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A Successful Business Starts with a Decision

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The Question Is: Will You Make It?

Last week we discussed my “aha” moment when I was recovering from a concussion. This revelation involved reading The Traveler’s Gift, a book written by Andy Andrews.

In the book, David Ponder felt like a failure at forty-six years old. He had lost his job as an executive at a Fortune 500 company. Then he lost his part-time job working at a hardware store.

He felt like a failure!

Until he had an extraordinary experience that revealed the power of decisions to succeed in business and life.

Before my accident I was at a place in my life that was nothing like what I had expected it to be. I had some big dreams when I was younger. I was going to be farming thousands of acres. Own a successful construction company. Have a nice, big, new home. Be driving new cars and trucks.

Then, thirty-five years later, none of these things had happened. I did own a construction company, but it wasn’t anything more than a minimum wage job. I had conceded that this was the life I had and there wasn’t anything I could do about it.

I had accepted the fact that I was a failure.

Then came the accident. I believe it was God’s way of getting my attention and telling me that things could be different. I really connected with David Ponder’s situation in The Traveler’s Gift.

I was where he had been. He took the lessons learned in his journey through time and the people he met and implemented them in his life. He had the power of choice, and he used it.

Here is an overview of the seven things he was shown and implemented that changed his life:

THE SEVEN DECISIONS

1. The Responsible Decision

I accept responsibility for my past. I control my thoughts. I control my emotions. I am responsible for my success.

“THE BUCK STOPS HERE.”

“If decisions are choices…and our thinking dictates our decisions – then we are where we are because of our thinking.”

President Harry S. Truman

2. The Guided Decision

I will be a servant to others. I will listen to the council of wise men. I will choose my friends with care.

“I WILL SEEK WISDOM.”

“God moves mountains to create the opportunity of His choosing. It is up to you to be ready to move yourself.”

King Solomon

3. The Active Decision

I am courageous. I am a leader. I seize this moment. I choose now.

“I AM A PERSON OF ACTION.”

“My future is immediate. I will grasp it with both hands and carry it with running feet. When I am faced with the choice of doing nothing or doing something, I will always choose to act!”

Colonel Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain

4. The Certain Decision

I will not wait. I am passionate about my vision for the future. My course has been charted. My destiny is assured.

“I HAVE A DECIDED HEART.”

“Truth is truth. If a thousand people believe something foolish, it is still foolish! Truth is never dependent upon consensus of opinion. I have found that is better to be alone and acting upon the truth in my heart than to follow a gaggle of silly geese doomed to mediocrity.”

Christopher Columbus

5. The Joyful Decision

I will greet each day with laughter. I will smile at every person I meet. I am the possessor of a grateful spirit.

“TODAY I WILL CHOOSE TO BE HAPPY.”

“Our very lives are fashioned by our choices. First we make choices. Then our choices make us.”

Anne Frank

6. The Compassionate Decision

I will forgive even those who do not ask for forgiveness. I will forgive those who criticize me unjustly. I will forgive myself.

“I WILL GREET THIS DAY WITH A FORGIVING SPIRIT.”

“Forgiveness is a secret that is hidden in plain sight. It costs nothing and is worth millions. It is available to everyone and used by few. If you harness the power of forgiveness, you will be sought after and regarded highly. And not coincidentally, you will also be forgiven by others!”

Abraham Lincoln

7. The Persistent Decision

I will continue despite exhaustion. I focus on results. I am a person of great faith.

“I WILL PERSIST WITHOUT EXCEPTION.”

“Great leaders – great achievers – are rarely realistic by other people’s standards. Somehow, these successful people, often considered strange, pick their way through life ignoring or not hearing negative expectations and emotions. Consequently, they accomplish one great thing after another, never having heard that something cannot be done. God may have been waiting centuries for someone ignorant enough of the impossible to do that very thing!”

Archangel Gabriel

The experience David has on his travels helped him to connect with and understand these decisions. The same thing happened to me as I read the book.

I realized that I had the power of choice. I could make decisions.

Decisions are something that we too often reject or ignore. We let other people or situations make decisions for us. Then we find ourselves stuck in a rut, thinking there’s no way out.

It doesn’t have to be this way. We have the power of choice. We can make the decisions if we choose to make them. But we have to make them. This is where success starts. The question is…are you going to make them?

