Christians and business is there a connection?

Recently on FaceBook there was a question posted regarding Christians and their postings. The writer asked if it was inappropriate for a Christian business owner to post scripture or even offer prayer on FaceBook, wasn’t that taking it too far? My response to her was “If we are willing to accept profanities and sexual content then why can’t we accept positive postings reflecting one’s faith?”

You see the problem today is that there are many Christian’s conducting business however, not many Christian businesses. What is the difference? A Christian that conducts business keeps it reveled that they are a Christian unless directly asked and in many cases it is not even evident that the business owner is a Christian based on the way the business is ran and their attitude/words/actions. A Christian business puts Christ first in all their activities.

According to Matthew 6:33, …”But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” Basically if we put God first in all we do He will bless and provide for us. So the question that can be asked at this point is, do you put God first in your business?

Sometimes I think we may be afraid to say we are a Christian in fear of chasing away potential business. However, I know for a fact that your clients/customers are looking for something more than all the hype and look/feel good stuff that was out there in 2009. They want honesty and integrity, which in most cases can be found in a Christian business. Keep in mind if they reject you because you are a Christian they are not rejecting you they are rejecting Christ.
Here is my challenge for each of us in 2010 as we step forward creating our RoadMaps and business plans may we each embrace Matthew 13:31-32; Here is another illustration Jesus used: "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed planted in a field. It is the smallest of all seeds, but it becomes the largest of garden plants and grows into a tree where birds can come and find shelter in its branches." We never know whom we might touch by acting and living like a Christian in every aspect of our lives. Will you hear “Why not” or “Well done” when you stand before God?

Christmas and 1 Corinthians 13

As we all know 1 Corinthians 13 is the chapter in the Bible all about love, unconditional love. A friend of mine gave me this Christmas reflection yesterday and I thought it would be great to share this with you with only a few days left before we embrace all the celebrations that Christmas Day will hold for us. The author is unknown.

If I decorate my house perfectly with plaid bows,

Strands of twinkling lights and shiny balls,

But do not show love to my family,

I’m just a decorator.

I slave away in the kitchen, baking dozens of Christmas cookies,

Preparing gourmet meals and arranging a beautifully

Adorned table at mealtime,

But do not show love to my family,

I’m just another cook.

If I work at the soup kitchen, sing carols in the nursing home

And then give all that I have to charity,

But do not show love to my family,

It profits me nothing.

If I trim the spruce with shimmering angels and crocheted snowflakes,

Attend a myriad of holiday parties,

And sing in the choir’s,

But do not focus on Christ,

I have missed the point.

Love stops the cooking to hug the child.

Love sets aside the decorating to kiss the husband.

Love is kind, though harried and tired.

Love doesn’t yell at the kids to get out of the way,

But is thankful they are there to be in the way.

Love doesn’t give only to those who are able to give in return

But rejoices in giving to those who can’t.

Love bears all things,

Believes all things,

Hopes all things,

Love never fails.

Video games will break,

Pearl necklaces will be lost,

Golf clubs will rust,

But giving the gift of love will endure.

Sometimes we all get lost in the hustle and bustle of life and Christmas, I pray that this year we may all take a little time to reflect on the greatest gift we were ever given. The gift of the Son, Jesus Christ which is so priceless and we sometimes regard it as spare change. Here is to a Christmas filled with Christ and His unconditional agape love for us! Merry Christmas!

A reason to celebrate.

With only a few days left till Christmas morning springs itself upon us with all the giggles, excitement and love; many may be trying to figure out how to get the enormous lists of toys the children are wanting. Isn’t it funny how when I was a kid we asked for one toy maybe two, for me usually a Barbie Doll and that was all. Today however the lists have almost become novels, like a recent Christmas movie that portrayed a child on Santa’s lap going on and on about what he wanted, even Santa was like are you done yet!


A friend of mine was sharing her heart at one of our women’s fellowships. Her family was a military family for many years so at Christmas they were always blessed with gifts for the kids, about 5 or 6 different toys and games each. Today her husband is no longer an active military service man so they are not getting the support they had when moving from base to base. However the children’s Christmas list is even longer today and the toys are now much more expensive with electronic gadgets and all. She was concerned about making the children happy like any mom would want for her kids, however they do not have the money to provide the same kind of Christmas the children had grown accustomed to in the past.

