A recent article from Inc. magazine described Peter Drucker, business guru and leader, as a lifelong learner. The article said, “Drucker every year assigned himself a topic about which he knew nothing and made it the subject of intense study.” No matter the amount of wisdom and knowledge we have already obtained, there is more to gain. The value of ...
A Praxis Labs article described our post-lockdown situation as “every business is now a startup.” In this series let’s take a look at what Christians in business can learn from other entrepreneurs. One thing startups do is to treat ideas as a hypothesis until proven true. Right now, you may think that everything will return to normal. That’s only a ...
As I write this broadcast, crude oil prices went negative for the first time ever. Sellers of oil are paying others to take their oil rather than find a place to store it. This is an unintended consequence of the stay-at-home orders of the coronavirus. Gas demand has plummeted, and the oil companies have more oil than they can possibly ...
In this series we’re examining some instructive attributes of an amazing man who impressed Jesus. In Luke 7, we read of a Roman Centurion imploring Jesus to miraculously heal this Centurion’s servant. The second attribute about this Centurion that stands out to me is his strategic wisdom. This centurion could have pleaded his case personally, or perhaps, tried to use ...
As you reflect over this past year, has 2019 gone as planned? If you’re 2019 was like ours, it probably hasn’t. Although some things went better than plan, many did not. Although I can’t control the economy or those around me, I can pause at year-end to reflect and learn. Year-end is a great time to thank God for His ...
A recent “Pew Research Center” poll found that seven in ten Americans say that trust in society is declining. Four in ten think that declining trust is “a very big problem.” Yet, a Wall Street Journal article notes that despite declining trust in institutions, many new digital applications are transforming our trust in each other. Consider the trust required to ...
In the mid-1980's, the retail industry was changing. Walmart was growing rapidly, while Kmart was beginning to decline. Jim, a friend of mine, was an executive at Kmart at the time. Jim remembers Kmart executives holding a weekend retreat specifically to discuss Walmart’s success. Yet, any comments addressing the possibility that Walmart could overtake Kmart were quickly squelched. When Jim ...
The State of Kansas was a pioneer in allowing private industry to hire prison labor. Many prisoners work for the state making license plates for about $.50 per hour. Working for private industry, however, is different. I toured the Hutchinson, Kansas prison recently and a private company housed inside the prison called Seat King. Seat King has worked out a ...
In a Harvard Business Review article, Mike Erwin identified six reasons that can lead to poor decisions. The fifth reason is emotions. As a young trainee in banking, I was presenting loan requests to the bank’s CEO. When I realized that he was in a foul mood, I moved my toughest loan request from the top of my stack to ...
Which came first, the chicken or the egg? We have all heard this idiom. And in business, it could not be truer. Knowing what steps should come first and discerning priorities is cumbersome and can be overwhelming at times. We are bombarded with choices and opinions. Too many possibilities have the potential to distract from making progress in any one ...
Equipping Others to Do Work Differently
