Happy Thanksgiving! + a Brief Comment on Gratitude
Hey there Catholic Founders community — Happy Thanksgiving! 🦃
No podcast today (but we do have a really great episode in the hopper for next week, so stay tuned).
If you’re new here, subscribe to follow along on this journey. And if you want to join ~50 others
Instead, I want to take a moment to thank you for all of you who have supported this project over the past year.
A few stats:
523 subscribers
70 paid subscribers
40 posted podcast episodes
We are well on our way to growing the largest community of Catholic business owners in the world. Please help us by sharing this further with other Catholics who are business owners or who aspire to be business owners one day.
This is the number one way we grow!
A Comment on Gratitude
This week is a great chance to be grateful for the things we’ve received this year. As business owners, there are a lot of challenges but there are also many rewards.
Surely each of us will have some key things we’re grateful for. But let’s use this time to do two things that are not as natural, and look at one business practice we can integrate to help us grow.
#1 Develop a Habit of Gratitude
If we’re being honest, each day has so many things for us to be grateful for. Our entire life, our very existence, is a gift from God. Our daily bread is also. So giving God gratitude every day is critical.
Doing this helps you stay centered. It helps you recognize how much you rely on God.
Develop this habit early, because when you get to a point where you’re wildly successful, it will be much harder to maintain that mentality of gratitude. The more you have, and the more you achieve, the more you’ll be tempted to think you’re the reason you have it.
Truth be told, all of this comes from God, and we cannot take credit for these gifts. We are merely cooperating with His divine plan — simply as instruments in his symphony.
#2 Be Grateful for the Challenges
It’s easy to be grateful for the good things in our lives. For the success and money. But it’s much harder to be thankful for the challenges.
However, those challenges are also from God. He is giving those to you to help better you. God only gives us what is good for us in His infinite wisdom. You very likely do not know why you’re receiving those challenges or trials, but rest assured, God, who knows all things, does know exactly why He’s giving you that trial.
When we start to recognize that even the challenges are gifts, we can begin to develop another level of happiness and joy. A level where even if all the circumstances around you appear negative, they could in fact bring you joy and happiness, because you know they are hand-made and hand-delivered to you by God Himself.
If you want to learn more about this, read the very short book (more like a pamphlet) Uniformity with God’s Will by St. Alphonsus Liguori — it’s a true banger. Worth reading and re-reading many times over.
Practicing Gratitude in Business
As AI becomes more involved in business, customers are going to continue craving human touch. Nothing does that better than a handwritten thank-you card. Sure, an email will suffice, but nothing quite like a thank-you card.
Build this into your practices. Upon sale. Maybe 30 days after a sale. Maybe on the anniversary of them becoming a customer. You can never say thank you enough.
This time of year is a great time to send out thank-you cards or small gifts showing appreciation for their business.
Again, that human element with the handwritten card. It’s so effective because of how unscalable it is. There is a reason why people appreciate these gestures.
If you’re going to send out gifts, make them as unique and tailored as possible. If you know they are a fan of a particular sports team, that’s a good place to start. Maybe they have a favorite player — perhaps some fan items there will do.
Integrating this into your business practices is something that WILL gain you a return on your investment. But, as with all things of this nature, do not give with expectation of return. Give for giving’s sake. Showing gratitude will always benefit you.
With that, thank you again. Having you show up to listen to the podcast and read these posts means a lot.
This is the first time I’ve built a content project that felt like it had super fans. Where people are trying to pull it out of your hands.
To be clear, this doesn’t have anything to do with my writing/podcasting. This is the case because there are so many entrepreneurs like you, who are on FIRE for Christ. You care more about building for God’s glory than you do for your own.
So, while you may be grateful for this content, I assure you, I’m even more grateful to have people like you in my life. I feel like I have finally found my true tribe. A tribe that I can discuss anything with. A band of brothers to navigate life alongside.
Thank you for all your support, love, and prayers! — I can’t wait to see what the next year brings!
God Bless you and your family on this Thanksgiving day!
Silas Mähner
PS: What are you grateful for? Drop a comment below 👇