Becoming: A Review of The Ministry of Business
In their 2012 book entitled The Ministry of Business, Steve Hitz and James Ritchie set out to teach principles of life and business that helped them achieve entrepreneurial and financial success. The promise of the book, written in the foreword by Hyrum W. Smith of FranklinCovey, is that living a personal and professional life guided by correct moral and spiritual principles will lead anyone to “personal, professional, and financial success, independence and happiness… [That the] marriage of great spiritual principles with great business principles will enable you to achieve your greatest and noblest dreams.” (Hitz, Ritchie, & Smith, 2012, pp. 15, 16). These include three foundational principles …show more content…
Hitz and Ritchie realized their formula for success during conversations with many mentors. The six steps are: Get Up Early, Work Hard, Get Your Education, Find Your Oil, Make Your Mark, and Get Prepared to Be of Service, where finding your oil refers to determining what superior product or service you can provide and making your mark to creating a positive difference in the world (pp. 94,96). Their mentors reliably corrected, inspired, cheered the authors on and found joy in their successes, so much so that the authors claim, “working with a mentor is an irreplaceable component of professional success” (p.115). Another component of success is financial fitness, which is comprised of hard work and self-reliance as a means of being able to live and serve the way you choose, without financial restriction. The authors’ plan for reaching financial fitness is comprised of saving towards independence in investments, frugal budgeting and saving towards large purchases (p. 123). They encourage you make a personal plan with values to serve as guidelines for your actions in all circumstances, which they call a Personal Constitution. They recommend writing this constitution as a series of well-defined governing values which inspire long term goals, short term goals and daily tasks, and using those to improve. The personal constitution’s purpose is, “[b]ecoming better – a better entrepreneur, family member, friend, associate, and all-around human being” (p. 132). Giving back is also a component of becoming a better person, Hitz and Richie teach that as we give back, “we align our hearts, desires and actions with God’s will, and ultimately, our acts of giving become conduits through which God’s blessings flow” (p 140). As a conduit for blessings, you can make an unseen
In their 2012 book entitled The Ministry of Business, Steve Hitz and James Ritchie set out to teach principles of life and business that helped them achieve entrepreneurial and financial success. The promise of the book, written in the foreword by Hyrum W. Smith of FranklinCovey, is that living a personal and professional life guided by correct moral and spiritual principles will lead anyone to “personal, professional, and financial success, independence and happiness… [That the] marriage of great spiritual principles with great business principles will enable you to achieve your greatest and noblest dreams.” (Hitz, Ritchie, & Smith, 2012, pp. 15, 16). These include three foundational principles …show more content…
Hitz and Ritchie realized their formula for success during conversations with many mentors. The six steps are: Get Up Early, Work Hard, Get Your Education, Find Your Oil, Make Your Mark, and Get Prepared to Be of Service, where finding your oil refers to determining what superior product or service you can provide and making your mark to creating a positive difference in the world (pp. 94,96). Their mentors reliably corrected, inspired, cheered the authors on and found joy in their successes, so much so that the authors claim, “working with a mentor is an irreplaceable component of professional success” (p.115). Another component of success is financial fitness, which is comprised of hard work and self-reliance as a means of being able to live and serve the way you choose, without financial restriction. The authors’ plan for reaching financial fitness is comprised of saving towards independence in investments, frugal budgeting and saving towards large purchases (p. 123). They encourage you make a personal plan with values to serve as guidelines for your actions in all circumstances, which they call a Personal Constitution. They recommend writing this constitution as a series of well-defined governing values which inspire long term goals, short term goals and daily tasks, and using those to improve. The personal constitution’s purpose is, “[b]ecoming better – a better entrepreneur, family member, friend, associate, and all-around human being” (p. 132). Giving back is also a component of becoming a better person, Hitz and Richie teach that as we give back, “we align our hearts, desires and actions with God’s will, and ultimately, our acts of giving become conduits through which God’s blessings flow” (p 140). As a conduit for blessings, you can make an unseen