Being a Christian entrepreneur is as much a spiritual journey as it is a challenge to put forth our best professional foot.  Today, I’m going to let you in on a little secret! 

When I first started my business I went through a phase where I was really struggling with pride issues - and it wasn’t the kind of pride that you feel about a job well done. 

My pride was in not wanting to admit that I didn’t know certain things and that I needed help and support to fulfill God’s call.  You see, I had already enjoyed a successful career and for the most part my work was on auto-pilot.  I knew exactly how to navigate the corporate environment, I had established a great professional network over the years and not too many things took me by surprise anymore.

(I could get into detail here about the fact that I was also deeply miserable in corporate because I was not really living my calling – but I’ll leave that for another time.)

Being someone who values quality, likes order and at times can border on being a bit of a perfectionist, I suddenly struggled with having to learn so many new things and not necessarily being very good at them right of the bat.  Fears of potentially looking bad, losing credibility or coming across as an amateur were haunting me! 

In fact, I let it get to me so much that for months and months I put off trying new things like webinars, creating videos and even writing my first blog post.  I overanalyzed everything from my German accent to the occasional typo that made its way into my writing – God forbid I should ever be caught being less than perfect!

Of course God was using this phase in my business to break me and mold me on a spiritual level – to let go of trying to control everything and let Him take the wheel.  Out of all the spiritual battles that I have had to face, this was one of the most difficult for me and it was threatening to claim and devour what I wanted most in life, to use my gifts for the glory of God’s kingdom in the form of business ministry.

Here’s are the 3 key things God revealed to me as I was seeking Him to break free from this stronghold in my professional life.

1. Take the focus off your past accomplishments, titles, awards, etc. and instead praise Him for His goodness.  When we credit ourselves for what we have achieved to date, we are also assuming ownership of our future future success and edging God out by taking control.  (Jer. 9:23-24)
2. Your work is not yours – our hearts’ desires were given to us by the Lord who wants us to fulfill them not for our personal gain but rather for His glory.  Let Him take the lead and show you how He would have you run your business. (Eph. 2:10)
3. Pride is one of the enemy’s greatest weapons to keep you where you are and render you ineffective.  When we refuse to admit our weak spots and humbly ask for help, we limit our growth and what we can accomplish for God’s purposes - don’t limit what God wants to supernaturally do in your life and business. (Prov. 11:2)

From marketing to business finances, you may have your own learning curve, but more so, what are your spiritual landmines when it comes to growing a business?  Feel free to share in the comments below and also let us know how you have overcome your obstacles with the help of God’s everlasting truth.

If you are looking for someone to support you as you start and grow your kingdom business, who will pray with you and also provide you with the practical steps of creating a profitable enterprise, I invite you to schedule at complimentary “Next Level Business Success” strategy session with me.  Click here to access my online calendar.

I remember my first radio interview – I was so nervous I kept hoping the producer would call and tell me the we had to postpone.  The truth is, fear of the unknown is the number #1 barrier to our success as kingdom entrepreneurs – and if left unchecked, it will rob us of our confidence, leave us powerless, and can even cost us our chance to see our dreams realized. 

What’s even worse is that when we allow our fears to take over, we start conspiring with them in order to rationalize our lack of courage.  We’ll say things like:

• “I just don’t have the money, time, resources, etc. to take that on.”
• “I’m just not professionally ready for that yet – maybe next time.”
• “My [spouse, friend, co-worker, etc.] told me I shouldn’t do it.”
• “The economy is just too bad to succeed with that right now.”
• “I am waiting on God and have to pray about it.”

In reality however, we are shutting the door on success because we are afraid of it.  It’s so much more comfortable to just stay where we are, in familiar surroundings.  After all, if the prospects don’t show up, the event doesn’t happen and our business stays under the radar, we won’t be pressured to perform.  We play small and subconsciously push opportunities away from us, because we are afraid of the person we will need to become in order to fully step into our God-ordained future. 

I have learned that whenever I am afraid to move forward with something unfamiliar and challenging, my brain immediately wants to kick into full procrastination mode. My mind gets busy finding excuses and reasons to stall until the threat of having to take action has passed along with the deadline.  I had to train myself to recognize and push through the fear and anxiety and refuse to let it steal what God has purposed for my life.