Wise Ones Still Seek Him

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Are You Going to be Wise?

Epiphany is an “aha” moment. A sudden revelation. When you become aware of something important. The appearance or manifestation of something.

Christians celebrate Epiphany on January 6, twelve days after Christmas. Many countries refer to it as “Three Kings Day”. On this day, Western Christianity recognizes Christ’s manifestation to the Gentiles. The Gentiles were represented when the Magi visited Jesus. It showed how God’s gift of the Good News is for everyone. Epiphany celebrates God revealing himself to the world

Because the church celebrates Epiphany on the first Sunday in January, this past Sunday was Epiphany. Pastor Lisa pointed out that –

The song We Three Kings is a fitting message for Epiphany.

We three kings of Orient are
Bearing gifts we traverse afar
Field and fountain, moor and mountain
Following yonder star

The men in the song weren’t really kings, they were Wise Men or Magi. They were astronomers or stargazers. This is told to us in Matthew 2:1-12 where they follow a star to go visit Jesus as a child.

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” (verses 1-2)

These wise men had been looking for the fulfillment of prophesies for generations. They were paying attention and ready.

When God sent them the star they acted and went to find and follow Jesus.

O Star of wonder, star of night
Star with royal beauty bright
Westward leading, still proceeding
Guide us to thy Perfect Light

The Magi brought gifts to Jesus that showed that they had been paying attention and knew who He was. They gave Him gold. Gold was a gift given to kings.

Born a King on Bethlehem’s plain
Gold I bring to crown Him again
King forever, ceasing never
Over us all to reign

They gave Him frankincense. This represents divinity. Frankincense is a fragrant resin that was poured out in worship. It was something given to gods. They knew who Jesus was.

Frankincense to offer have I
Incense owns a Deity nigh
Prayer and praising, all men raising
Worship Him, God most high

They gave Him myrrh. Myrrh was used for embalming. These wise men knew what was coming.

Myrrh is mine, its bitter perfume
Breathes of life of gathering gloom
Sorrowing, sighing, bleeding, dying
Sealed in the stone-cold tomb

The wise men paid attention. God spoke to them through dreams and a star. God told them to not tell Herod and to go home a different way.

God told them what to do and they listened. Then they acted.

The last verse of the song tells the story going forward.

Glorious now behold Him arise
King and God and Sacrifice
Alleluia, Alleluia
Earth to heav’n replies

We need to be like the wise men. We need to read Scripture. We need to seek Jesus. We need to discern and obey God. We need to act.

At the end of Matthew, Jesus tells us what we’re supposed to do.

“Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

The wise men were seeking Jesus. They found Him and shared that with others. They wouldn’t have found Him if they hadn’t acted on what they knew.

We need to be wise and do the same thing.

The Next Step in Building Your Business

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Going Forward from Core Values

Building a business is like building a construction project. You need to know what you want the end product to be. You need to know what you have to work with. You need to have a plan for building and then build accordingly.

Who you are is like the ground you build on.

Just like building on sand is different than building on clay. You need to know who you are and then build the business so that you will be able to support it. Your why is the thing that supports everything else. This is who you were made to be.

Previous posts about this –

Next comes the foundation. This is your core values. The things that you choose based on what you believe. These can be different for different people.

Just like foundations can be different depending on what they’re built on, there are some things that are required regardless of what the ground is like. The foundation is more flexible than the ground it’s built on. It can be modified and improved.

It’s important to be clear on your core values.

Previous post about this –

Now that you have a solid foundation built on solid ground you can start framing.

This part is where it’s really important to have a plan. There are a lot of different styles of building, and you need to have clarity.

I know that when I started my construction business, I thought I knew what I was doing. Then after several years of struggling, I decided that what I was doing wasn’t working. I concluded that this mess was just how construction and my life were going to be.

I was aware of the problems but didn’t know what to do.

Then I had an “aha” moment. It involved being smacked upside the head.

In December of 2012, I was literally hit in the head with a board. It was a pretty big one too (a 14’ long 2×12 plank).

We were installing wafer board boxing to the second-floor wall of an addition. I was standing on the plank approximately 8’ above the ground when it broke. Luckily, I don’t remember any of the ordeal from the time I was measuring until I woke up in the hospital three days later. Based on what I was told, I fell, I hit my head on one of the ladders, then on the concrete slab, and then the board hit me in the head.

