(From 12/12/04) – History Lesson -- I was talking to a man after church this morning and we started discussing genealogy and how when you dig into your history, you find some interesting things – both good and bad – about your past. So why don’t companies, in their hiring or orientation processes, give a thorough review of their company’s history – both good and bad? Not only would this provide a good perspective for a new person, it would also transmit a company’s values – the company’s soul. A company that doesn’t know how it achieved its success is going to have a hard time maintaining it. Would your employees be able to pass a company history test?

(From 12/11/04) Profit Tithing -- I was at a church meeting today and the uncomfortable subject of tithing came up. One person asked if tithing was net of all his expenses – like taxes, and 401K contribution, and house and car and credit car payments. The pastor’s response was that tithing was 10% off the top. It’s a pre-tax deal. This got me thinking about how companies have bonus plans, but they always seem to be net/net/net plans. Net of taxes, net of the profit target, and of course, net of the executive bonuses! What would happen if a company pledged 10% of its profits to its employees? The company makes $1 million, and $100K goes back to the workers – right off the top. I think I know what would happen. You would have employees so focused on profits that you would probably dwarf the payout in additional income. This one is probably too scary for most companies, but imagine if you told a prospective employee that you don’t have a profit sharing plan, you have a profit tithing plan instead!