Stay out of God's business

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My friend Kaitlin was in a state of despair. She had recently embarked on a journey with a new company specializing in providing team-building training for the workforce of various businesses—a field where she and her coworkers excel.

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However, much to her dismay, she and most of her peers are tasked with business generation, which essentially means selling! She has put in a lot of effort into this over the past month, yet neither she nor her colleagues have managed to secure their first client for the new company.

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This situation has left her exasperated and slightly disheartened. It all seems incredibly challenging to her.

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It's hard because she's in God's business, not just staying in her own

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Here are the fundamental truths. The company's investor understands and acknowledges the potential risks involved—that the venture may or may not achieve success. He has made a commitment to pay Kaitlin and her colleagues a base salary, at least for a period of time, regardless of whether the company starts earning revenue from clients or not. That is his business, not Kaitlin's.

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Kaitlin is getting a base salary, so there's no current financial risk for her in that regard. The uncertainty lies in whether any specific potential client she reaches out to will sign a contract with the company—a substantial risk indeed with each prospect, even with Kaitlin doing her best.

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Furthermore, even if Kaitlin engages with 25 such potential clients, the likelihood even one of them will opt for their service remains a gamble, albeit at a significantly reduced risk compared to individual attempts at securing a client. In truth, we can't precisely predict how many prospects Kaitlin may need to engage before landing her first sale. It could be a number so high at some point that it may seem reasonable to then abandon the endeavor.

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Staying in her own business

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I posed this question to Kaitlin.

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What if your role wasn't about persuading people to enter into a contract with your company? Consider the following as your sole responsibility: consistently reaching out to businesses and initiating discussions about the potential benefits they could derive from your company's service. Encourage them to collaborate, to gather enough information to evaluate whether your service aligns with their needs, and whether it fits within their budget. You strive to help them recognize the value they could potentially gain from utilizing your service. Following this, you extend an enthusiastic invitation to avail your service. That is the entirety of your responsibility. The outcome, whether they respond with a "yes" or a "no," is not within your purview. That's in the hands of God. When you attempt to meddle in God's domain, you unintentionally diminish the likelihood of Her manifesting a "yes."

 

I asked her, "If you knew that the decision of whether they say 'yes' or 'no' was none of your business and your focus was merely on performing your best with the task described above, would you find enjoyment in that and take pride in your efforts?" She confirmed that she would.

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I responded, "There's still an inherent risk. It's an inseparable aspect of the business world, and of life in general. However, by concentrating on your role and avoiding encroaching on God's territory, not only will you find pleasure in the journey and derive satisfaction from your work, but it's also probable that God, appreciating your respect for Her domain, will grace you with a higher frequency of 'yeses'."

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PS: if you don't believe in God

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Just substitute the word "reality" for the word "God."

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