Try this simple yet profound methodology in your work and in your life. It can bring lasting, measurable, positive change in your work and your personal life as well. It is based on advice given to our Center Director by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter. It is based on Seven Key Areas of focus.
Consider these Seven Key Areas – we refer to them as "pillars" when discussing your work (e.g., in social entrepreneurship or ministry), or "steps" when discussing your own personal and spiritual growth. Follow your vision, use your special skills, find your authentic niche (we call this non-duplication), work in partnership, share the credit, measure for feedback, and stay the course (we call this staying power). It seems so simple, yet we've found it to be profoundly helpful. Here are breakout pages that emphasize biblical verses relating to each of the seven key areas:
FOR PERSONAL AND SPIRITUAL GROWTH – Our Director's new personal growth book, Taking the Stairs and Liking It, Seven Steps to an Amazing Life is available now. With this book, you will: bring possibility thinking to your vision and gain clarity around what you would truly love; harness your special skills, unique talents, and experiences as you cultivate a life of purpose; let abiding passion be your guide and trust that even small actions can create meaningful change; create healthy partnerships wherein you celebrate and champion one another; Cultivate sources for honest and well-intended feedback in order to maintain progress or correct your course towards a goal; fortify yourself against setbacks by prioritizing a positive mindset and self-replenishment; and find the joy in life as you also create a ripple of positive change. Read more https://elfenworksproductions.com/book-takingthestairs.php.
IN YOUR WORKING WORLD - All of us want to be effective, when working on important projects we care about, whether for social entrepreneurship or in our life's ministries, whatever form they may take. After all, real change can be hard. In the world of social entrepreneurship, this methology has proven useful in choosing between projects and potential award winners, and for vetting and managing projects across the globe, including China, Eastern Europe, and India. This methodology empowers you with real guidance as to how, and why, social entrepreneurship and positive change-making really works. You will find in-depth resources made freely available at https://elffound.org/tools-seven-pillars.php. You can also delve deeper with the book Intelligence and Compassion in Action: Seven Pillars for Social Entrepreneurship, available in multiple language translations. Along with the framework inspired by President Carter's wisdom, it offers insights from extraordinary social entrepreneurs, along with a worksheet you can put to use right away. With this roadmap, you'll recognize your vision, play to your strengths, find your niche, capitalize on partnerships, generously share credit, gather feedback effectively, and tap into your staying-power. As an added bonus, you'll find supplemental essays on how great teachings intersect with the framework. Whatever your circumstance, you will find in these pages both a source of true inspiration and a workable plan for moving forward that you'll find is a pathway to joy itself, which the author explains is "the intersection, where your skills and affinities meet with the world's needs."
RESOURCES FOR AFRICAN EDUCATORS - Students at The Mahatma Gandhi School in Lusaka, Zambia began learning this methodology in 2025 with the release of Taking the Stairs and Liking It. Here is information geared for African educators in particular.
Got what it takes to take the Ministrants Oath? Great!
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