Episode 107 - Pruning One Business to Grow Another with Lara Casey

Everyone has different end goals for what they’d call ultimate success, but most of us are chasing after something.

For many entrepreneurs, “going public” stands as the ultimate sign that you’ve truly “made it.” And if that’s the case, then today’s guest, Renji Bijoy, is on the verge of making it.

But that’s not what keeps him going.

Renji is the CEO and Founder of Immersed, the company behind the world’s most used AR/VR app on the planet. In an industry full of potential dangers where Christians are quick to back away, Renji and his team have decided to lean in.

In this conversation, Renji’s talks with Joey Honescko and Henry Kaestner about what it’s like to lead and innovate in a new, emerging industry. He and Henry will also share how their faith has kept them grounded in the highs and lows that come with worldly success.

Listen to Renji’s first episode: https://www.faithdrivenentrepreneur.org/podcast-inventory/episode-161-the-immersed-story-with-renji-bijoy

Learn more about Immersed:

https://immersed.com/

Dr. Emerson Eggerichs and special guest host Mike Sharrow join the show to take a candid look at how entrepreneurs can overcome the challenges they face in their personal and professional relationships.

Dr. Eggerichs is a renowned counselor and author, as well as the founder of Love and Respect, a ministry that grew from the success of his best-selling marriage book of the same name and has expanded to include teachings and resources on business, leadership, and communication in addition to marriage and family concerns.

In this conversation, he breaks down practical insights for bringing love and respect to all relationships.

• We can motivate and influence others by meeting their deepest core needs with love and respect.
• It is important to apologize and seek forgiveness when we come across as unloving or disrespectful.
• Trust and obedience are key in applying these principles over time.
• In marriage, it is important to communicate in a way that resonates with your spouse's natural language.

Find more about Dr. Eggerichs’ ministry at https://www.loveandrespect.com/

Get the book 

https://www.loveandrespect.com/product/love-respect-book

Do you ever feel like you're so fixated on what you're building next that you forget to look at the opportunities right in front of you? 

Right now people around the world are looking for meaning, purpose, and value. 

And many of them are searching for those things through their jobs.  

So that means you, as a founder, have a chance to provide these people with the very thing they long for most.

In this episode, we talk to Stephen Phelan, the Chief Pastoral Officer of Movement Mortgage about the radical programs they have implemented to care for their employees. 

Stephen has helped businesses all around the U.S. care meet the needs of their employees, and the best part is that these programs aren't out of reach or super expensive. In fact, throughout the conversation, Stephen shows just how realistic these are for any company, no matter how big or small your team is. 

5 Key Takeaways:

• Implementing programs like Love Works can have a significant impact on company culture and create a community where teammates feel loved and valued.
• The Love Works program helps teammates in crisis and demonstrates the love and care of the company.
• Mentoring processes can be implemented to further support and develop teammates.
• Funding for programs like Love Works can be achieved through the support of teammates.
• Overcoming barriers such as uncertainty and busyness is essential to implementing programs that care for and support teammates.

You can contact Stephen directly at Stephen.Phelan@movement.com.

You can also hear more about the work of Movement Mortgage in the first edition of a new podcast segment called “Stories of the Movement.” Listen to the episode here: https://www.faithdrivenentrepreneur.org/podcast-inventory/episode-283-stories-of-the-movement-the-2008-turnaround

If you enjoyed the show, please rate, follow, and share the episode.

Why would an entrepreneur start a Mortgage company in the midst of the housing crisis?

In this new segment called “Stories of the Movement,” we take a narratively compelling, high-production look at the work of Faith Driven Entrepreneurs living out their call to create.

The goal is to unite the movement through stories because every Faith Driven Entrepreneur, no matter what industry or what community, focuses their attention on solving problems in the world.

The details may differ, but the plot stays the same. We’re all part of God’s story. 

He’s using each of us to bring hope, redemption, and light to a dark world for the glory of God and the good of others. 

This episode highlights what God is doing through Casey Crawford and the team at Movement Mortgage.

But you’ll be able to see yourself in their story, too. It might inspire, equip, and challenge you as you pursue your call to create.

If you like this episode, be sure to follow, rate, and share the show. 

For more on Casey Crawford and Movement Mortgage check out these links:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MnyrnjZm0Ww

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhgy5nLdmqI&t=2s

The middle of February is often filled with commercialized images of love. Flowers, chocolates, those little chalky tasting heart candies with sweet messages. 

It all revolves around Valentine’s Day. 

And in between booking restaurant reservations or talking about how you reject the hallmark holiday, we might stop to ask ourselves, what do we really love?

Most of us know the right answers here: family, friends, God. As entrepreneurs, we love our work and what it affords us.

And, let’s face it, a lot of us love money.

But can we dig a little deeper here? Money isn’t a bad thing. In fact, it can be a catalyst for great good in the world. As long as we learn to think about it rightly. 

And that’s what we’re going to do in today’s episode. We’ll hear from author Andy Crouch, theologian Randy Alcorn, and entrepreneur Tom Hsieh talk about how we can develop a biblically informed relationship with money that leads to generosity and joy.