You see so many of us today are caught in the same situation as my friend, not enough money to fill the want list from our kids and families. The answer is really simple if we are willing to step back and celebrate Christmas for what it is meant to be, a celebration of the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!

What if we changed our perspective and focused on the true meaning of this holiday? Nothing wrong with giving gifts, God gave us Jesus! The problem comes when we loose our focus on the true meaning of Christmas and turn it into primarily an overspending shopping spree to make people happy, for the moment. Then we try to figure out how to pay off all we have charged, causing stress and depression. What if we scaled back the worldly side of Christmas and enlarged our faith filled side?

During the challenges today in our economy with all the job and home losses we can still celebrate and rejoice this week. We can celebrate the amazing gift that our Father in heaven has given us, the gift of eternal life through His Son Jesus Christ. He knows where you are today and He knows your needs, maybe it is time to surrender ALL to Him to find room in your hearts to celebrate the gift God has given us.

We all have a reason to celebrate this amazing Christmas season, the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!

Can you believe it we are rapidly approaching 2010? Are you a new entrepreneur or a seasoned one? Perhaps you are one of the thousands of Accidental Entrepreneurs of 2009. No matter the case it is time to seriously look at the approach you will have for the New Year. I know many are saying I am too busy to look at it now with Christmas and all. Let me tell you if you do not start planning it now you will not begin the process because something will always be a priority.

A friend of mine, perhaps you know him Chris Bogan (http://chrisbogan.com/), mentioned in his blog this week that his forecast is that we will see small businesses merging together. Taking what you are lacking in skill & resources and merge with an appropriate counterpart. So the question lies in your hands do you want to merge or stand out as the expert and go to source on your own? Something to think about, as many will flee to what they consider the safety net of a JOB, however let me remind you what happen this year that so called safety net yielded 600,000 average job losses per month…safety net?

Nothing happens overnight a business takes planning, structuring and sometime re-inventing to fit with the economy today and your passions. If you do not start that thought process now how can you launch anything except perhaps a football as you watch the games on New Years? It is crucial for you to take the time to sit down and plan for 2010, at least for the first 3 months of the year. Below are some great questions to ask yourself that my friend Adam Urbanski from The Marketing Mentors (http://themarketingmentors.com/) asked himself as he launched a very successful business:

1. WHAT do I want to accomplish?
2. WHY do I want to achieve it?
3. What BARRIERS stopped me from already achieving this goal?
4. What new SOLUTIONS and SKILLS do I need to acquire?
5. What specific ACTION STEPS do I need to take to achieve this goal?
6. What SUPPORT will I need?

I challenge you today to answer each of these questions in complete honesty so you can discover you next steps for 2010. Once you have your hearts desire then connect with an expert to help you stay on track, a Business Coach. Even those of us that are Business Coaches hire a coach to keep us on track. Invest in yourself and you will succeed!

Choosing the right business…Part 2

Choosing the right business…
Part 2 “Start your own business from scratch.”

Where do you begin when starting a business by scratch or your own ideas? The process may seem overwhelming however, once laid out it is a simple process.

There are a few questions to ask yourself when launching a business from scratch:

1. What am I passionate about? When we speak of passion it

means what to you absolutely love to do, think about during

the day and even dream about at night.
2. What have you been told you are really good at?
3. What are the needs in the community?
4. What would I call my business?
5. Do I provide a service or product?
6. What expenses are related to launching the business?
7. Do you need a place to store products?
8. What is the anticipated rate of return? (initial output of money compared to the income)
9. Do you have a support system?
10. Do you need licensing or permits?
11. Home office set-up or rent an office space?
12. What is my plan? (Your RoadMap, Goals, Business Plan)
13. How will I market my business?
14. Do I have enough reserves to survive until the business is profitable?

These are just a few solid questions you need to know the answer to in order to be successful. Most of the time you can launch your business from your home with the use of the internet therefore, start-up costs could be relatively small. Understand that starting a business does not mean you will instantly make thousands of dollars; businesses take time to grow and become profitable. Most businesses take up to 2 years to see a profit, so you must be prepared to cover the expenses until the business can sustain itself.

It is really crucial as you build your business you establish a presence on the internet. Research has shown that 73.9% of us utilize the internet to seek out products and services. It is not necessary to invest thousands of dollars into a website, the main things you want to be sure happen with the website are:

· You own it
· You can modify it
· You are ranking on Google or Yahoo searches (SEO)
· Cost can be $500 to $2,000 depending on the size

So what is holding you back now? You have the questions you need to know in order to launch the most amazing journey of your life; you just have to put it into play.

