I have asked Rich Marshall to host a couple of blogs. He is an internationally recognized speaker, trainer and author with over 40 years experience in bringing out peak performance in others. His clients are a virtual who’s who of corporate America. He has developed a new breed of corporate leadership training you will want to know more about. It’s called the E.P.I.C. Training System, a classic leadership development program and a remarkable proprietary system built on 7 foundational areas of human performance improvement. Now, here’s Rich…

Strategic Planning with the Holy Ghost - Part 2

Over the last several years I have had the privilege of working with dozens of enterprises in the planning process. Coming from a background of pastoring (I did this for 35 years) I was very accustomed to seeking help from the Lord, especially in asking the indwelling Holy Spirit to help. However I found that most executives, even Christian executives, do not take advantage of this competitive edge. For some reason, when it comes to planning most of it falls into one of two categories:

1.      A full reliance on the Holy Spirit; with lots of faith and prayer and trust involved. In most of these cases; there is little practical, commonsense and time tested and proven strategic planning ingenuity used. It is as if it would not be full of faith if good planning methods were employed.

2.      A full reliance on proven strategic planning methods; with much attention given to the planning process, using all of the most up-to-date methods available. In most of these cases; there is little or no input from the Holy Spirit. It is as if it would be “poor business” to include Him here.

Therefore I am encouraging Christian business leaders to integrate all of their business life under the heading: My business is my ministry. When we do that, we will be much more likely to include the Lord in all that we do; especially the planning process.

Here are some thought provoking ideas to assist you in the integration process.

• All that you do is a spiritual activity. Both business and church are ministry and both should be treated as a way of fulfilling your God given purpose in life.

• It is so easy to fall into presumption and call it walking by the spirit. In other words, we assume that since we are Christian and prayed in the morning, that everything that happens during the day has been orchestrated by God. I have found that Charismatics are probably most guilty. By the way: leaders are not exempt.
• Prov. 16:3 “Commit your work to the LORD, and then your plans will succeed.”
• Did this plan or strategy arise out of dependence on and hearing the voice of God during the process?
• Marketplace ministers need to watch out here. We are sometimes so intent on losing Christian-ese that we forget to use planning opportunities to engage the Holy Spirit.
• Consciously, from a place of dependence, invite God into your planning process. Don’t leave Him out.

NOTE: Join Rich and me Tuesday at 1:00 for an in depth discussion on how to integrate your leadership style with your core values, vision, mission and life purpose. Click here to register for the free call!

Hello Friend,

Before you sink your teeth into today’s excellent content from our guest, I want to quickly call to your mind our survey from a couple of weeks ago. Thank you once again to all of you who participated. I told you then that you would be helping to steer where things go. Today’s message is a direct result of your requests for more information about promoting your business, growing your revenue, and also about locating business opportunities!

The list of people that Debra Thompson Roedl has worked with is replete with names you would recognize were I to mention them. She hasn’t just contributed to their success… in many cases, she is responsible for their success. We’ve been connected with her for a little over a year now and space does not permit me to go into detail about how significant she is to our advancement. I know you’re going to enjoy hearing from her this week.

How To Make Sure Your Business FAILS! (Part 1 of 3)

I bet that title grabbed your attention and it should!  With today’s economy you need to do everything you can to ensure that your business SUCCEEDS and does not Fail.  But it is up to you to take action and make it happen!

You see most Christian entrepreneurs who are either starting out in their business or well on their way with their business leave out one key ingredient that can make them or break them and cause them to FAIL.  It is called MARKETING.

These entrepreneurs are not typically trained or educated in marketing.  They don’t even understand how essential marketing is to their business in order for them to start, sustain and/or grow their enterprise.  Can you relate?

In fact… because of this lack of knowledge, the typical business owner’s approach to marketing is “Fire… Aim… and then get “Ready”. And guess what?  They don’t hit the Bullseye with this method.  The less you hit your bullseye, the less money you make and you know what that means… it is just a matter of time before your business fails.  Then what are you going to do?

To ensure success in your business you have to create a new mindset and that is…

Marketing Is A Continuous Process!

Marketing is the foundation of your business and everything else that you do is built upon this foundation.  From your products, to your services, to your customers… marketing is in every aspect of your business and it is a constant process.

When it comes to Marketing your business… I have created a specific System to make sure you succeed and do not fail! It is called the BULLSEYE Marketing Accelerator System.  With this system your approach to your business is Ready, Aim, Fire and then BULLSEYE!

OK folks, I hope today’s message from Debra has served to whet your appetite for much more!  Don’t miss Part 2 tomorrow, as she drills down into the 4 key steps in the illustration. I know you’re going to benefit from it!

I am wrapping up my four part series on personal productivity as modeled by the rainforest. In the previous three sessions, we discussed the importance of Eliminating the Unnecessary, Automating the Mundane and Delegating the Tactical. Now I want to get to your core competency as the CEO of your life. What are you the very best at? What gives you remarkable fulfillment? This is what you really want to do, free from the time wasters and time consumers that have plagued your life. It’s where you soar at the stratospheric level like an eagle overseeing the fields and forests, planning the next move from a place of strategic advantage.

In the rainforest, plants have certain designated responsibilities that only they can fulfill. They are wired or created to fulfill those roles and everything about their DNA beckons them to fulfill their primary purpose. The fourth law, therefore, is to Designate. By that I mean, designate your time, your resources, your heart, your mind, your strength to that thing you have burning in your heart, but as much as possible, do it at a strategic level.

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