Full Episodes Listed

God and Mammon with Andy Crouch

Investing in Eternity with Randy Alcorn (with Guest Host Daryl Heald)

Choosing Vulnerability When You Don’t Have To with Tom Hsieh

Can we just be honest with ourselves and admit that, for most of us, our prayer lives stink? 

We all know we’re supposed to pray. 

We’ve read where Paul tells us to pray without ceasing. Maybe we’ve even tried instilling new habits, only to have them fall apart shortly after we test them out.  

It might even feel defeating at this point–as if prayer is just another task we can’t work into our chaotic schedules and the regular ups and downs of entrepreneurship.

Is it even possible for entrepreneurs to develop a healthy prayer life? And… is it even worth it?

Today on the show, Peter Greer is going to help give us some clear guidance around these questions based on the findings of his new book Lead with Prayer that he co wrote with Cameron Doolittle and Ryan Skoog. 

Peter is a longtime friend of the movement who has been featured on the podcast, the conference, and video series in the past, but over the last three years, he has been researching the spiritual habits of world-changing leaders. And in this episode, he’s going to share some of his findings with us so that we can develop prayer rhythms that fit our lives.

In this conversation, Jordan Raynor challenges the belief that the only way our work matters for eternity is if we use it to share the gospel, arguing that our work has intrinsic value to God. 

He’ll build upon half truths to make them whole by tracing the story back to what he calls “the first commission:” the command to be ambassadors for God on this earth, creating culture in ways that honor and glorify him now and for all eternity. 

Entrepreneur, this is your calling. To create and innovate for God’s kingdom under his power and for his glory. 

Jordan also explores the concept of the unabridged gospel, emphasizing that Jesus came to redeem all things, not just our souls. He’ll encourage Faith Driven Entrepreneurs to be intentional and sacrificial in their work, and to focus on eternal rewards rather than temporary achievements. 

Find the book here

Hear Jordan’s first episode with us here

As Christians, we can easily get wrapped up in this belief that the church is on the losing side of history. 

We feel the shifting winds of culture blow away from us. 

We hear story after story of major church leaders either leaving the faith or succumbing to some sort of moral failure. 

It makes sense to ask ourselves: where are our wins? Where does the Church have victory in times like this?

In this episode of the Faith Driven Entrepreneur Podcast, Henry Kaestner and Justin Forman bring some clarity to those questions in a segment we call “the riff” where we bring listeners in on some of the internal conversations we’re having as a team.

They’ll share about some of the incredible wins happening across the world and give examples of Faith Driven Entrepreneurs who are solving some of the world’s greatest problems by stewarding their businesses and resources for God’s glory and the good of others. 

Join the conversation by sharing your thoughts on LinkedIn or sending them to podcast@faithdrivenentrepreneur.org. 

If you like this episode, you can follow, rate, and share the show. We publish new episodes every Tuesday with entrepreneurs and innovators who use their resources and influences for God’s glory and the good of others.

Find out more about our organization at faithdrivenentrepreneur.org. 

Entrepreneurs are on the cusp of a mental health crisis. 

Anxiety. Depression. Loneliness. 

These are just as familiar as innovation, grit, and leadership. We feel the stress that comes from building something new. We carry the burden of our teams, knowing they and their families have trusted us and the vision we’ve been given.

Entrepreneurship can be heavy, but there are ways we can lighten the load.

That’s why today we’re going to highlight three expert voices that help us see how we can manage our mental health as entrepreneurs. 

We’ll start our journey with Maxwell Anderson, an entrepreneur and the publisher of the popular weekly newsletter “The Weekend Reader.” He’ll take us through some of the jarring statistics about entrepreneurs and mental health before we hear from pastor Steve Cuss and psychiatrist, Dr. Curt Thompson on the practical tools we need to care for ourselves so we can care for others and our businesses.

The New Year brings new opportunities to examine our goals, to get focused both personally and professionally.

So how do we do this well? How do we establish goals that actually get done? How do we make sure those goals align with our faith? And most importantly, how do we stop ourselves when we start putting our value in the things we achieve?

In this special edition of the Faith Driven Entrepreneur podcast, we’ll highlight conversations Rusty, Henry, and William have had with expert leaders Jon Acuff, Patrick Lencioni, and Terry Looper about what it looks like to set and accomplish the right kinds of goals. 

They walk us through how to avoid the pitfalls that try to take away our focus, how to set our minds and hearts on the things that matter most, and how to ensure that we don’t allow our accomplishments to become our identities. 

More from these guests

Jon Acuff: 

https://www.faithdrivenentrepreneur.org/podcast-inventory/episode-159-the-surprising-solution-to-overthinking-with-jon-acuff

Patrick Lencioni:

https://www.faithdrivenentrepreneur.org/podcast-inventory/2020/4/7/patrick-lencioni

https://www.faithdrivenentrepreneur.org/podcast-inventory/episode-240-the-motive-with-patrick-lencioni

https://www.faithdrivenentrepreneur.org/working-genius

Terry Looper:

https://www.faithdrivenentrepreneur.org/podcast-inventory/episode-243-why-an-experienced-entrepreneur-and-ceo-chose-to-live-at-a-sacred-pace-with-terry-looper