me some insight today and I’ve been struggling with this. In the book of John, Jesus is in the middle of the parable of the good shepherd and his sheep. Jesus says: “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. (John 10:11‭-‬13 NIV) Here’s the reality. Nobody is going to care as much about my business as me (and a business partner if I have one). My role in the company is to be like Jesus and be a shepherd to the people I’m bringing on board. That’s the ultimate role and responsibility as a Godpreneur. That’s our primary calling: leading people like Christ would so they can see Christ in and through us. I may be a genius at my gifting, but the reality is that someone else is better than me. My job is to find that person and help mold and shape him or her. Like Jesus, I’m the Shepherd, and that’s what I’ve been called to do as an entrepreneur. #SharpenLeadership #BusinessBibleStudy

One thing is for certain:  in my business, I deal with a lot of uncertainty. Uncertain where the next client will come from. Uncertain how long this new economy will last. Uncertain of the next step to take. My wife hates uncertainty, she needs to be in control. We all experience uncertainty and we all process it differently. Some of us are less affected by it than others, but we’re all under its reality. As entrepreneurs, we agonize over decisions because we are afraid of making a mistake, but God doesn’t promise to give us absolute certainty. He invites us Godpreneurs to know and trust Him in the midst of uncertainty. That’s what faith is all about, and entrepreneurs have to learn how to manage, live with, and use uncertainty to their advantage.  Let it strengthen your faith and testimony of how God works in and through your business. The book of Proverbs says: Trust in the lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. (Proverbs 3 5-6) How comfortable are you with uncertainty? Imagine if we entrepreneurs could just trust that, after doing our best possible job, we left it in God’s hands and moved on to the next most important task for moving your business further. If you constantly worry about your business, surrender your fears to God. Instead of being determined to figure out what God wants you to do, focus instead on who He is. As human beings with finite minds, we do not always understand the eternal purposes behind hiring, firing, changing product and service offerings, bringing on new clients, and everything else that comes with uncertainty. Faith is trusting that our story will fit perfectly into His story. This is His business. He’s asked us to do something, He’ll do the rest so we can move on. Godpreneur Rule #61:  Trust God’s character in the midst of business uncertainty and embrace the wisdom and goodness of God working in and through our lives. #GainConfidence

As entrepreneurs, it’s easy to have a ‘successful’ week and want to reward ourselves. It’s so simple to look at last week’s amazing numbers and say “let’s go out for a steak dinner.” Rewarding yourself and going out for a steak dinner takes you off the vision you’ve set for yourself. One of the most important positions in medieval times was the night guard, protecting the castle at night in case of an invasion.  It required his vision to be clear, unadulterated by his phone, social media games, sleepiness, etc.  If he closed his eyes for a second, that’s when the enemy could attack. Just when you think everything is fine, and the reports are coming back that the cancer is gone, the weight you wanted to reach is here, the contract you’ve been waiting for was signed, don’t rest.  Stay alert. How many books are you reading this month? How many blog posts have you read about your specific industry? When you get on the phone with a new vendor or prospect today, what NEW information are you going to bring to the table? What will make you look like “Man, this dude is up-to-date on everything!”? Staying alert means keep up with the trends. Staying alert is knowing your competition is on your tail. Staying alert is realizing that your clients are always looking for a better deal, better service, better quality. Why stay alert?  Because not staying alert will produce HURT. Hurt your pocket, hurt your relationships, hurt your reputation, and hurt your ability to succeed. Stay alert….don’t get hurt. #EnhanceFocus

