~ New York Times best-selling author Gary Harpst says the Bible offers every organization the key to survive in economic chaos ~
Biblical Principles to Survive Economic Chaos
| In the 2023 Business Leaders Outlook survey from JP Morgan Chase, 91% of business leaders say they continue to face challenges from rising inflation and only 8% are optimistic about the global economy, down from 34% just last year. In his new book, “Built to Beat Chaos: Biblical Wisdom for Leading Yourself and Others ” (Wiley; April 18, 2023), New York Times best-selling author Gary Harpst says that many business leaders feel they are currently held hostage by the chaos of many factors including staff shortages, rising labor costs, supply chain disruptions, explosion of technology, and generational differences in employees, just to name a few. But Harpst says there is a manual for handling chaos. Surviving Economic Chaos “God’s first act was to create chaos, and then he began to transform that chaos, step by step into the place where we live,” says Harpst. “After that, God created us in His image, not to be ruled by the chaos, but to overcome it. In Genesis, God makes it clear that He has given us the ability to manage the earthly things He created, but we must multiply to do it. We can’t fulfill our purpose alone. If we want to build an organization, we need other people to help us. So, we end up with a dual dynamic of leadership: leading myself first and then learning how to work together with other people. The amazing thing about creation is not the raw materials; it’s how the materials are assembled. I’m 95% hydrogen, oxygen, and carbon. The only difference between me and three buckets of water and a bucket of coal is how those materials are arranged. Leadership is assembling a group of people around a common purpose and developing a way to bond them together.” Build to Beat Chaos “Built to Beat Chaos” is divided into three parts. Part One identifies six key biblical truths about human design that effective leaders should know to understand the purpose behind leadership. Part Two offers seven specific recommendations for building a habit-forming system. And Part Three talks about the laws that govern human interaction so that leaders can engage people at both the head and heart levels. Harpst has applied his own business successes over the years into teaching organizations how to implement systems that work for their specific needs. “Our goal is to build caring organizations that strive for excellence,” says Harpst. “You can think of our model as a trellis and a vine. We provide the framework (trellis) on which healthy growth occurs. The life is in the vine, not the trellis, but the vine needs the trellis for support so that it flourishes.” Harpst says these principles work for businesses, non-profits, governmental agencies, and churches— any mission-driven organization. “Churches have many similar alignment and management issues as any other organization,” says Harpst. “A good church is going to grow, and a church or organization will often outgrow its ability to execute its goals if it doesn’t develop its leaders. God is a God of order, and churches need systems in place to manage things that will inevitably change over time.” Harpst says he believes that creating a business based on biblical principles gives any employee, whether they are a believer or non-believer, the kind of work environment where they will flourish. “If you work for a company and they base their structure on a biblical framework of trust, integrity, and human worth, even if you aren’t a believer, you still understand there is a set of values in place, and you have some idea of how they will make decisions,” says Harpst. “The alternative is to work for a company where you don’t know what their values are based on, and you will have to find out as you go. Ultimately, an organization that stresses purpose will always draw people. I think we’re seeing this clearly with the millennial generation and younger. They want to know why they are doing what they are doing, more than they care about how much money they make. And frankly, I don’t see any answers anywhere better than what the Bible teaches.” |
Who Is Gary Harpst?
Gary Harpst is founder of LeadFirst.ai and has been recognized by Leadership Excellence magazine as one of the top 100 thought-leaders in management and leadership. He co-founded and became CEO of Solomon Software which grew to more than 400 employees and 50,000 clients around the world. The company was sold to Great Plains Software which was then acquired by Microsoft. He later established Solomon Cloud Solutions, a technology consulting service firm for Microsoft Independent Software Vendors and Microsoft Business Solutions Channel Partners. His books have been on the best-selling lists of the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and Business Week. His latest book is entitled, “Built to Beat Chaos: Biblical Wisdom for Leading Yourself and Others” from Wiley Publishing. For more information visit https://leadfirst.ai.
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