BCWE Business Review!

Ethics are a system of values. The ethics of a business are measured by the value system of the individuals that have contact with the public. The mission statement of the company is brought to trial against the attitudes of those claiming to be on the mission.

1. We are free to choose, but not free to choose consequences.
a. The source of our ethic or system of values has a lot to do with our choices. Proverbs 19:27
b. Our commitment to our ethical center will determine whether our ethics change our environment or our environment changes our ethic. This takes courage.
i. It is an inside out operation. Allowing society to shape us or us to shape it.
c. We have the power to make the intellectual choice but usually fall short of the power to make the emotional choice. It is too easy to revert back to the familiar, as bad as it might be, because of the inherent fear of the unknown.
2. Ethical performance is difficult without accountability.
a. Performance is the power of the value system. The ability to perform ethically when motivated positively is simple. The courage to act ethically when motivated negatively is not. Romans 7:18
b. The defense mechanism that saves us from mental, emotional, spiritual or physical pain will force a standoff against our ethics and bring us to a decision point. If there are no apparent consequences then we proceed to violate the ethic and save ourselves the pain.
c. Accountability provides the consequence of shame and personal humiliation. Having an accountability partner also provides necessary support and assistance before an ethical violation occurs.
3. Ethics are a long term strategy.
a. The short term cost of ethical behavior is rewarded gradually and over time.
b. Ethical treatment to others does not guarantee its return to you. Understand that a value driven life brings an inherent but inherent but intangible (short term) reward.
c. Ethics derive their benefit from the underlying truths that birth them.
4. Ethical decisions sometimes seem to conflict. A hierarchy of ethical priority must me established. Arrange these in your order of priority.
a. Business ethic.
b. Personal ethic
c. Family ethic
d. Religious ethic
e. Social ethic
Building an internal environment for ethics to perform.

1. Confess daily the sin that the Holy Spirit brings to mind. I John 1:9
a. This is also a commitment to meditation.
b. Praying through the psalms will aid self examination.

2. Understand and accept that the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses from all sin. I Peter 1:18-19
a. There is no other remedy.
b. Do not exact punishment or periods of self torture over things for which you have been forgiven.

3. Accept your worth as defined by God’s care for your soul. Psalms 23:3
a. Ethics, integrity and morality hinge of a sense of self worth. If we feel we are worthless, then ethics are of little value. They mean nothing because they effect nothing.
b. Led by the Spirit of God in a path of truth and righteousness. It is worth protecting.

4. Tear down the strongholds with truth. (II Corinthians 10:4-5)
a. The enemy builds a stronghold on our lusts. Eyes, flesh, pride.
i. Allowing him ground in these lusts permits him to build a false structure on the ground. We do not see that the underlying ground was our indulgence of our lust. We see only the false idea he has built on the lust. No longer are we responsible, but the false idea will challenge our ethical structure.
b. Truth will regain the ground lost and will destroy the false idea.

5. Transform your mind with truth. Romans 12:2
a. Truth is the power of the ethic. It has an inherent power. It eliminates fear.
b. Truth has the power to change your perspective.

6. Forgive those that have offended you. Matthew 6:10-15
a. Full release from the debt and any expectation of future payment.
b. The promise to no longer bring it up.

Changing the Model of being a servant to your business or career. Your career should serve you.