We can’t escape it – as entrepreneurs we will always face pressure to learn new skills, try new things, and take bigger risks in order to grow our businesses and position ourselves as leaders in our respective fields.  One of the characteristics all great entrepreneurs possess is the guts to open the door when opportunity knocks even if they feel utterly unequipped for the task.  It is this willingness to take risks and conquer new frontiers that keeps us in the race and helps us grow beyond our perceived limitations.  God did not give us a spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind (2 Tim. 1:7). 

There is only one way to effectively overcome fear and become everything God has called us to be.  We need lean on Him who told us not to be afraid and allow Him to raise up our courage, faith and confidence that we can accomplish all things through Christ who gives us strength (Phil. 4:13).  He promised us that we shall not lack anything we need in order to perfectly fulfill our purpose.  Whatever your need, ask for it!

Whoever came up with the saying “God won’t give you more than you can handle” was absolutely right because when we cower in fear of our own success, we are essentially telling God not to send us any more opportunities!  Instead, we should put on an attitude of faithful expectancy that whatever opportunities He wants to bless us with, He will also equip us to handle with excellence.

Starting now, I encourage you to ask Him to send you big and exciting things and tell Him that you trust Him to lead you every step of the way.  Oh, and in case you’re wondering how my first radio appearance turned out, I actually did quite well – check it out here  if you’d like.

If you would like additional help on your path to successful kingdom entrepreneurship, I invite you to schedule a complimentary “Next Level Business Growth” session with me.

Consequently, I see many entrepreneurs going wild with posting, blogging, pinning, and tweeting in an effort to replicate what the “experts” told them, yet without first outlining what it is that they actually want to achieve with all that activity and putting a plan in place to measure their return on investment.

There is an old saying in Quality Management circles that ”you can’t improve what you can’t measure” and any activity that is measured and does not positively influence bottom line results, should be eliminated.  As a Six Sigma green belt I learned that in order to improve any process you must first define the problem statement (or goal), create a baseline of your performance, strategize on how to improve the outcome, and maintain the results.  Without this logical sequence your attempts to achieve better results will be random at best.

Here are three key questions to ask yourself when it comes to your social media efforts:

1. What’s my main objective?
Gain online visibility, drive website traffic, gain new leads…etc.

2. What are my current patterns of engagement?
Consistency, audience response, time and money invested, evidence of ROI …etc.

3. What do I need to change?
Increase activity on platforms with high ROI, decrease or eliminate low yield social media activity…etc.

Whether it’s a Facebook post, a Tweet or a blog post – just because you put it out there doesn’t mean it will resonate with your target audience.  You must continuously pay attention to what works and what doesn’t and also give yourself permission to stop any activities that cost you more time and money than they are worth.

If you want to be successful in your small business and become a wise steward of your resources, it is crucial that you spend the majority of your time on revenue generating tasks.  Strive to eliminate non-value add tasks and at all times be cognizant of where your money comes from.  For example, if 80% of your business is generated by customer referrals, don’t sink all your time into marketing on Facebook – spend it on rewarding the customers who sent you the new leads!

If you would like to learn more about how I can help you make your small business a success, I invite you to schedule a complimentary business strategy session with me.

Almost everyone carries one or more ‘desires of the heart’ within them that they hope to see realized someday.  Very few people however, proceed to actually writing down their dreams and fashioning a plan to make them a reality.  In fact, according to a study conducted at Harvard Business School, this represents only 3% of the population!

As you go through your daily routine, how much time do YOU actually invest in cultivating your dream?

Some of us dream ‘occasionally’ when something in our environment reminds us that we are (still) not where we want to be in life.  Others may spend more time visualizing their dreams, yet without active pursuit.

Try this simple exercise to see how you are tracking toward your goals:  take a piece of paper and create three columns.  In the first column, list your top 10 wants, desires, goals.  In the second column, note how recently you took an active step (no matter how small) toward the achievement of your goal.  In the third column, note the main reason you feel has kept you from making progress (i.e. finances, workload, family issues). 

Goal	Last Action Taken	Greatest Obstacle
Write Novel	2 months ago	Family interrupts during writing time.
Start Online Business	None	Not sure where to start.
Loose Weight	3 days ago	No time to work out.

