The 7 Habits: Godpreneurs Think Win/Win

This publish is the seventh v sequence of posts the place I studied Steven Covey's Seven Habits of Extremely Efficient Individuals from a Christian Entrepreneur's Perspective and summarize and biblically substantiate every of the seven habits. Go to the underside of this text for hyperlinks to your entire sequence.

The primary of Covey's 7 Habits guides us all to get our personal lives collectively: be proactive, begin with the top, and put first issues first. These are the habits we work on privately each morning once we are alone with God. By creating these first three habits throughout our divine journey, we are going to turn out to be extra like Christ, perceive that we now have a mission within the enterprise world, and that we are able to carry our visions to life.

However now could be the time to embrace these privately developed habits and start to speak with the world and let our mild shine. We aren’t in enterprise alone; we work together with others who’ve their very own wishes and ambitions and take care of our personal stage of inner battle.

How do Christian entrepreneurs efficiently navigate the world as people residing amongst different people? How did Jesus and the apostles do it?

That is what one other behavior tries to reply — Assume Win/Win.

I as soon as offered a whole model and web site package deal to an organization for $30,000. We went backwards and forwards negotiating and naturally they needed a lower cost. I wouldn't budge. I had a robust win-lose mindset. Sure, I received the deal and we did a terrific job, however the subsequent time that entrepreneur begins one other enterprise, guess who they DIDN'T CALL….me! I used to be capable of get the worth I needed, however the buyer most well-liked to take their enterprise elsewhere subsequent time. I misplaced in the long term.

Nonetheless, if I assumed “win-win” I’d construct a constructive relationship somewhat than destroy it. If I as a substitute sought a mutually passable deal, the shopper would doubtless do not forget that I used to be truthful—and are available again subsequent time, rising my backside line in the long term.

The lesson I've discovered is that it's inconceivable for me and my purchasers to have a long-term constructive relationship if I'm continually competing with their funds. It doesn't imply I'm going to decrease my value for everybody, it simply means if they will't meet my costs, perhaps God didn't need us to do enterprise with one another. The win might have been that we each agreed NOT to do enterprise and the subsequent day I’d discover a extra appropriate shopper and he or she would discover a extra appropriate company.

After I work together with staff, purchasers, potential prospects, distributors or my enterprise companions, I all the time imagine that everybody can win. My pondering all the time says that there’s sufficient of a pie for everybody, and it’s significantly better for all events to work in the direction of a win-win resolution that’s helpful to all than to combat for a win-lose end result.

Nonetheless, I’ve interacted with enterprise folks whose worldview is formed by a robust win-lose paradigm. Which means they see any interplay with others, whether or not at work or of their private life, as basically a contest the place they must combat the opposite individual for a much bigger piece of the pie.

As Christian entrepreneurs operating God-centered companies, I imagine the Lord really needs everybody to win. When our purchasers, staff and companions win, it doesn't imply we lose. In truth, it makes it extra doubtless that we are going to “win” as properly.

Win-win pondering in enterprise is the appliance of the golden rule:

“In any respect ye would that males ought to do to you, do ye additionally to them” (Matthew 7:12).

The apostle Paul additionally spoke of this precept in Philippians 2:3:

“Let nothing occur from egocentric ambition or conceit, however in humility let each esteem others higher than himself.”

Win-win pondering is a crucial a part of your divine journey. The extra Christ-like you turn out to be, the extra God will need to use you to resolve some type of interpersonal battle happening round you. For this reason it is rather essential to show the win-lose battle right into a win-win mindset.

A few of your best testimonies as a Christian entrepreneur will probably be if you flip battle into alternative.

Enterprise-first entrepreneurs don’t keep away from, suppress, or deny battle, however somewhat see it as a God-given alternative to be Christ within the battle and convey God to the middle of the answer. As soon as you start to see folks's issues on this approach, the Holy Spirit will substitute your fleshly preventing perspective with a artistic perspective. Once more, the folks you’re coping with don't really feel threatened, however challenged.

That’s the energy we now have as kingdom administration entrepreneurs.

After all, there are occasions when, regardless of how arduous we strive for a win-win, you’ll lose – within the brief time period. Generally the opposite individual isn’t interested by a win-win resolution, solely that you just lose. However we all know that ultimately God will win and so will his folks.

“If attainable, if it is dependent upon you, stay at peace with all males.” (Romans 12:18)

While you stay in peace with staff, companions, and purchasers, you find yourself a winner, whether or not the opposite individual does or not. As a Godpreneur, it is best to all the time attempt to permit the opposite individual to win too, however typically folks select in another way. If this occurs, you shouldn't really feel like a failure since you've carried out your half.

Every time we see a win-win scenario in our companies, assume win-win! Listed here are some useful suggestions:

1. Start with a fast prayer: “God, what’s a win-win? Thanks for utilizing me to disclose it!”

3. Give attention to the current and the long run, not the previous (don't play the blame recreation).

4. Break the issue into smaller components and steadily discover mutually helpful agreements in them.

5. Brainstorm for attainable options.

The next two habits from Stephen Covey's ebook will assist the win-win idea of our entrepreneurial journey. The fifth behavior is “Search first to know, then to be understood.” This requires what our trade calls empathic listening, the place “you hear together with your ears, but additionally, and extra importantly, you hear together with your eyes and your coronary heart.”

These steps result in the sixth behavior, “synergization,” or artistic collaboration in our corporations. Synergy is like successful multiplied. When everybody works collectively creatively, the outcomes may be phenomenal!

Let's maintain successful within the subsequent articles!

I pray you benefit from the sequence as a lot as I loved making it!