1. Business and Career decisions should make up a part of your strategy to achieve your life’s purpose.
a. Your career or business can all to easily become the purpose and not the tool. The escalation of work and lifestyle can take on a life of their own.
i. It should challenge who you are, not define you.
ii. It should enable your life purpose not hinder it.
iii. It should provide a place for you to grow emotionally, mentally, spiritually and financially.
iv. Business builds character, wealth endurance and all those things that we need to fulfill our purpose.
v. Your career or business should provide a portal to society.
b. Your business and career should serve you.
c. People look to business to fulfill the promise of society. “Equal opportunity” In one place I am the fulfiller, while in the other I am the one to whom the promise is made.
2. Proactivity: This is the power to decide what course of action you will take based on your internal center and not based on external forces.
a. Centers are your core values that drive your decisions.
i. These core values should be questioned and tested frequently.
ii. Proactive is the opposite of reactive. Proactive is internal while reactive is external.
b. External forces are the pressures of life that press us for hasty decisions or hectic schedules that interrupt our peace.
3. Priority: This is the difference between being efficient and being effective.
a. All of time management can be summed up in this phrase. Diligently execute the principal things.
b. Priorities must be set in order to be followed.
4. Positioning: Business is positioning.
a. The traditional view of our career or position is downward. In other words, over whom do we have responsibility or authority. This is the security driven view that provides little freedom or satisfaction.
b. The real view of our career or position is to be upward. In what way do I contribute to my team, peers or the company.
c. One is competitive while the other is complimentary.

Joseph acquires the wealth of Egypt for Pharaoh by age 30.
1. Joseph is known for dreaming.
a. His first dreams are interpreted by the hearers. Joseph offers no interpretation. Genesis 37:5
b. His dreams cause him to be mocked and hated. He is even harmed physically because of them.
2. He faces pitfalls early in his career. He was sold to some Ishmaelites and taken to Egypt.
a. His career path takes him to Potiphar; Genesis 39:1-6 In this position, verse 4 indicates that Potiphar served Joseph.
i. Educated in the offices of Pharaoh,
ii. Educated in the legal system,
iii. Experience in managing large estate affairs,
iv. Positions of trust,
v. Another major setback but more training.
b. Prison experience: Genesis 39:21-23
i. Overseer of all those close to the king that had disappointed the king. Educated for his next position.
ii. Learns how to treat people well. Mercifully.
c. Next dream experience he interprets. For the chief butler and baker of Pharaoh.
i. The butler then becomes his contact with Pharaoh.
ii. He receives the opportunity to meet with Pharaoh.
iii. Makes Pharaoh feel important.
iv. Offers the solution to the problem which provides him the promotion to second in command in Egypt at age 30.
3. Joseph buys Egypt and the Egyptians for Pharaoh.
a. Genesis 41:56-57 sells food for money until the money was gone. Genesis 47:14-15.
b. Pharaoh gives Joseph’s family the land of Goshen and Ramses as a possession. Genesis 47:11 They lived and ate freely in the land as members of Joseph’s family.
c. Joseph sells food in trade for the Egyptians cattle. Genesis 47:16-17
d. Joseph sells food in trade for their land and their service. Genesis 47:20, 23.
e. The manner in which he did it made the people happy. Genesis 47:25. He treated them well.

Market appraisal is the judgment of value that the buyer or employer places on your goods or services.

1. Understand that the playing field is not level and that the judges are not fair. Fairness is not a particularly desirable playing field. Those who decide to excel are held back by the fairness shown to those who never desire to do more than the minimum.
a. An appraisal is a valuation method based on what others have done with similar products or services.
b. Differentiation creates value. What makes you or your product unique and therefore scarce. The used car market is more profitable per car for that very reason.
c. Understand your market. People pay more for specialists than for generalists. Focus on specialization which creates uniqueness.
2. Making others successful. Success without succession is failure. Many are not able to move up in their current position and many businessmen are handcuffed to the office because they have not created a succession plan. Playing the cards close to the vest will insure that you always have them.
a. Building our brother’s name. If an appraisal is based on comparables, then it is the comps that boost the value.
b. Moving up is easier with the buoyancy factor than without.
c. One of the most respected but under exemplified traits of real leadership.
3. Becoming a listener: Steven Covey’s habits is “seek first to understand then to be understood.
a. Good listening is the key to effective negotiating.
b. Good listening and true empathy makes an emotional deposit in your account that you can draw on later.
i. Empathy is placing yourself in another persons shoes mentally and trying to feel their experience.
4. Become solution oriented.
a. Spend time in uninterrupted thinking. More wealth has been created through thinking than through manual labor. Genesis 11:6
b. Solutions are the cornerstone of business. Becoming solution and not problem oriented is one of the fastest ways to raise market appraisal.
5. Creating character capital.
a. Character capital is raised at personal cost.
b. Never sacrificing the long term on the altar of the short term.