I can’t tell you how many of my tasks are overdue. You wouldn’t believe how many things are on my plate to get out. I’m not even sure how many balls are on my side of the court that are holding initiatives in my business up. I have campaigns to launch, client deadlines to meet, new business opportunities to create plans for, and prospects to follow up with. Oh, and not to mention, I have a personal life – you know… a wife, kids, working out, friends, and all of that. And I forgot – I have a spiritual life that, at times, takes a back seat to all of the other priorities and deadlines I have to meet. And putting God on the back-burner is precisely the problem with the hurry and rush of being a business owner. All of us Christian entrepreneurs have an enemy in our life that wants to rob our businesses blind. This enemy disguises himself to steal our love, our joy, and our peace. If this enemy can distract us long enough, we can all-together forget about leading a God-First business. The enemy is RUSH. I’ve heard it said before that if the devil can’t make you sin, he’ll make you busy. Busyness in business causes almost everything to be in “rush mode". Rushing is precisely where the enemy gets us to fail because it cuts off our relationship with God, other people, and our own Spirit. The ruthless elimination of rush will be one of the most significant challenges and accomplishments a Godpreneur can tackle so that the journey isn’t as burdensome as it feels right now. But how can we eliminate rush when people are relying on us, the bank accounts don’t just fill themselves up, and millions of our dreams still haven’t come to fruition? How can we slow down enough to lead emotionally rich and spiritually healthy and vibrant business lives? One of my favorite illustrations of the “chill” nature of Jesus was when a synagogue leader tells Jesus that his daughter had just died, and to come and lay hands on her so she could be revived. Jesus got up and started heading toward the leader’s house, but not before helping someone else on the way there. The story goes: While he was saying this, a synagogue leader came and knelt before him and said, “My daughter has just died. But come and put your hand on her, and she will live.” Jesus got up and went with him, and so did his disciples. Just then, a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak. She said to herself, “If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed.” Jesus turned and saw her. “Take heart, daughter,” he said, “your faith has healed you.” And the woman was healed at that moment. When Jesus entered the synagogue leader’s house and saw the noisy crowd and people playing pipes, he said, “Go away. The girl is not dead but asleep.” But they laughed at him. After the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took the girl by the hand, and she got up. News of this spread through all that region. (Matthew 9:18‭-‬26 NIV) What if Jesus would have RUSHED to the leader’s house? Certainly, someone’s death would qualify as a “rush job,” right? When an ambulance responds to an emergency, traffic moves aside, cars stop, and the petal is to the floor to react as fast as possible. And yet Jesus had the confidence about his Spirit that made it seem like even saving a little girl’s life can be done in a calm, cool, and collected way. Jesus’ unrushed nature gave him the capacity to meet a need on the way to meeting another need. Do you see the two-for-one that happened there? In the same amount of time, Jesus did double the miracles. Look, there’s a way to be busy that’s healthy. When you have purpose and passion, you’re going to have a lot on your plate. Jesus was a very busy man traveling city to city. The problem isn’t when you have a lot to do in your business; the problems come when you rush because you have too much on your to-do list. The problem is thinking the only way to keep up with the demands of entrepreneurship is to rush everything. The reality is if the enemy always wants us to be in a hurry and disconnect us from God, then rushing things is entirely incompatible to leading a God-First business. We can’t be led by Spirit and speed. Slowing Down Let’s try slowing down today. The evidence of rush will show up in our bodies, our stress level, at meetings, and any sense of hurry or irritation. The evidence of this rush will all but eliminate our ability to be present in love so we can respond to the Spirit’s calling for the moment. Imagine if we were too busy to not pick up a phone call from a friend asking us to pray for him. Right now, and a few more times through the day, take a deep breath on, imagine God’s loving presence enveloping you, and thank God for slowing you down. #DifferentiatingMyself #WorkLifeBalance

As I’ve written many times in the past, I feel a deep call to rid the world of an identity crisis. There are business owners who are running businesses they shouldn’t be running and have a whole different passion for something else, yet are stuck. I know this because I was one of them. Since I’ve chosen such a “worldwide” view of my deep desire, I’ve been able to re-shape the way I operate my business of doing logos and websites. It has helped me reveal my talent as a Brand Strategist. I’ve been able to focus on specific expertise. It’s helped me eliminate distractions from around me and discern what ideas I should pursue and which ones need to go in the icebox (for later). What I’ve discovered about myself, now I bring in as a methodology to my clients. There are three major areas I consider when looking to discover what my clients are born to do. Today I’ll show you one: the needs of the world. The business God calls you to is where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet. The single strongest indicator of the business mindset God wants you to be in is probably your awareness of what needs to be done to make the world more like what God intends. For me, I would see businesses fail constantly. Remember, I’m the guy doing the logo and website so I’m seeing people BEFORE the start. In 2014 I started to realize a trend: the successful ones were doing it out of a passion as if they were born to do it. The others were following a trend or doing it because there’s money in it. The Bible says: "Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need". Ephesians 4:28 NIV I’m in a position to take their money and run with whatever their idea is, or I can guide them to see how their product or service will impact the world as a whole. If we can’t find it, then we need to dig deeper. This doesn’t necessarily mean all of my clients solve world hunger or other huge, global problems. Working to serve the good of the larger society doesn’t have to be one of the obvious bigger issues. I can’t meet every need in the world, so I narrowed it down to helping people discover their true identity, their purpose, their passion. This set me apart from logo and web guys and helped me see my business in a way in which I’m helping meet the world’s needs. Questions I ask my clients to discover their world solution: What do you observe or notice that needs to change in the world? What do you feel strongly about? What people do you care about? What do you think God has called you to? Once we’ve identified areas, I ask them to consider needs that they are in a good position to meet, that few other people are willing to address, or that they find especially pressing. God has given me the ability to recognize something of what the world needs. There is no biblical formula for translating the needs of the world into a precise business to pursue. I didn’t hear God audibly say “Alex, rid the world of an identity crisis.” Instead, God expects me to notice it and get to work, rather than waiting for a special call from him. I noticed my call while participating in a Bible study at my church. I pray to God to please continue to open my eyes to ways (big or small) that may be inviting me to partner with Him to care for the world’s needs. As I experience more of God’s love, I love others as He loves me. This is how I stay in my ‘born to do’ zone. #BusinessBibleStudy #FindingMyBrand