Yogi Berra said:  “If you don’t know where you’re going you might wind up somewhere else”, but wouldn’t you also agree that “if you don’t go at all, you wind up where you have always been?”

Herein lays the secret to achieving your goals!  In order to see your dreams come true, you must cultivate them with consistency, much like you would nurture a seed after it has been planted.  Think about it – you wouldn’t just stick a seed in barren ground, walk away and expect a beautiful apple tree to sprout forth, would you?

No, you would instead carefully prepare the ground by removing rocks and sifting the dirt.  Next you would select the best variety of apple seed, plant it, water it, and nurture it again and again with water, sun, and fertilizer until you are able to enjoy the fruit of your labor.  You would also be careful not to let any weeds (aka obstacles) choke out your seedling.

Realizing your dreams works surprisingly similar.  You decide what kind of fruit you wish to harvest (your goal) and then set out to prepare yourself and your environment to support the implementation of your goal.  Each step is equally important and must not be neglected – we can neither short-cut the preparation nor can we rush the growth process or expect a bountiful harvest without properly nuturing our efforts.

Consider 2 Corinthians 9:6: “The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.”

The key to staying motivated and experiencing progress on your journey toward the achievement of your dream is to break down your goals into smaller milestones.  Remember our seed analogy:

…Prepare, Sow, Water, Feed, Weed, Grow, Harvest, Repeat!

Let’s imagine for a moment that your dream is to become a professional golfer.  You wouldn’t just sign up for a national championship, play without preparation, loose and then give up your dream…right?  Instead, you would make a plan to continually improve your game!

This may consist of setting mini goals like researching and selecting the perfect golf course for practice, scheduling your sessions in advance, studying golfing techniques, and networking with those who have already achieved the skill level you wish to attain in order to get their advice and support.

Most importantly, no matter what your goal is, you would keep your eyes on the prize at all times and actively nurture your dream by celebrating your achievements along the way.  You must diligently practice holding the vision God has given you for your life.  Develop the faith and confidence to see yourself as having already attained your dream and before you know it, you will!

If your big dream involves starting your own business, I invite you to schedule a complimentary business strategy session with me.  Let’s explore together what it will take to launch or grow your goal of successful entrepreneurship!

As I regained my nerves after being startled by the noise and jolt, I thought about the number of times my car’s wheels have had to be realigned due to these type of road surprises and it brought to mind a similarity to the adversity we often encounter on our path to find our calling.  You see, our pursuit of God’s call on our lives also demands that we stop often to re-calibrate our mission, lest we veer off the path God has intended for us.

When God first shared with me that I was to use my gifts to “connect others to their calling and to encourage and motivate them along the way”, I thought “Ok, got it!” and eagerly moved forward with my mission.  Along the way however I encountered spiritual and worldly “potholes” that threatened to push my kingdom mission mobile off course.

There were days when  I felt discouraged and subconsciously dragged everyone else into my pity party.  There were others when I felt impatient or frustrated and my messages were critical or accusatory in tone.  I have even had days when my tank was so empty that I felt like giving up and telling everyone else “don’t bother”.

Following your calling is far from a cake walk.  Whether your calling takes the form of kingdom entrepreneurship or some other endeavor, sooner or later you WILL encounter adversity and a shaking of your confidence that will make you question your decision to follow God’s call (Ephesians 6:12).  When that time comes, it is vital that you know how to deal with it.   It is so easy for us to get side-tracked by the world around us and the spiritual influences that work counter to the agenda God has set forth.

Not willing to surrender my calling to the enemy, I prayed for God to show me how I could maintain my focus on the mission He had called me to.  He revealed to me that we must renew our minds on a daily basis (Romans 12:2), reminding ourselves of the essence of what He has called us to and measuring it against our thoughts, spoken words and actions.

Here are some of the key questions we should ask ourselves daily:

• Do my projects, products and services line up with my God-given mission?
• Are the messages I put on social media, my blog, etc. true, kind, and necessary?
• Are my words and actions motivated by the desires of my flesh or by the Holy Spirit?
• What fruit will my words or actions produce in my life or the lives of others?
• Are my words or actions focused on temporal or eternal values and objectives?
• Will my words and actions make others stumble or help them grow in their faith?
• Are Jesus and God’s word the center of my message and work product?

