Are You Trying to do it All Yourself?

Article from Marketplace Christianity written by Brad Harmon

One of the largest issues that small business owners face is transitioning from being self-employed to becoming a true business owner.  It’s just you in the beginning so there’s nobody else to whom you can delegate.  Once your business reaches a point where you can hire employees it still seems like you are doing most of the work.  Sound familiar?

As we pick back up our 20 Entrepreneurial Lessons from Creation series, I couldn’t help but notice that God sets a good example for us by not doing all the work of Creation Himself.  That’s right.  God delegated out some of the work when it came to creating the heavens and the earth.  Obviously, God didn’t really need our help; however, He included us in the process.

Set Up the Framework Then Delegate Out the Details

When God went about the work of Creation, He took care of the big items.  He set the framework of life.  He came up with the big ideas, and He personally named them.  Look at what God took the time to name in the Creation account: Day and Night (Gen 1:5), Heaven (Gen 1:8), the Earth and Seas (Gen 1:10).

In the Old Testament names had great significance.  Naming a person, place, or anything else was not something that was done lightly.  Isn’t it interesting then that God gave responsibility for naming all of His creatures to Adam?

19And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof. 20And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him.– Genesis 2:19-20

Adam also named Woman (Gen 2:23).  Who’s idea was it to create Eve?  Of course, God knew all along that He would create Adam a mate; however, is it possible that Adam pointed out this need to God?  Did God go through this exercise with Adam to get him to buy into God’s plan for him?

I don’t know the answers to these questions, but it’s a great model for us as business owners to follow as we start to bring on employees.  Design the vision and major systems, then let your employees help you finish out the process.  You may, like God, not really need their help to finish it; however, creating a sense of ownership and partnership will be worth it.

Read entire article at Marketplace Christianity.