In Joshua 4:1-9, under the guidance of God and the leadership of Joshua, Israel was now on the other

When there are problems in my business, I’ve learned that playing the blame game is the worst thing you can do. We blame the economy, the employees, the clients, the landlord, etc. Here is what I’ve learned: Trials in business expose our entrepreneurial weaknesses and challenge us to grow… spiritually. Could it be that the purpose of problems in our business is to expose OUR OWN shortcomings? When a problem arises, is the first question out of your mind “what could I have done differently?” If not, then you’re missing out on the lessons that will propel you and your company to heights you couldn’t have imagined….visions that God has for your entrepreneurial life. #GainConfidence #IncreaseEnergy

There’s a lot of decision making when you’re an entrepreneur. I’m constantly making decisions: what’s my next move, who do I contract, who do I call next, what’s most important on my to do, how do I close this deal, where can I get a better deal? And if you’re like me, you’re probably making these decisions alone. This is dangerous for me and you. One IS the loneliest number when it comes to business. The bible talks about there being wise counsel in the multitude. So I have a couple of coaches that I rely on. But the bible also says that if I rely on God and His wisdoms for my business, its like building a house on a rock. When the problems come, I’ll still be left standing. Years ago I made a commitment to strengthen my relationship with God. In making that commitment, I was entering into a partnership that would allow me to have wise counsel whenever I pleased. Are you making business decisions based on what YOU think is good to do, or are you praying and talking to God and reading His Word to find out what HE wants you to do? So that’s what we need to start doing. My commitment in 2015 is to know God better by spending a set time each morning in prayer and meditation, to LISTEN to God’s vision for me, and to FOLLOW THROUGH with what He tells me. #FindMyCalling #ArticulatingMyIdeas

I can’t remember the last time I said “Thank you God, for blessing me with the gift of entrepreneurism.” As Godpreneurs, we believe we’re on this earth to accomplish a duty and obligation God has set before we were born. But our hearts are still deceitful. It helps to ask ourselves, “Why do I serve the Lord?” Is it to gain His favor, earn His blessings, impress others with our “godliness”, or avoid His wrath? Or is it because He commands me to do it? As entrepreneurs are bombarded with the demands of life on earth, mainly financial demands, we often lose sight of the eternal perspective. I started a new routine in the mornings to help keep me aligned. Start your work day by recognizing who He is and what He has done in your business. This will help you obey Him not from a robotic sense of duty, but from the overflow of thankfulness that is in your heart. Be a Godpreneur because you love God above all things…even over the financial gains. #StrengthenIntegrity #SharpenLeadership

