There’s a book by Michael Gerber called The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Work and What to Do About It. One of the points he makes, which is equally applicable to church planting, is that many entrepreneurs get caught up working in the business itself. They get so wrapped up in mechanics of the business– bookkeeping, sales, inventory– that they lose their perspective. They experience what’s called the “entrepreneurial seizure” and they drown.
The remedy is to take a step back and work on your business, not in your business. Start with a blank board and ask, “What are all the jobs and functions that need to be done?” Write all of them down. Your name might be on all of them right now, but at least you’re cognizant of that. Then as you grow you can incrementally put others in charge of some of the other pieces. In this way, you can be intentional about how you’re growing your ministry. You have an outside perspective, able to look in and be aware of what you’re doing.
The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Work and What to Do About It
In this first new and totally revised edition of the 150,000-copy underground bestseller, The E-Myth, Michael Gerber dispels the myths surrounding starting your own business and shows how commonplace assumptions can get in the way of running a business. He walks you through the steps in the life of a business from entrepreneurial infancy, through […]
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Price: $10.20
You have identified one of the landmines for church planter and I find that one of the best ways for leaders to consistently “work on it vs. in it” is through the regular interaction with a missional coach.