We must never let our guard down thinking “I got this!” and end up far off the kingdom map.  Instead, we must cling to the vine (John 15:5) so that we may produce bountiful fruit according to God’s will and purposes.  Adversity may test our faith but if we resolve to stay steadfast, we will end up stronger in Christ, perfect and complete, lacking in nothing (see James 1:2-4).

If you need additional help with defining what your God-given mission is or how you can apply it in the form of small business ownership, I invite you to schedule a FREE business strategy session with me.  Let’s work together to expand God’s kingdom through entrepreneurship.  Click below for access to my online calendar.

Few people know that prior to following Christ, I lived a life immersed in new thought teachings, metaphysical studies and hermeticism.

Why am I telling you this? For a few months now God has been pressing on me that it’s time to share my past – something I have been very reluctant to do. You see, the practice of these teachings nearly destroyed my life and surely contributed to the demise of my first marriage – in fact, upon becoming a new creation in Christ, I vowed to never speak of or even look in the direction of my past again unless it served God’s purposes somehow.

Well, the time has come for His purposes to be known as it pertains to my personal story and I have no choice but to make myself vulnerable in sharing my testimony. My hope is that my experiences will serve to bring truth, awareness and freedom to those who think they can use the law of attraction to gain control of their circumstances and consequently steer their life in the direction they desire.

“Control Your Thoughts, Control Your Life” they say – while it is true that our beliefs influence our thoughts and in turn guide our actions, most of us really have no idea what we are asking for when we take on the role of pseudo gods and goddesses trying to shape our own reality by controlling our thoughts. Rather than taking captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ (2 Cor. 10:5), controlling our thoughts becomes a game with the objective of conjuring up anything we want to manifest in the physical realm.

Looking back, I confess that I was absolutely obsessed with this “game” and manifesting success and prosperity came very easily for me. The problem is, I always wanted more and the idea of controlling every aspect of life via my thoughts absolutely consumed me.

You see, the law of attraction is never satisfied and it is almost always centered on success, fame, riches, power and other self-centered pursuits.  If it wasn’t, we’d all be sitting around visualizing an end of poverty, war and cancer.  In my case, whenever things happened in my favor, I would tell myself what a skilled master of manifestation I was becoming and consequently, if something bad happened, I would blame myself for not being able to prevent or control the situation with my thoughts.

The law of attraction quickly became the law of affliction because I could not handle the pressure of “being in charge” of my own destiny. I spent much of my time in fear of not being able to adequately control my thoughts and read endless books on how to get better at it.

It all came to a screeching halt when one of my daughters nearly drowned during a visit to the pool with her dad. What I had referred to as “the universe” was threatening to snuff out the light of someone who means more to me than life itself.  My world absolutely crumbled and my theories, methods and false sense of being in control of my world came crashing down in a single afternoon sitting by her bedside in the hospital.

What started with me thinking all things in the material realm are a result of our thoughts and there was no such thing as sin and evil, ended with me lying on my bed, sobbing uncontrollably and crying out to God to help me make sense of the situation.

Because He loves me beyond measure and had been patiently waiting for the moment I return to His heart, He responded to my pleading almost instantly. I simply cannot describe the emotions I experienced when I finally put my life in His hands. It was at this point that He opened my eyes and showed me what was really going on. I had never before really understood that our drive to control our life circumstances was akin to the desire that led to Adam and Eve’s fall (Gen. 3:4).

Most importantly, God taught me that I didn’t need to strive, that His burden was light and His yoke was easy (Matt. 11:30). I never breathed a bigger sigh of relief than the moment I realized HE was already in perfect control and thus all I had to do was trust Him to take care of me, His beloved daughter.

Of course my conversion and subsequent transformation were not instantaneous but it is undoubtedly irreversible. I ended up destroying every new thought and occult book, cd and other material that had ever entered my home and struggled with feeling guilty for choosing to exalt my own “creation abilities” for so many years rather than submitting to Christ’s leadership. Through it all God showed me that nothing is ever wasted and that regardless of my path up to this point, He had a purpose for my life. All that really mattered was that I reconciled with Him.

I would later learn how God planned to use my testimony to help others discern influences in their lives that are not from Him. My work today has evolved into not only helping others grab hold of God’s calling to entrepreneurship but He is also using me to be a voice of caution to those who are dangerously close to walking away from His truth, often without even realizing it.

