by Michael Duduit What Business Are You Really In?

Many years ago, Harvard Business School professor Theodore Levitt — considered by some the father of modern marketing — posed this famous question to business leaders: What business are you really in?

He offered the example of the great American railroad corporations, which were pushed aside by the automobile (and truck) and then the railroad. Their problem is that they thought of themselves as being in the railroad business, not the transportation business; because they defined their role so narrowly, they missed opportunities to expand and innovate.

In an article in the July 2004 issue of Fast Company, Alison Overholt talks about companies that took Levitt's question to heart and built empires. Walt Disney went from cartoons to movies to theme parks to a wide-ranging array of products aimed at the family market. Another example: "Virgin's Richard Branson turned a little music magazine into a music superstore, then launched an airline and, most recently, a cell-phone company." And now Starbucks — the coffee people — is developing a string of coffee bar-music stores where you can burn your own music CD while you sip your latte.

As Overholt observes, "In each case, as the company reached a plateau in one industry category, a visionary leader looked past the original product or service to redefine, in the broadest terms, the business it was in."

So, Christian leader, what business are you in?

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus offered some strategic advice that every leader needs to take to heart: "Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you" (Matt. 6:3, HCSB).

In other words, you and I are in the Kingdom business. No matter in what division we may be employed — from the pastoral division to the publishing division, from the education division to the entrepreneurial division — we are in the Kingdom business. Every day, our task is to see how our little piece of the work can contribute toward the advancement of the Kingdom of God.

And like those visionaries of corporate life, we also need to keep our eyes on how our work can adapt and grow to face new and exciting opportunities to serve the Kingdom that will come our way. If we're in the Kingdom business, there's always room for growth.

And you can't beat the benefits.

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Michael Duduit is President/CEO of American Ministry Resources LLC, and editor of LeaderLinks. You can contact him at michael@leaderlinks.com or visit his website at www.michaelduduit.com