It sure is good that I have a hard head. Seriously, I was fortunate that I came away from this accident with only a concussion.

The reason I’m telling you this is that while I was recovering I read The Traveler’s Gift by Andy Andrews. I really connected with this story and where I was.

Forty-six-year-old David Ponder feels like a total failure. Once a high-flying executive in a Fortune 500 company, he now works a part-time, minimum wage job and struggles to support his family. Then, an even greater crisis hits: his daughter becomes ill, and he can’t afford to get her the medical help she needs.

 When his car skids on an icy road, he wonders if he even cares to survive the crash.

But an extraordinary experience awaits David Ponder. He finds himself traveling back in time, meeting leaders and heroes at crucial moments in their lives—from Abraham Lincoln to Anne Frank. By the time his journey is over, he has received seven secrets for success—and a second chance. The Traveler’s Gift offers a modern-day parable of one man’s choices—and the attitudes that make the difference between failure and success.

After reading this book I realized that if things were going to change, I would have to do something. I was the one who had control. I had the power of choice.

Next week we’ll look at the Seven Decisions presented to David Ponder and how I incorporated them in my life.

You can incorporate them in your life too.

A New Year, A Clean Slate

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Why Did the Turkey Cross the Road?

It’s just a few days until the beginning of a new year. This start represents an opportunity for new possibilities. The thought of this can be exciting. The chance to do better…to be better. This is what encourages us to make ‘New Year’s Resolutions’.

The process of making resolutions but failing at them over and over makes us hesitant though. Most of the time people give up on resolutions after a few weeks. Only about 8% of people that make resolutions will stick to them.

Most resolutions are good, and if kept, would make us better.

The possibilities are exciting, we want to be better. Most resolutions are admirable, so why don’t we keep them?

I think most of the time it is the lack of a clear plan.

It reminds me of some wild turkeys that were crossing the road near my home. There were fifteen or twenty birds going across as I approached them in my truck. Some continued on across, some turned and went back, but one couldn’t decide which way to go.

It ran back and forth going in circles in the middle of the road. This indecision and lack of clarity put this bird at risk of failure…and in this case, failure could have been really bad.

Good thing I was driving slowly.

If we don’t want to be like that turkey we need a clear plan. We need to know where we want to go. Then take the necessary actions to get there.

The first thing to do is determine WHY. WHY do we want to accomplish this thing? The WHY will be the motivating factor. The WHY gives us the reason to move.

WHY do I want to cross the road?

Next, we need to know HOW. HOW gives us the map to get from here to there. The HOW gives us a direction to go.

Now I know HOW best to cross the road.

But, this is where things begin to get tougher. There are a lot of different systems that you can use for this. The problem is that what works for one person may not work for another.

I’ve used several different things over the years. The conclusion I have come to is this. It matters less what the system is and more about whether you use it or not.

You have to move, otherwise you’ll be left standing in the middle of the road.

As I’m thinking forward to the new year, I will be working on a plan for 2025. Each year, I modify and tweak my systems so that they work better. I schedule time between Christmas and New Year’s Day for working on my ‘Life Plan’.

It starts with scheduling it on my calendar. It’s critical to being intentional.

I will look back at what worked and what didn’t throughout the past year. I will look to the future to see where we want to go. Most importantly, I will plan to take action. And I will have a way to measure progress, so I can see how we’re doing.

Resolutions are only as good as our actions. Like Ebenezer Scrooge in A Christmas Carol, we have to decide to be different if we’re going to be different.

Don’t be a turkey. Make a plan before you start crossing the road and stick with it. Don’t stop in the middle of the road. You can continue to improve on the plan every day if you keep moving.

Make a plan and get out of the middle of the road!

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Make Room for Healing and Joy

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Don’t Hold on to Things You Shouldn’t

We’ve all found ourselves in unpleasant situations. Places where we feel trapped. Sometimes it’s because of things we’ve done. Sometimes we’re there due to no fault of our own.

The Israelites found themselves in bad situations repeatedly. They would go through times when they would be captives of other countries. Most of the time this was because they would be doing things they shouldn’t.

There was a lot of guilt and judgement.

God would give them chances to change. These opportunities would come to them through prophets of God.