Choosing the right business…

Choosing the right business…
Part 1 “Choosing a direct sales business”

You are ready to launch into the journey of entrepreneurialism whether it is as an intentional or accidental entrepreneur, now what? How do you choose which business to start? There are so many options available for every person from cosmetics to insurance and beyond. The key is to research what is the best fit for you, what are you passionate about.

My suggestion to you is to create a pro and con list for each idea you have, explore both sides openly. There are businesses you can pay a couple of hundred dollars to start and have a full business plan ready for you or you can build one from your own ideas. Let’s explore some of the options available to you as a buy in business or direct sales business.

A direct sales business is easy to start and yet may be more challenging to generate an income that can sustain you and your family. The great part of a direct sales business is the structure is already established so you basically pay your start up fees and start running. Here are a few questions to ask yourself when considering a direct sales opportunity:

1) How much is the start up costs and what do I get for the money?
2) What kind of training and support do they offer you?
3) Were they pushy to get you to sing up, promising you will make thousands of dollars (if so
run away)?
4) Do you believe in the product you would be selling?
5) How many other representatives are in your marketing area?
6) What lifestyle (car, clothes, etc) does your recruiter have, most are not really making the

money they claim you can make?
7) Are you willing to recruit team members for residual income?
8) Is the product in demand today, does it meet a need?
9) Do you have a passion for the products and do you use them?
10)Do you have months of reserve money in the bank to sustain you while you build your

client lists?

These are a few good questions to ask before you jump into a direct sales business. There are some people that are really good at this type of business and others that are not a good fit to be a direct sales business owner. There are other sales businesses like real estate and insurance you may want to consider as well. These types of businesses require state licensing and in some cases the parent company will look at your credit and determine if you are a good candidate. For example, recently we found that Farmer’s Insurance will pull your credit and if you have any negative you will not be considered. We asked them why someone’s credit, especially today, would be such a factor. The response from an Inland Empire office was, “if you have poor credit you are not good enough to get the application approved.” My suggestion to you, do your homework and do not take anything personal!

Part 2 Start your own business from scratch.

It’s Your Life!

It’s Your Life!

25 Tips for the Entrepreneur that will keep you on the right path…

1) Take 30 minutes a day to move! Smile while you move it is the best natural anti-

depressant available (endurance, health, focus).
2) Take 10 minutes a day sit in silence; no phones, no computer (refreshes the mind).
3) Every morning before you step out of bed complete the following statement:
“My purpose today is ________________.”
4) Eat more foods that grow on plants and less foods made from the inside of commercial
plants.
5) Drink plenty of water, drink green tea, and eat fruit grown in local trees, wild Alaskan

salmon, spinach, carrots and almonds.
6) Try to make at least 3 people smile each day. Smiles are contagious so just smile at them

and they will smile back.
7) Don’t waste your energy on gossip, issues of the past, negative thoughts, things you can not

control. Focus on what you “DO” want, dream big!
8) Eat breakfast, lunch in peace and dinner with a friend or loved one in a chair leisurely.
9) Life is not fair, BUT it is still good.
10) Life is too short to be angry, stingy and/or greedy.
11) Try not to judge yourself! Find yourself to be your best ally not your worst enemy.
12) Make peace with your past, so it won’t spoil the present. It is over, next is ahead!
13) Don’t compare your life to that of others, you have no idea what their journey is about or

been.
14) You don’t have to win every argument, it is ok to disagree.
15) No one is in charge of your happiness except for you! Close your eyes and say I am the boss.
16) Frame any “disaster” with these words, “Five years from now will it matter?” Better yet

“One year from now will it matter”.
17) Forgive everyone for everything, unforgiveness only hurts you.
18) What other people think of you is none of your business, what you think of you is vital!
19) God helps, it is His plan. We just need to trust His bigger picture, know we are loved and

keep moving forward.
20) However good or bad a situation is; it will change. The one thing we can bet on is change will

happen, move with it!
21) Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick, your friends & family will. Keep in touch

and be social.
22) Envy is a waste of time. You already have everything you need.
23) Each night before you go to bed, complete the following statements: “I am thankful for

_____________.” “Today I accomplished _____________.” Stay in a mindset of

gratitude.
24) Remember, you are too blessed to be stressed.
25) Share this with everyone.

Enjoy Life!