Entrepreneurial Journal Entry - Week 10

This week was full of great readings and videos. Two great articles that I'd like to refer to are "Formula For Success" by President Monson - 1996; "Attitude on Money" by Stephen Gibson.

Stephen Gibson talks about the positive side of money:

   1.  Money is not evil. (How it is used may be, but money itself is not.)
   2.  Money has great power to do good.
   3.  Money reveals the kind of person we are.
   4.  Money makes good men better.

He goes on to explain how we need to seek for wealth with righteous intent and for righteous purposes. He gave great examples of people that use their wealth to do good.  Jon Huntsman from Utah has given over $100 Million dollars to fight cancer. The good samaritan gave freely of his wealth to meet the needs of a total stranger. Brother Gibson and his wife have given of their wealth to build a school for return missionaries in the Philippines.

Presiden Monson talks about three things we need to fill our lives with:

   1.  Fill your mind with truth.
   2.  Fill your life with service.
   3.  Fill your heart with love.

Truth: He suggests that when we search for truth we search among those books and in those places where truth is most likely to be found. "You do not find truth by groveling through error. You find truth by searching the holy word of God."

Service: Remember that "when ye are in the service of your fellow beings, ye are only in the service of your God."

Love: I like how he talked about love. He gave a great example of Abraham Lincoln:

When I think of love, I think of Abraham Lincoln, one of the outstanding presidents of the United States. He was also one of the nation’s greatest writers and orators. I have seldom read words that better characterize the love that a man can have for others than the love he described as he penned a letter to a mother who had lost all her sons in the Civil War. It is known as the Lydia Bixby Letter. Note carefully the words of Abraham Lincoln and see if you don’t feel within your heart the love that filled his:

Dear Madam:

I have just been shown, in the files of the War Department, a statement of the Adjutant General of Massachusetts that you are the mother of five sons who died gloriously on the field of battle.

I feel how weak and fruitless must be any words of mine which should attempt to beguile you from the grief of a loss so overwhelming, but I cannot refrain from tendering to you the consolation that may be found in the thanks of the republic they died to save.

I pray that our Heavenly Father may assuage the anguish of your bereavement and leave you only the cherished memory of the loved and lost and the solemn pride that must be yours to have laid so costly a sacrifice upon the altar of freedom.

Yours very sincerely and respectfully, A. Lincoln

Entrepreneurial Journal Entry – Week 9

Each week we are giving so many great things to read and watch. We are then given the opportunity to write about what stood out to us the most. Even though I learn so many from all the weekly material I notice it’s usually the church articles that stand out to me the most.

This week’s article was incredible as usual. It was a talk given by Elder Oaks in 2000 – “The Challenge To Become”. I learned so much from this article that I ended up sharing quite a bit of it to my husband. Elder Oaks starts out by teaching a little bit about Simon Peter. Who he was, the experiences he had, the things he had taught, and the position he held in the leadership of the church, etc. It was interesting to hear after all these incredible things he had done and been through, even with the incredible testimony he had and his willingness to share it, Peter was still asked to do and be more. The Savior told Peter he needed to be converted.

So what is the difference between having a testimony and being converted? Elder Oaks teaches that to testify is to know and to declare. But to be converted requires us to do and to become. Oftentimes our journey to conversion requires us to endure trials and adversity. Some of us will even endure what the scriptures call “the furnace of affliction.” Through these difficult experiences of refinement and sanctification our Heavenly Father is able to help us to reach our potential and become who we are meant to be. It is at this state of being that we not only do what is right, but we do it for the right reasons – for the pure love of Christ. People who are progressing toward the process of conversion are beginning to see things as our Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, see them. They are hearing His voice instead of the voice of the world, and they are doing things in His way instead of by the ways of the world.

Entrepreneurial Journal Entry - Week 8

This week has had some great articles and videos. I especially liked the article by President Hinckley on “Loyalty” from the priesthood session, April 2003. He emphasized the importance of loyalty to God, to the church, to ourselves, and especially to our marriage. This stood out to me a lot since it seems like the topic of marriage difficulties comes up so often lately. Sometimes I wonder if there is any one that is actually happy in their marriage. Of course I’m sure there are many happy marriages, but it’s very evident that marriage is not always the easiest thing to be involved in. I look at marriage as being more like a roller coaster. We have our ups and our downs. Sometimes when stress is high our “downs” seem to drag on for very long stretches of time. I was actually thinking about my marriage today as a friend was venting to me the concerns she was experiencing with hers. She loves her husband, but was just experiencing a moment of frustration as all of us do. I thought about some of the various down times my husband and I have experienced and wondered if they could’ve been less “down” if I had handled them differently. It was a really good moment of reflection for me. Am I loyal to my husband? I’ve never cheated on him, been dishonest with him, hurt him, or any other negative thing I can think of. But have I always been supportive of him? Have I always given him the benefit of the doubt? Have I always put him before myself? These were tough questions to honestly answer, but good questions I think we should all take time to contemplate occasionally to make sure we are doing our part in making our marriage an enjoyable one that will be strong enough for the eternities.  

Entrepreneurial Journal Entry - Week 7

The reading this week that had the greatest impact on me was an article by Elder and Sister Holland at a BYU devotional in 1986 – “However Long and Hard the Road” The article is definitely worth reading if anyone cares to take the time to look it up. He covers many areas such as: Hang In and Hang On, Victory – Victory at all Costs, Dreams and Visions, Joseph Smith’s Perseverance, The Early Saints – Fulfillment Ahead, Determination, Symbolic Problem in Our World – Divorce, and Lessons on Perseverance. The following paragraph is copied right from this last section on perseverance. It struck me so strongly, I’d like to share it with you unaltered. To give a little background on this paragraph, Elder Holland is relaying the story of how the Salt Lake Temple was built. It’s an amazing story that’s hard to imagine. So much information was given in this article, but it’s obvious there is so much more Elder Holland wasn't able to include due to time constraints. I would love to learn more about the entire history of this event. It’s definitely one of perseverance. Here’s the paragraph:

·         “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God?” (1 Corinthians 3:16). Most assuredly you are. As long and laborious as the effort may seem, please keep shaping and setting the stones that will make your accomplishment “a grand and imposing spectacle.” Take advantage of every opportunity to learn and grow. Dream dreams and see visions. Work toward their realization. Wait patiently when you have no other choice. Lean on your sword and rest a while, but get up and fight again. Perhaps you will not see the full meaning of your effort in your own lifetime. But your children will, or your children’s children will, until finally you, with all of them, can give the Hosanna shout.

If you get a chance, please read this article. It is amazing. I think this is the correct address to it: http://speeches.byu.edu/?act=viewitem&id=873.

Entrepreneurial Journal Entry - Week 6

I like the emphasis this week’s studies had on ethics, both in the work place and in our personal lives.

There was a great article included this week written by Charles Handy, “What’s a Business For?” He starts out by showing how a lack of ethics and virtue can destroy the economy by destroying trust. Not that this sounds like anything new, but the way he teaches the details of it makes it very clear how vital ethics is for the success of not only our personal lives, but of the world as a whole.

He also goes into detail about how companies need to change their mentality of who owns the business. Right now, the stockholders seem to be viewed as the owner of not only the business by the employees as well. Handy realizes the need for the employees to be viewed as individuals with individual talents, skills and needs. They should also be given a portion of ownership in the company and allow them to have a say in how the business is run. This gives them a feeling of ownership and commitment to the company which will create a greater desire in them to work for the benefit of the company and not just themselves.