What are the Seven Benchmarks?

In child development, we expect a child to learn how to turn over, then crawl, walk, run and ride a bicycle in that order. Any other sequence would be odd.

In education we recognize the milestones of sixth grade, eighth grade, and 12th grade, followed by being graduated with a Bachelors, Masters and PhD degree. The sequence is rather set in stone.

Similarly, there are predictable benchmarks that can be observed in your company to determine where you are in the normal spiritual development of a business.

1. The Blessing of Hosea

The first blessing is simply that of favor. You really should not open your business unless there is measurable evidence that a lot of people like you well enough to refer you to their friends. That is the most basic level of favor.

One businessman opened a new retail outlet and stationed his kids at the door with a roll of a hundred one dollar bills each, with instructions to give the first one hundred customers a buck apiece as they came in. By mid afternoon the kids were sent to the sidewalks to try to pay people who didn’t want to go in the store a buck a piece to try it out. This represents a pretty drastic lack of favor in the community.

By contrast, a friend in the service industry started out completely on his own, unknown, with no capital, but one friend put him in touch with another friend who referred him to another friend, etc. He built his business on favor, not expensive advertising. He started his business already at the first level of blessing which made it so much easier for him.

So what percentage of your business comes from word of mouth referrals? How good is your buzz in the community? “Good will” is so widely recognized in the marketplace that some companies even put a price tag on it and include it in their net worth calculations. It is another term for the Blessing of Hosea.

2. The Blessing of Esther

The second blessing is for someone to give you a helping hand when they owe you nothing. Our parents, teachers, spiritual leaders and some other authorities are expected to build a platform under us for our success. But when someone else does it who has no moral obligation to, it is a mark of the Blessing of Esther.

For me to refer you to my friend costs me nothing. That is favor. For me to spend time, money or effort to build a platform under you is a higher level of blessing. Some people receive help from government officials, bankers and others businessmen when they are opening a new business because they already walk in the Blessing of Esther. Others simply receive exactly what they pay for, no more and no less. They are not cursed; they simply are not walking in the blessing.

One businessman I know had a neighbor give him $20,000 in start-up capital as an unsecured loan with no repayment date. Another man had a friend offer to cover all of his overhead and a salary for six months while he started a new business. This was again an unsecured loan, with no repayment deadline.

These are clear examples of people walking in the Blessing of Esther. Some people never get to this level in their entire life. All they ever get is simple justice – they receive what they pay for. Nonetheless, this is an ordinary step in the sequence of blessing when you are progressing with your spiritual development.

So how many people voluntarily invested sweat equity or money into the startup phase of your business? How often do your suppliers or customers go the extra mile for you without your asking? These are markers for the Blessing of Esther in your business.

3. The Blessing of Daniel

At the third level, God gives you your own intellectual capital. We come into life ignorant, and for the first few decades, we acquire the wisdom of those around us, both through formal education and through teachable moments in all walks of life.

Eventually, each person and each business needs to cross over that threshold into acquiring their own wisdom. You begin by weaving together other people’s wisdom in a more effective fashion, then you begin to differentiate.

I grew up with a wide exposure to traditional Christianity, business lore and American history. I taught other people’s wisdom for about 40 years. The material on the seven curses and seven blessings is some of my first intellectual capital. Today I have my own insights into Christianity, into business and into American history that go far beyond what I was taught by others. This is proprietary knowledge that comes from research into the Word of God and revelation. It is the Blessing of Daniel.

How much proprietary knowledge does your company have? What has been developed inside the company as compared to knowledge and skill sets that were brought in by employees who learned it outside? Answering those questions will tell you whether you are ready for the fourth blessing.

4. The Blessing of Moses

At the fourth level you learn how to grow your staff – especially difficult people. Of particular importance in this level is learning how to impart your values to others without guile, manipulation or force. Many employees come to you with good skills but with values that simply do not represent your company.

Most companies choke at this point and never progress beyond trying to hire better employees. They remain stuck at the third level of blessing, wondering why their wonderful idea does not take the world by storm. It is because they need more than three blessings.

I listened to a discussion the other day between an Army vet and a civilian. The vet commented with amazement at the fact that almost all Marines absolutely love their branch of the military. He said in absolutely unambiguous terms, “I HATE the Army.”

Not every Army vet feels the same, but it is true that the Marines have mastered the art of building values (and skills) into their recruits. The companies with extremely high employee retention are not necessarily those who offer extraordinary pay packages. Rather they are the ones who walk in the Blessing of Moses, having learned how to change people’s hearts and values.

So rate your company. How many employees do you have who simply are there because of the paycheck, and how many profoundly believe in what you are doing? If they believe in you and share your values, you are walking in the Blessing of Moses. If not, you are the problem not them. You need to master some new skills and receive a new level of blessing.

5. The Blessing of Job

At this level, God begins to release capital. Up until now, a company generally lives with cash flow. As fast as sales grow, expenses grow so that you are always growing, but never getting ahead.

Suddenly, the productivity of your people and your equipment moves out ahead of the cost of goods and services and you are able to accrue capital. This does not simply mean having liquidity. You may be accruing capital in the form of buildings, equipment, favor in the marketplace, or other kinds of capital.

Many times, the sudden shift happens because a new market opens up unexpectedly. Other times, it is simply a steady increase of sales in established markets. Regardless, it is pronounced, very measurable, and quite different from all the previous years.

Because the owners have been deferring gratification for a long time while building the business, there is a tendency to swiftly siphon off the surplus capital into their own lifestyle. This is not what God intended!

6. The Blessing of Nehemiah

At the sixth level, God begins to build the extraordinary team. In the previous levels, you are subject to market forces. You draw from the same labor pool everyone else does and you struggle with staff issues. If you pay premium wages to attract superior staff, you run in the red.

Suddenly, people who are “bigger than life” WANT to work with you. And if you have not squandered the surplus from the Blessing of Job, you will have the income to pay wages commensurate with the higher caliber of people who are coming to you.

Not only are good people coming to you, but the right people are available at the right time for you to build a team that can seriously outperform the competition.

7. The Blessing of John

And with this exceptional team, you are positioned to build a legacy.

Work vs. skill

While each of these seven levels can be measured and verified in tangible ways in your business, they are the result of spiritual dynamics at work. Many people work very, very hard at their businesses but do not progress because they are held back by one of the curses, or they simply have not walked out the principles necessary to move to the next level of blessing.

Hard work is no substitute for strategic insight. We at Sapphire Leadership Concepts are skilled at evaluating where you are in the sequence and giving you the tools for breaking through the glass ceiling and moving forward.

Call us when you are tired of the same old same old…

 

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