One time we had a complaint about a project we were doing, so I confronted the person responsible. His response? “A couple of spots, nothing at all.” I could’ve responded by saying, “Oh, if it’s just a couple of spots, then no big deal,” but I didn’t; I said I did not want to give the customer any cause for dissatisfaction. None.

Over 40 years ago, I learned that the little things in life are really the big things.  If a person is responsible for something very small, you’ll be able to trust him with something larger.  If he’s faithful with that, then yet a larger thing.  If a person considers a little thing important, then the bigger things will be even more important to him.

This plays out in many ways.

Over time, a small amount saved every month becomes a large sum.  If you’re overweight and you lose a pound a month, you’ll be much slimmer at the end of the year.  If every day you tell your spouse, “I love you,” your love will grow stronger and stronger.

On a negative note, if you’re making scrambled eggs and you put in eleven good eggs and one bad egg, you’ll find your breakfast spoiled.

The little things really are the big things.

From a consumer standpoint, I once took a short trip to Florida and reserved a hotel online from a trusted source—and for an exceptional rate.  When I got there, it was simply beautiful, exceeding my expectations.  But I was ticked off! Why? Because instead of the advertised cleaning rate of $55, they charged me $65, and on top of that they charged me a tax for the cleaning! And when I finally settled in I found there was no internet!  A great place, but the little things messed it up.

I have seen it time and again–my company can do a project and everything goes superbly well, except that the job site didn’t get cleaned up well enough.  Or the painter made a mess of the sink.  Or the edge of a door got missed.  Or the glass got scratched.  All of a sudden, the customer’s perspective changes and we’re not so good after all.  Instead of a 10, we score a 5 or a 6, or a 7.  And it’s, “We’re satisfied, but we had some problems that had to be resolved first.”

Imagine your surgeon saying that, or your dentist!

“Catch the foxes for us, the little foxes that are ruining the vineyards,” Solomon writes.  ‘It’s those darn little foxes that ruin everything.’  It’s true, small things matter; you can build something beautiful, and you can score a 99% in customer satisfaction, but if a ‘fox’ is loose and that 1% isn’t attended to, you may well find your ‘vineyard’ ruined.

– T.L. Hart

I’ll not forget the Spring of 2002, when the effects of 9/11 finally hit T. L. Hart, Inc.  Like most other companies, the world had been a good place to do business in. Michigan had been booming during the 1990’s along with the rest of the country, and T. L. Hart, Inc. had grown exponentially during this time.  Many companies, including mine, had built their business models on what had become the norm.

That all changed that first and second quarter. Here we were, an organization with 30-40 people, a lot of overhead, and no work.  It was during an advisory board meeting where I presented out predicament, when one of the members said, “Just do something! Start something! Just get moving!”

His advice proved to be wisdom from God.  In May of that year, closing the company’s doors was a serious consideration.  By the end of December however, T. L. Hart,Inc. had realized its second highest sales year ever, ending the period with a profit.

Years later I was studying John Maxwell’s The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership.  Maxwell is arguably America’s leading authority on the topic of leadership, with multiple books, DVD’s and audio versions of his various seminar presentations.  In this book Maxwell presents what he believes—and others agree—are twenty-one laws that apply to all leaders at all times, without exception.  One of them is “The Law of Momentum.”

The Law of Momentum (or, The ‘Big Mo’) says this:  There always has to be forward progress—there has to be some movement, any movement. That is the leader’s responsibility.  In some way, shape, or form things have to get and keep moving.  That is why small victories are so important, because with each success you build momentum that helps move the organization further along on its mission.

It is hard to steer a parked car.  “But,” Maxwell says, “when you have momentum on your side, the future looks bright, obstacles appear small, and trouble seems temporary.”

It reminds me of what Jim Collins writes about in his book, Good to Great.  He talks about a flywheel, which at first is hard to get going.  It takes a lot of effort initially.  But then, once you get moving you gain momentum, and eventually it’s as if it has a life of its own—it is literally flying, round and round, at high speeds.

There is so much truth in all this, both for small companies like T. L. Hart, Inc., large organizations, governmental entities, and ministries. Just get something going.  Get pointed in the right direction. Put forth all the effort you can muster, and get the ball rolling.  You will be pleasantly surprised at the outcome.

That’s the ‘Big Mo’, the Law of Momentum.

– T.L. Hart

“And every work that [Hezekiah] undertook in the service of the house of God and in accordance with the law and the commandments, seeking his God, he did with all his heart, and prospered” (2 Chronicles 31:21).

There are here in this one verse three keys to prospering in your work.

One, whatever you do should be in accordance with the word of God. God’s will is revealed in his word; it is to be found in no other place. I realize the Bible does not tell us whether we should be a carpenter or a financial advisor, a realtor or a nurse, but it does tell us to do what we do as unto the Lord. So if what you are doing can be so done, it is well and good as far as God is concerned.  Better yet, find out what God wants you to do, and do that. I teach that a person should get a word from God as to his occupation. It could be that God puts a certain thing on your heart, to be and do such and such a thing.  This is also good in God’s sight, as he gives us the desires of our hearts. He is in us both to will and to do of his good pleasure.  That said, let it be “in accordance with the law and the commandments.”

Two, seek God.  He is a rewarder of them that seek him.  Jesus taught, “seek and you shall find.” Having sought God as to what he wants you to do, keeping seeking him as to how to do it.

This is a never ending endeavor.  There is a verse in Scripture that goes like this: “As long as he sought the Lord, he prospered” (see 2 Chronicles 26:5). So if you are seeking God and prospering, if you want to continue to do so, keep seeking God.

Three, do what you do with all your heart.  The Bible says, “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men” (Colossians 3:23).  What is to be noticed here is who you are working for.  You may think you are working for the government, or the auto-maker, or the real-estate broker. Or, if you are self-employed or own your own business, that you work for yourself.  The Christian, however, is to work for the Lord.  Verse 24 of this same book and chapter says, “You are serving the Lord Christ.”  So, if you think a half-hearted approach to your job pleases the Lord, then go for it. Otherwise, you had better up your game.

There is another verse in Ecclesiastes that addresses how you work.  “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might” (9:10).  In other words, in everything you do, whatever it is—your job, your service to your family or church, or even mundane things like mowing the yard or shoveling snow, give it all you have.  Do it as for Jesus, as this greatly pleases him.

It should be apparent, then, that if you wish to prosper, be applying these principles.  And if you want to keep on prospering, don’t let up. I have found that after enjoying a measure of success, it is easy to ease off on the intensity with which you approach your work. Jesus says it best when speaking about prayer: keep on asking, keep on seeking, keep on knocking.  The key words here being “keep on.”

– T.L. Hart