One of these messages of hope came in Isaiah 6:1-7. Isaiah received a message from God and he felt doomed because he was a sinful man. A Seraphim that was attending to God touched Isaiah’s lips with a burning coal and said, “This coal has touched your lips. Now your guilt is removed, and your sins are forgiven.

The year of Jubilee was a time for the Israelites to dedicate a year of rest to God, acknowledging that God would provide for their needs.

The Year of Jubilee, which came every 50th year, was full of releasing people from their debts, releasing all slaves, and returning property to those who owned it. During this time, the Israelites were not supposed to reap or harvest; it was a time for people to return to their families and loved ones.

The Year of Jubilee was a time of Restoration.

So, after seven years of Sabbaths, we reach the 50th year. A year dedicated to rest, the restoration of property, and freeing people from debts, servitude, and slavery.

Because everyone was released from their debts and slavery, everyone got to rest and could start the next year with a clean slate. 

It’s important to note that God owns everything. Anything He’s given to us, such as resources, crops, etc., belongs to him. Therefore, the Israelites would dedicate this year of rest to him, acknowledging that God would provide for their needs.

The Israelites went into captivity because they didn’t observe these resting years (Leviticus 26). Because they didn’t trust that God would provide and dedicate time to resting, they reaped the consequences.

God also instituted the Year of Jubilee as a foreshadowing for his future work on the cross. Jesus relieves us of all spiritual debts and our slavery to sin by His death and Resurrection.

In Matthew 1:18-25, Joseph learned of the coming of Jesus when an Angel came to him in a dream. He was told what would happen and what he was supposed to do. And he did it.

Our ultimate forgiveness is through Jesus. But we have to accept this gift.

Jubilee was a release from the past. A restoring. It brought hope for the future.

The Israelites held on to things and wouldn’t let them go. They neglected to take advantage of Jubilee, and they suffered unnecessarily because of this.

Too often we do the same thing. We’ve been hurt by someone, and we don’t let go. Then we’re the ones who suffer. We tend to hold on to things as a way of protecting ourselves. Even when we’ve let go of something, it has a way of creeping back.

We have the power of choice. We can forgive. We can release the past. This makes room for healing and joy.

Jesus is our Jubilee.

Core Values are Where Success Begins

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Without Them You Just Wander

The past several weeks we’ve been digging down in the dirt and discussing who you are. Who you are is the ground that your business is built on. That ground is what supports the foundation of your business. The foundation is your core values and principles.

Last week I shared the list of my core values with you. They are a collection of things that I’m naturally good at and some things…not as much. I’m constantly working on the things on this list to get better at them.

Here’s a brief definition of what these core values mean to me.

Honor God in all that I do

Because I believe that everything that I have or do, belongs to and comes from God, it is only right that I show my appreciation by giving Him the credit for everything. This is the one core value that all the others are supported by.

Make all I can, Save all I can, Give all I can

Often churches and religions preach that making money is wrong. I have struggled with this for years. Not making a profit is a sure way to lose a business. I think this quote from John Wesley is good advice and fits well with God’s word, “Money is not evil. What we do with it and how we handle it needs to align with God’s purpose.”

Spend time wisely, there is a limited amount

Time is similar to money, if it is viewed from the perspective of a zero-based budget. There is a limited amount of time each day. This means there is a limited number of things that we can spend time on each day. We choose where and how we will spend it. It is up to us to know what the most important things are and focus on them first.

Pay attention to detail

Details matter. Paying attention to details is the best way to circumvent problems. I remember a time early in my construction career when I was working for another contractor. He kept pushing me to go faster, which meant cutting some corners. It ended up that not paying attention to the details cost both of us time and money when we had to go back and redo the work.

Never be satisfied with mediocrity

Mediocrity is the minimum requirement to be average. God has called us to be above average. He has called us to excellence. Going above and beyond is where we set ourselves apart. It is where we accomplish the most. It is where we are working in our sweet spot. This is the place we were meant to be and the thing we were meant to do. Don’t be average.

