Slawek
was surprised when he was told that God had something to say about
business. He began studying the Bible. He kept coming back to Matthew
25. There he found ten principles that provide insight to those in
the marketplace. Those principles changed his life and the way he did
business.
He
shares those principles in this book, as well as how to apply them to
life and work. I'll cover just one of the principles: Aim For
Excellence, Not Perfection. I would have thought perfection would be
the target. But, Slawek says, perfection gets us in trouble. It is
unrealistic and leads to procrastination. The other options are
failure, mediocrity, and excellence. Many aim for mediocrity and that
is the biggest threat to excellence. Failure is preferred over
mediocrity. At least failure shows us what not to do. He shows how
pursuing excellence comes from Matthew 25 and how he has put that in
practice in his own life and business.
Slawek
offers lots of personal examples from his life and his role as CEO of
FONA (Flavors of North America). He has a good sense of
responsibility to those who work with and for him. He clearly shows
how he has put these principles into practice in his life, business,
and leadership role. He shares the growth of FONA and the awards won
(business excellence, contribution to nonprofits, etc.). FONA is a
growing company, a result of putting these principles in practice,
Slawek argues. (See the biographical note below to get an idea of the
awards won.)
This
is an excellent book for anyone who wants to understand the
principles God has revealed in Matthew 25, principles for life and
work. Slawek is clear in his writing and gives plenty of examples
showing how he has put the principles into practice. He has added the
vision, mission, and values of FONA in an appendix so readers can
read how the principles can be incorporated into a business
statement.
Joseph
Slawek, founder and
CEO of FONA International, is a 2011 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur
of the Year winner. He was inducted into the Entrepreneurship Hall of
Fame in recognition of the unique corporate culture he established
and the dramatic year over year growth it was driving – five times
the industry standard. FONA is the only full-service flavor company
on the Inc.
5000 list of fastest-growing private companies in the United States,
and has held a continuous spot on the National Association for
Business Resources list of Chicago's 101 Best and Brightest Companies
to Work For. In 2011, FONA received the competition's top honor, Best
of the Best in Chicago. In 2013, FONA also received the Elite Award
for Compensation, Benefits and Employee Solutions. Joe and his wife
have been married for 34 years and have three grown children.
Kickstand,
120 pages. You can buy a copy of the book here.
I
received a complimentary copy of this book from Handlebar Central for
the purpose of this review.
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