Failing at Work?

Gandhi’s family sacrificed everything they had to send him to law school.  Gandhi graduated and passed the bar, but unfortunately, he was so shy that whenever he stood up in court all he could do was stammer.  He lost every one of his cases – a total failure as a courtroom attorney.  Then he went off to South Africa, where he found his passion and his voice by challenging racial and social injustice – and brought England to its knees.

In a note to our family the week before he left on his first trip to Rwanda four years ago, my son Jared said this: I am a bit intimidated by the magnitude of this project, and the possibility of it affecting so many lives, but I’m equally excited and I know I have the passion and determination to see it through, even if I am shaking in my boots. My passion for these people always exceeds my fears of inadequacy. In realizing that, I regain the confidence I need. (see http://www.keza.com/ )

Now there’s a key for overcoming the fears of inadequacy. My passion exceeds my fears. Staying true to your calling will release a passion for what you are doing; that will in turn override your fears of inadequacy.

Work at what you love. You’ll never work more willingly, passionately, and fearlessly than when you work in line with your passion—where your life will speak. The extra boost of enthusiasm and energy generated by a clear passion will propel you to a level of success unattainable with any other motivation. If fear is crippling or limiting you, perhaps you are trying to do work that is not your passion. Working with raw ability alone is ultimately not enough to keep you going.

“Social Entrepreneurship”

Many of you have asked to hear more about “social entrepreneurship.”  I have mentioned this frequently over the last couple of years as a growing example of being able to “do good” while “doing well.”  What I mean by that is that you can change the world, address pollution, poverty, share the gospel, make the world a better place – you get to decide what your passion is – and MAKE MONEY in the process.

In this week’s podcast I have my son Jared as my guest.  Jared is executive director of Sisters or Rwanda in Kigali, Rwanda.  He has a great model of working with the women at the bottom of the ladder economically and socially, and has now created a model where they can earn significant income while providing funding for the organization’s administrative needs as well.

I love this growing awareness of “social entrepreneurship” or the understanding that we can shift capitalism to create good.  Many of us come from backgrounds that make us question if making money is somehow moving away from doing true ministry.  I am convinced it is the most effective and most direct path to actually increasing our ministry efforts. 

Jared and I explain how his organization has become self-sustaining and how you can take your idea and do the same using “social entrepreneurship.”

Listen to this 48-minute podcast on “Social Entrepreneurship.”