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Meditation
The Bible calls us to serve. God wants us to serve the people around us and the whole world. Jesus is our great example in this (Phil. 2:3-11). The city of Jerusalem is characterized by God’s care for his people (Rev. 21:3-8), and God wants to clothe us with justice and good deeds (Rev. 19:6-8). God, the governor over Jerusalem, stands firm for the good that was born out of love. He wants to share all that is good, all that represents his glory, with us, and he does not keep it for himself alone.
After my humiliating discovery of whom I had become, I wanted to change. This made me look for a company with a different company culture. I needed a different company environment to be able to change and develop. Somehow, I did not feel capable of changing myself within the culture of my company at the time. A culture, mind you, that I had helped create. When searching for another company, I focused on the character of the leadership and the culture within the company. My search led me to a thoroughly honorable man, the leader of one of the largest automotive retail companies at the time. He was not a Christian, but his personality had created within the company a professional culture of client-centered service without politics and scheming. It was a people-centered culture that focused on honesty, candidness, and excellence. Outside the company, he also had a good reputation and was well-known for his people-centredness, integrity, professionalism, and creative way of thinking and working. It was this CEO who taught me how to reflect on myself, to work in a people-centered way, and yet be successful. He regularly confronted me with my behavior and asked good and sharp questions. Within this company, I have developed a different side of my personality. My strong purpose and task-centredness were complemented with an approach that focused on people. The consequences for the people involved were now expressly taken into account when deciding on matters vital to the company. Something else that I also learned during this time was that value-driven entrepreneurship is not necessarily Christian. This made me wonder, ‘’what is specifically Christian about Christian entrepreneurship?’’ (My exploration into the specifically Christian features of Christian entrepreneurship are discussed in the next meditation.)
Question for the day
What is your reputation, and what values and culture reign in your company?
About this Plan
How can we as entrepreneurs contribute to the happiness and well-being of all those involved with our company? Where do we find our own happiness and contentment? The biblical cities of Babylon and Jerusalem form the basis of this first series. They are symbols for two ways of thinking about happiness and business.
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