Find and maintain the balance in everything

Balance is critical to living well. It is a constant lifelong quest. It affects all areas of life and is hard to maintain. I see balance as a large platform sitting centered on top of a small point. Without anything on the platform, it is level. When one thing is placed on top of the platform near the center, things go pretty well, and it stays relatively level. As more things are put on the platform (and things begin to be crowded from the center) it starts to get heavier in different areas. This causes the platform to lean. If one heavy thing or too many things are moved too far from the center, the platform will tip far enough that things fall off. Keeping things from falling off the platform is all about weight and location. Our lives are like this platform. God set our platform balanced perfectly on this point and given us the responsibility of keeping it there. The difficult part of this obligation is the number of things we get to choose from to put on our platform. The choices are endless. There is spiritual, family, work, friends, fun, community, etc. and each of these areas are full of an endless number of smaller things that we can put on our platform. Some things carry more weight than others. As we go through life, the things we have on our platform will and should change. FINDING AND MAINTAINING THE BALANCE of our platform is our responsibility. Will we be perfect at it? No. Can we learn and get better at it? YES!

To keep this post from getting too long, I’m splitting the list in two. Next week we’ll look at the last six of my core values.

Reviewing these core values regularly is a part of my daily routine. This helps keep me aware of them and reminds me to include them in everything I do.

If you don’t know what your core values are yet, go back to last week’s post and use the process for how to identify your business’s core values.

Ready to take the next step in aligning your business with your core values? To help you build a stronger foundation for your construction business, we’re offering a free, customized proposal system giveaway.

Here’s what you’ll win:

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  • Templates and documents to save you time

If you or someone you know would benefit from having a proposal system…

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A Story is a Good Way to Tell a Story

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It Makes the Message More Real

Stories are a way to relate to information in a more personal way. We can connect and feel stories. It taps into our emotions. It’s a way to make things more understandable.

The Bible is a collection of stories. These were stories that people then could relate to. We can still relate to them today.

Often we are so close to something that we can’t see the whole picture. We are stuck in our rut. Focused on our situation. We want what we want. Our narrow view is all we see.

This was Isaiah’s perspective in Chapter 64 Verses 1-4. The people were tired and frustrated of being in exile. Isaiah wanted God to shake the world and come down as a warrior to free them. He closes with God acting on behalf of people who wait in Him. People were waiting on God throughout the Old Testament.

We are impatient people. We want what we want, and we want it now.

The answer to Isaiah’s plea wasn’t answered quickly. This answer didn’t come as Isaiah expected. It came in the form of a little baby…not a warrior. (Luke 1:26-38)

Too often we are so busy that we forget to step back from the rat race and patiently wait on God’s timing. We feel that waiting is a waste of time.

We need to be willing to wait on God.

Maybe God is waiting on us to wait on Him.

Many times, we hear something that is hard to believe. Like the story of Jesus, being born as a human, dying on the cross, and then coming back to life. From a worldly perspective this is a little hard to believe.

Stories can help us step back and understand things that are hard to believe.

A good example of such a story is one that Paul Harvey shared on his 1970’s radio show, “The Rest of the Story”. This was a Christmas story about a man and some birds.

The Man and the Birds

Author Unknown
As told by Paul Harvey

The man I’m going to tell you about was not a scrooge, he was a kind decent, mostly good man. Generous to his family and upright in his dealings with other men. But he just didn’t believe in all of that incarnation stuff that the churches proclaim at Christmas time. It just didn’t make sense and he was too honest to pretend otherwise. He just couldn’t swallow the Jesus story, about God coming to Earth as a man.

He told his wife I’m truly sorry to distress you, but I’m not going with you to church this Christmas Eve. He said he would feel like a hypocrite and that he would much rather just stay at home, but that he would wait up for them. So he stayed and they went to the midnight service.

Shortly after the family drove away in the car, snow began to fall. He went to the window to watch the flurries getting heavier and heavier and then he went back to his fireside chair and began to read his newspaper.

Minutes later he was startled by a thudding sound. Then another … and then another. At first he thought someone must be throwing snowballs against the living room window. But when he went to the front door to investigate he found a flock of birds huddled outside miserably in the snow. They’d been caught in the storm and in a desperate search for shelter they had tried to fly through his large landscape window. That is what had been making the sound.

Well, he couldn’t let the poor creatures just lie there and freeze, so he remembered the barn where his children stabled their pony. That would provide a warm shelter. All he would have to do is to direct the birds into the shelter.

Quickly, he put on a coat and galoshes and he tramped through the deepening snow to the barn. He opened the doors wide and turned on a light so the birds would know the way in. But the birds did not come in.