One of the most frustrating concepts in my business is “waiting on God’s timing.” I’m always hearing ‘strike while it’s hot’ and ‘there’s never going to be a time like now’ and ‘do it before someone else’s does’. I recognize some of this as hyped up sales talk, but it could also be God speaking through someone else to me, right? It’s a mystery to me…the concept that there’s a time to grow and a time to act. I’ve seen it play out over and over in my business.  Sometimes I feel like I made the right decision, sometimes I bombed the timing and failed miserably. I’ve started businesses that I shouldn’t have just because one day I woke up and had a vision. The same has happened to me with marketing campaigns and releasing new products. I’ve let visions of the future deter my current daily duties, taking me off track. But even amidst the mystery of God’s timing, I do know that one concept is fact: action before preparation usually spells disaster. We entrepreneurs want to shoot first and ask questions later. We want to live the dream that if you build it, they will come. We don’t like writing business plans. We want to throw up the vision on our team and hope they got it and have it done by next week. But this isn’t how God wants us to react as Godpreneurs. In the case of what we were born to do, God wants to prepare us for what he knows lies ahead. We may urgently feel the need to act on a business idea or a new email blast that seems foolish to wait on, but God has bigger plans we don’t understand. The Bible says, "For it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose". Philippians 2:13 NIV God’s timing is perfect, and our visions are simply a small part of His bigger vision. This is why God wants to work INSIDE of us, to prepare us to act on what we were born to do.  And when we’re ready, that’s when He’s ready for us to act…it will be on His timetable. God’s timing can be hard to hear for you, right? I know, that’s the struggle. This is the biggest thing I hear about from entrepreneurs and would-be entrepreneurs. You think that once the vision is clear, we must be ready, otherwise, why would we have the vision? All I have to say is don’t be impatient. We shouldn’t move before God leads. We accept his training and his timing. Meanwhile, what we were born to do, though it may burn inside of us, will enable us to endure the wait, because we know it’s worth it to get it right. We know that having a vision will come BEFORE the preparation. LeBron James had the vision of being the best in the world BEFORE his preparation.  It was the vision that gave him the strength to endure the preparation: all the practicing and hard work. Visions will always be bigger than us.  That’s the point!  Within that tension is where we always want to live because then we know God is always working on us. Godpreneur Rule #29: Our visions are meant to prepare us, they aren’t to be acted on. The preparation will lead to the vision coming to life. #WorkLifeBalance #DifferentiatingMyself

A few years ago I received a letter in the mail from a law firm. The firm was representing Getty Images, a website that sells stock photography asking us to prove that we purchased a certain image that was on our website. But we couldn’t provide the proof because, as the law firm suspected, we had used the image without purchasing it. We had to pay a hefty fine. From that day forward, we became extremely cautious with the imagery we use on our website and our clients as well. Now we follow the rules and pay for our stock photography. The fear of having to pay another fine keeps me on the straight path, even though there have been plenty of other opportunities to save money and just grab a free image I find on Google. We all have opportunities in our businesses to lie, cheat and steal.  We have ways to twist the truth, while covering it by making others think we are angelic. How can we CHANGE our ways? For me, a letter in the mail threatening a lawsuit if I didn’t pay fines helped me to change. But do we need a lawsuit, bankruptcy or a breakup to reach us a lesson? Well, actually, God will use whatever He can to get your attention and change your ways. In the book of Acts, we come across an event that makes my point. A husband and wife sold their land and donated the proceeds to the early church.  They told everyone that they gave ALL of the proceeds, but they lied, and only gave a portion. "Didn’t it belong to you before it was sold? And after it was sold, wasn’t the money at your disposal? What made you think of doing such a thing? You have not lied just to human beings but to God.” (Acts 5:4 NIV) That same day, they both died. The amazing part of this incident is that everyone else who heard about this stopped cheating. They saw that God doesn’t play. You can be told that downloading pirated movies is illigal. You can be warned by your accountant that using your company credit card for personal expenses is cheating on your taxes. You can cut corners on delivering the service or product that your customers purchased. But you can’t stop God from knowing your ways, and doing something to correct it. Knowing God is there to love us so much to want us to be better, we have two choices: 1) we can know that God expects more from us, and stop our ways, or 2) we can accept the consequences when the lawyer sends the letter and let it be a lesson for the future. We should be so lucky that God loves us so much to send us a lawsuit so that we can grow to be the best representative of Him in this world. Godpreneur Rules #74: Godpreneurs have a healthy fear of God that helps us grow. #StrengthenIntegrity #WorkLifeBalance

The other day my coordinator followed up with a lead I had spoken to back in March about a branding and website package.  My first conversation with this prospect was awesome!  Seemed like he was going to buy on the spot.  I sent him the email follow up with a payment and scheduling link. When my coordinator gets on the phone with him, he angrily complains that we never followed up and it’s too late now and he’s already gone with another firm and to not call anymore. When I heard this I was very surprised. I had a great conversation and everything seemed like the start of something awesome. My surprised attitude quickly turned to an anger inside because I was now insulted at the claim we never followed up. As entrepreneurs we are constantly being angered and insulted and pushed around. Sometimes from clients, sometimes from our own employees. So what do you do when that anger boils up and you feel like telling that person off? In Proverbs 15:1 we read A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. God says hold your tongue. God says to show love. When I got back to my desk I went straight to the email I had originally sent following up and I replied to the email and calmly explained that I was sorry he may have missed my follow up email and if there was anything we could do in the future to help we are here to serve. I even wished him good luck on his new venture! He replied that he was sorry that he didn’t see the first email and that he’s busy now and will get back to us. I could have replied angirly. But instead it was a gentle reply that opened the relationship back up. #SharpenLeadership