How do we build character capital? How do we get our internal character compass strong enough to overcome the temptation to grab the controls of our life?

First we have to understand that God is constantly at work in us. Not FOR us as we define it, but IN us. Romans 8:29 “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.”

Building character capital requires a close look at all the characteristics of the man of Character in Psalm 15: 1. Blameless in his work. 2. Does what is right. 3. Tells the truth. 4. Does not gossip. 5. Does not mistreat others. 6. Sides with those that are right. 7. Keeps his word. 8. Does not take advantage of situations. These characteristics are forged in the crucible of suffering: The vaccine for a disease contains the virus.

1. Blameless? .
a. “I accept criticism as a way to grow my skills.
b. “I welcome advice.”
c. “I know that others can do things better than I”
d. “I am willing to share the credit for things I feel like I accomplished.”
e. “I am not bothered by those that try to take credit” We always recognize in others the traits that we struggle with the most.

2. Do what’s right? Then you will require a hard situation that has great risk to do what’s right.
3. Tells the truth? Then you will have to face telling the truth when it hurts.
4. Does not gossip? Others will have to gossip about you, and you will speak well of them.
5. Do not mistreat others? Then you will have to return goodness for evil.
6. Keep your word? Then you must face others that let you down.
7. Not take advantage of situations? You will face situations in which your position tempts you to take advantage.

What is our attitude toward God while He is building character capital in us?
1. In these situations we look at God and say, “Where are you?”
a. Why are you putting me through this?
b. Its hard for us to recognize His greatest works in us because we do not know His ways.
c. Isaiah 55:8 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.”
d. Because of that, we pray for God to remove every circumstance that He has put in our lives to do the MOST for us and to create the character capital we need.

Today’s Wall Street Journal featured a story on Jim Skinner, CEO of McDonald’s Corporation, and how his focus has been on making McDonald’s better, not bigger. He’s been turning around the massive company, and he listed his “5 Tips for Managing a Turnaround,” and I though they were pretty appropriate for religious organizations. In fact, after each tip, I’ve noted how to adapt it to your organization. Let me know if you agree:

1. Focus on people, leadership development and succession planning. No organization in the world is driven by people as much as churches and ministries. If you can’t lead people, then get out of the way. Also, from a church or ministry point of view, the first generation of media leaders if passing, and most organizations aren’t making plans for the transition. As a result, they get caught up in the turmoil that costs millions of dollars in lost vision, income, and results.

2. Face the facts. Listen to your customers because they will tell you want really matters. When was the last time you sent out a questionnaire in your direct mail letters? When was the last time you talked to your congregation and listened to their feedback? Most pastors and ministry leaders are good at speaking, but not so good at listening.

3. Have a plan of action. Stick with it, align your team around it, and focus on execution. What’s your church or ministry’s strategy? What’s your ministry vision? Do your team members know it by heart? Do they live and breath the vision? Put it on paper, and make it something that can be executed by every employee or volunteer. And speaking of “stick with it,” I can’t tell you how many clients I’ve had that after an all day meeting planning strategy, I get on the plane, fly home, and have a message on my phone telling me the pastor has already changed his mind. Give the plan enough time to work or don’t waste everyone’s time!

4. Have the discipline to pursue continuous improvement. Nothing happens overnight, and most organizations fail because they’re not patient. Major change takes time, so dig in for ultimate success. It takes discipline and you have to fight the fear, the second guessing, and the criticism. But it’s worth it.

5. Be passionate and committed to your business. All the way in or all the way out. This one makes the most sense for religious organizations. After all, if we’re not passionate about it, what are we doing? Renew your passion for outreach, and make your church or ministry a well oiled organization with vision, passion, and commitment.