So, he figured that food would entice them. He hurried back to the house and fetched some bread crumbs. He sprinkled them on the snow, making a trail of bread crumbs to the yellow-lighted wide open doorway of the stable. But to his dismay, the birds ignored the bread crumbs.

The birds continued to flap around helplessly in the snow. He tried catching them but could not. He tried shooing them into the barn by walking around and waving his arms. Instead, they scattered in every direction … every direction except into the warm lighted barn.

And that’s when he realized they were afraid of him. To them, he reasoned, I am a strange and terrifying creature. If only I could think of some way to let them know that they can trust me. That I am not trying to hurt them, but to help them. But how? Any move he made tended to frighten them and confuse them. They just would not follow. They would not be led or shooed because they feared him.

He thought to himself, if only I could be a bird and mingle with them and speak their language. Then I could tell them not to be afraid. Then I could show them the way to the safe warm … to the safe warm barn. But I would have to be one of them so they could see … and hear … and understand.

At that moment the church bells began to ring. The sound reached his ears above the sounds of the wind.

He stood there listening to the bells, Adeste Fidelis, listening to the bells pealing the glad tidings of Christmas.

And he sank to his knees in the snow …

Stories make things more real.

Anything is possible for God.

Knowing Your Why is the Key to Unlocking Your Success

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How Do You Know When You’ve Found It?

The past couple of weeks we’ve been discussing the importance of building your business on a solid foundation and what this looks like. Last week, we explored how your why is what the foundation sits on and ways to find your why.

Your “why” is who you were made to be. It is your purpose.

Four questions that can help you find your why are –

  1. What makes you come alive?
  2. What are your innate strengths?
  3. Where do you add the greatest value?
  4. How will you measure your life?

In addition to these questions, I think a good way to determine if you have found your God given purpose is answering this question:

If you could do anything you wanted to…what would it be?

Time and money are not a restriction. You have all you need of both. You have the freedom to do anything you want. What would it be?

Let your mind go. Dream big. The sky is the limit. Don’t hold back. What is the one thing that would make you the happiest? The one thing that you would get the most enjoyment out of doing.

I think finding and living in this sweet spot is when you know you’ve found your why. When your vocation feels more like fun than work…you’ll know you’re where God intends for you to be.

I love helping people find solutions for building their dreams. Helping construction companies build better businesses. This is done with systems and training to achieve the success that they’re searching for. Helping construction customers build their dream project through construction and navigating the overwhelming process.

I love what I do so much that I would rather do this than anything else.

Another way to know you’ve found your “why” is when you’re working all the time. This is something that I used to struggle with. Often a workaholic is just someone who has found their why.

This is taking your why too far.

Earlier I told you to pretend time and money were not a restriction. Well, they are. This is why people who are doing what they love and doing it all the time need to put up some barriers.

I used to work late into the night and get up and do it again the next day. Day after day. The problem was that my family did not get the attention they should have.

That’s when I took some intentional action and scheduled family Sunday as a day of rest. Siblings, nieces, and nephews get together for lunch after church at Mom’s. Sunday evening is scheduled for family movie time. Friday is a scheduled lunch date with my wife.

Not only is time a restriction, but so is money. But, probably not in the way you would first expect. My money struggle is…I would do what I do for free. The problem is this isn’t a very good business plan. I’m continually reminding myself that I need revenue to pay the bills.

When you love what you do this much, you’ll know you’ve found your why. Loving what you do is the ground that your business is built on.

This is where your success will begin. Finding your why is the key to unlocking your success.

Building Your Business on Solid Ground

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Finding Your Why

Last week we discussed the importance of building your business on a good foundation. And, how this can help you withstand the trials of business.

We also talked about the importance of knowing what that foundation was built on. Is it dirt, sand, or rock?

This gets down to who you are and why are you in business?

The foundation (core value and mission) can be changed. But the ground you are building that business on can’t. This is who you are. Who God made you to be. When you align this purpose with your business you will be set for success.

Not knowing your “why” is one of the main reasons businesses struggle and fail.

German philosopher Frederick Nietzsche once said, “He who has a why can endure any how.”

Knowing your why is an important first step in figuring out how to achieve the goals that excite you. This allows you to create a business you enjoy (versus merely surviving!).

