5 Directional Signs Not to Miss
Into the Wilder{ness}with the children of Israel VII
By Louise Lee
“And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; to go by day and night.” Exodus 13:21
Entrepreneurship requires constant direction.
It is especially true in the start-up stage when most of your setup are not conclusive and subject to change. And because of the start-up nature, entrepreneurs are always looking out for opportunities for business development, at times open track might lead them into a rabbit hole or even danger; while there are times opportunities lead them to a wide-open field which allows the business to grow in leaps and bounds.
What set the direction for the entrepreneurs? How to look out for signs of genuine opportunities? How to avoid illusion or traps?
Just a recap of some earlier principles we gleaned from the wilderness experience of the Children of Israel in entrepreneurship. We have covered so far “Manna” or divine supply of opportunities from the Manna principle, branding from the never-worn-out clothes principle, effective marketing/business system from the never-worn-out shoes principle.
In this article, I am going to share “The pillar of cloud” principle.
The pillar of cloud in context
In the context of the wilderness journey of the Children of Israel, the pillar of cloud was for direction. The Children of Israel were going towards their destination – the Land of Canaan. Before they reached there, they had to go through the wilderness. For a group of slaves who were residence of Egypt, how would they know the way to Canaan?
They needed external help.
Signs from the nature was a strong indication for their guidance. Since it is their God who called them out of Egypt, they were dependent on Him to lead them.
“The Pillar of Cloud” is the divine guidance provided for the Children of Israel. Their LORD went before them and led them with the pillar of cloud.
The shade under the cloud
Wilderness is an uninhibited land where no man has developed. Unlike trade routes, there is no known path in the wilderness. It is directionless by nature with no signs of direction.
What makes matter worst is everything inside the ex-slaves (the Children of Israel) are from Egypt – a very developed country with a long history of human inhabitancy.
Naturally, it is not possible to go through the wilderness and reach Canaan Land on their own.
They needed external help.
The only direction the Children of Israel can get is from the cloud and the shade it provides. Now, the external help is visible and it makes them feel cool and this encourages their hearts.
Application of “the pillar of cloud” principle
1. Entrepreneurs at this stage need to look up and towards the purpose of their journey, that is all the “whys” before they started out.
The “whys” provides a visible direction when the going gets tough. By checking back to the purpose of starting a business is important. This is the biggest direction sign you can get. It is good to literally make a big sign and place it at your home, your office to remind yourself.
For the Children of Israel, they left Egypt was to worship God and that was why they set forth to go to the Canaan Land. They have faith and they have hope for their future.
The moving sign was huge to direct them.
Can you imagine how big the cloud can be to lead a group of over 600,00 men together with their wives, children and their herds?
How big is your directional sign?
Your primary purpose of starting this entrepreneurship journey ought to be big enough to be directional. Your why should be big enough to set you move in a certain direction even it suffers detours and oppositions along the way.
2. The moving shade
Shelters or shade typically provided by static objects. In this sense, a moving shade is a miracle. The directional movement of the shade is a miracle upon miracle. Weather is a natural occurrence that do not provide direction, so the directional moving shade is a miracle upon miracle.
Entrepreneurship is a journey involves miraculous signs.
Opportunities are not static and they often have a divine nature. The provision of God supplies the seeds of opportunities. Opportunities open only when you move. Stepping into an opportunity makes you feel good, it is like coming under a shade in the wilderness.
You may enjoy the moment of success, you may make small money here and there but you know this is not your destiny, the best has yet to come!
Study the sucess stories of others can certainly help you towards your success. Learn from their sales funnels (also known as a revenue funnel or sales process) and apply to your own business generates opportunities, check out the Funnel University and see how this works for your business: https://goo.gl/WgHc5D.
3. Do not follow the signs of mirage
Mirage is optical illusion that takes place in desert when the ground is very hot and the light refracted with images of water from another location. Optical illusion is appealing to the sight and to the senses. A mirage is a distraction appeals to your needs. Beware of your unmet needs and don’t let them be your guide.
The swift moment of success and the sight of get-rich-quick promise might be just a mirage. Beware of appealing opportunities that sets itself up as a trap, especially those investment opportunities that demand only financial investment with no requirement of skills, hard work and patience.
Don’t allow your sight to lead you. Don’t allow the get-rich-quick illusion to lead you. Don’t allow the present pleasure to lead you away from the long-term blessing.
Beware of the opportunities without substance. Golden opportunities are those align with your purpose and destiny.
For believers, the opportunities ought to be in line with the revealed will of God or God has spoken to you clearly about your future and life calling.
4. The coverage principle
The cloud was big enough to cover entire camp where the Children of Israel was.
The pillar of cloud principle talks about also coverage. The directional sign is not only big but with a wide coverage.
In application, at any given market there is a spectrum of services one can get into. It should not be one single thing you get yourself in. Be diligent to understand the width and the length or the radius of the coverage of the industry you set your foot in.
In other words, it is the shape of that industry you need to be familiarised with, that allows you to be flexible and not breakable. Be versatile in all that you do; you should not put any limit on yourself.
The principles of three is useful: get involved in three services, three aspects of your industry and three products. The three will provide you with a shade that is big enough to cover you along the way.
5. The Earth Orbit Principle – be a student of your market (subscribe to Funnel U: https://goo.gl/WgHc5D) and the overall economy situation in your country and the world. Just as the earth rotates and overall it moves around the sun, your business has its own movement and overall it move towards a direction.
Don’t be distracted by the detours and minor movements, look at the big picture of moving around a long-term goal and a noble purpose.
After all, look far at the signs and you shall move in the right direction.
I hope you are blessed by this article. Coming next will be on risk management (The Pillar of Fire Principle).
Stay tuned!
Louise Lee Writes.com 