If you think the occult is easily recognizable in things like black magic, Ouija boards, etc., think again.  The enemy is the most cunning deceiver (1 Peter 5:8) and as a result, many Christians today have seamlessly blended their beliefs with elements of non-Christian teachings and most alarmingly, the practice of the occult.  In the spirit of “self-improvement” we have all but erased the idea of sin, suffering and evil and have firmly planted mankind on the throne.  In fact, many have gotten so good at this that they effortlessly pervert, add to and omit scripture to suit their needs.

“For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine.  Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.  They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” (2. Tim. 4:3-4)

Do any of the following statements resonate with you?

• I feel drawn to books like “The Secret”, “Think and Grow Rich”, “The Science of Getting Rich”

• I have written myself “million dollar” checks, created vision boards and recited affirmations as if they were spells

• I frequently visualize my success and get into the “feeling” of already having what I want

• I have or feel tempted to consult psychics, tarot cards and other divination tools to see what my future holds

• I often pray for a specific outcome rather than God’s will to be done in a given situation

• I consider the prophetic a tool to get what I want from God and get insight into my future

• I follow teachers who “neutralize” God by referring to Him as source, universe, spirit, etc. and make no mention of His son, Jesus Christ

If so, and especially if you are a Believer, I urge you to familiarize yourself with the true origins of the material you read/watch and incorporate into your life (1 Thess. 5:21).  It is not my place to condemn or convict, I can only pray that you use my example to examine your beliefs and practices (Ezekiel 33:6). 

There is so much more to say on this topic and God may very well call on me to write an entire book about it someday, however, for now I must leave you with a reminder that it is never too late to return to the foundation of God’s word.  Simply ask Him to bless you with discernment and to uproot anything in your life that is not aligned with His truth.

If this article blessed you and you would like to share your story or ask for prayer, feel free to contact me confidentially at info@nobilitycoaching.com.  

Sadly, when it comes to kingdom entrepreneurship, I have noticed increasingly that there is very little difference between mainstream brands and those who supposedly serve God’s agenda.  It seems when it comes to growing our own little empires, God quite frequently ends up with the short end of the stick.

We certainly lean on Him in the beginning, but as soon as we get that first taste of ‘real’ success, we become more and more willing to compromise our relationship with Him by pushing Him into the background.  We get that long-awaited call from Oprah, Richard Branson or other cultural influencers and POOF, suddenly being associated with these names is far more important to us than the ONLY name that really matters – Jesus Christ.

Are we just using God as a means to an end, to propel us forward by grace and favor until we reach a point at which we become self-reliant and no longer need His counsel?  Is what we’re really after different from the commitment we first made to God and closer to what the rest of the world strives after – image, fame, power and money?

I think it’s time for a heart-to-heart for all of us who are in the business of representing God’s agenda through our work.  We need to step out of the spotlight and put it back where it belongs – on Him.  Instead of focusing on building earthly empires with no eternal value, we need to renew our focus on equipping others to live their calling and use their gifts for the empowerment of the body and ultimately the benefit of all people.

This of course requires of us that we truly set ourselves apart and refuse to compromise our faith in exchange for popularity and financial reward.  I am continuously amazed how many Christian entrepreneurs are willing to partner and associate themselves with mainstream brands that clearly violate God’s word – all in the name of success.  Using a common justification of “I don’t have to agree with their views to partner with them…”, the boundaries are blurred, other entrepreneurs follow our example and before long it is accepted as common practice (1 Corinthians 15:33).

Allow me to use this article as a reminder that we have been called to follow a different standard (Romans 12:2) and this includes not only our personal lives but also the way we conduct business.  After all, if there is no discernible difference between a kingdom business and a mainstream enterprise, how are we fulfilling our roles of bringing salt and light to the world (Matthew 5:13-16)?

When someone looks at YOUR business, are they able to notice a difference?  Does your business honor God in the way you market your products and services, the partnerships you agree to, and the way you use your resources to make a difference for His kingdom?

If you’re not quite there yet or have made a few mistakes along the way, don’t dismay.  Simply ask God to forgive you and show you the way forward – how to make Him the absolute center point of your business.

If you need additional help in aligning your business with God’s plan for your life and work, I invite you to schedule a complimentary business strategy session with me.