Indeed, only when you know your ‘why’ will you find the courage to take the risks needed to get ahead, stay motivated when the chips are down, and move your business onto an entirely new and more rewarding trajectory.

So how do you find your “why”?

While there’s no one pathway for discovering your purpose, there are ways you can gain deeper insight. Your purpose is the intersection of your –

  • Talents
  • Skills/expertise
  • Passions
  • Values 

Here are four questions that can help you find your purpose that aligns with what you care about, what you can contribute, and what will be valued most:

  1. What makes you come alive? – The word inspire comes from the Latin, meaning “to breathe life into.” Accordingly, when you are working toward things that inspire you, it literally makes you feel more alive.  What makes you come alive isn’t referring to taking your dream holiday or watching your favorite team play football (unless you’re called to a career as a football coach or commentator!). It’s bigger than that. Something that’s bigger than you. Connecting with what you’re passionate about. Focusing your attention on endeavors that put a fire in your belly.
  2. What are your innate strengths? – A point at which natural talent and skill meets personal passion. When people are in their element they are not only more productive, but they add more value and enjoy more fulfilment. What are the things you’ve always been good at? You can also be passionate about things you have no natural talent for, and talented at things for which you hold little passion. We rarely aspire toward ambitions we have no natural talent to achieve.
  3. Where do you add the greatest value? – Knowing your greatest strengths and where you can add the most value can help you focus on where you are most likely to succeed. Too often we undervalue our strengths, skills and expertise. If you reframe the concept of adding value through the lens of solving problems, you can also ask yourself what problems you enjoy solving. What problems do you feel passionate about trying to solve?  You’ll then be more successful at focusing on your natural strengths and those things you’re innately good at rather than trying fix your weaknesses.
  4. How will you measure your life? – People who don’t stand for something easily fall for anything. Determining how you want to measure your life means taking a stand for something and then aligning your business with it. Living with purpose means focusing on things that matter most. Things that matter most are rarely “things.” Earning money and following your heart don’t have to be contradictory. No matter what your job is, you can draw meaning from it and find greater purpose through how you do what you do. If you don’t think you’re the kind of person you’d want to work with, it may not be the job, but your attitude toward it.

Knowing your “why” can compel you to take on challenges that will stretch and inspire you.

Your “why” is the ground that your business is built on. You need to know what that ground is and build the foundation accordingly.

Excerpts from: Do You Know Your “Why”?

A Successful Business Needs a Good Foundation

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What Supports That Foundation is Just as Important

Building something that will stand the test of time and the elements requires a solid foundation.

A building foundation is made up of two parts: the footing and the foundation. The footing creates an attachment point between the foundation and the soil. The role of the foundation is to support the building and help prevent settling.

The foundation is the base and support of any building structure. It transfers the load from the structure to the ground. It also provides resistance from external loads exerted on it.

If the foundation of a building is inadequate or not maintained…the building will collapse.

The foundation of a business is the same. It is who you are. These are the non-negotiables. The things that, when faced with decisions, will help you withstand earthquakes. Your business foundation consists of your core values and mission.

We discussed business core values back in August. Core values are your fundamental beliefs. They are your guiding principles. It’s like your business conscience. It’s the building blocks of your business foundation.

If the foundation of a business is inadequate, it can be changed.

A foundation is built. Depending on what it’s going to support determines how it should be built. The other thing that needs to be determined to build an adequate foundation is…what is the ground like?

Is it dirt, sand, or rock? This is the most important thing to know. It will determine what kind of foundation is needed to support the structure. If the foundation or the structure doesn’t match the ground…maybe you should build somewhere else.

The ground of your business (and life) is your purpose. It goes beyond who you are. It is who you were made to be. It is why you exist. You need to start by asking the questions.

Who am I? What is my purpose? Why am I here?

This takes some work and some digging. It isn’t an answer that’s going to magically appear. It’s like looking at the surface of the ground where you want to build a building. You won’t know what’s underneath without doing some work.

When it comes to knowing what’s below your surface, you need to ask, “why am I here?” Then like a small child curiously ask it again. And then ask it again and again and again.

This is where the foundation of your life and your business will be built. Don’t start building your business without knowing what kind of ground you’re building it on.

Knowing what supports the business (your purpose) is critical if it’s going to withstand the test of time and the storms that will come.