Monday 17 December 2007

Business Ethic


It is not inconsistent with the heavenly calling to engage in profit-making business - unless you have been called to be separated unto the Gospel. In fact, employing Christ-like principles will enhance success in every sphere of life - with persecutions.

Consider for example Christ's principle of serving. To succeed in business, you must provide a service or a product that people desire. In other words, you need to serve them. If you serve only your own desire and not the consumer's - your business will go down.

Here's an important point. Placing a profit-margin on your price is not ripping the consumer off. It is still consistent with Jesus' principle of serving. I'll explain.

The business owner offers to provide a service or product which the consumer desires, in exchange for a commodity which he or she places more value on - money. At the same time, the consumer places more value on the business owner's service or product than on keeping his or her commodity, money. Therefore both seller and buyer profit from the exchange; they have mutually served each other's desire or need. It's a win-win situation.

As soon as either party perceives an imbalance of service over profit, they will reduce their demand. So there is a built-in check to make sure this principle of mutual service and profit remains in balance. Notice therefore that neither supplier nor consumer is sovereign. Mutual profit thrives on mutual serving. And as soon as one party stops serving, his own profit will suffer.

I call it service at a profit. Someone once called it benevolent capitalism. It's mutual profit through mutual service.

In the post entitled Tool for Dominion I will show how this principle can be used as a tool to enhance opportunities to spread the Gospel and as a tool to export improved living standards.

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