THE ENVIRONMENT AND WEALTH CREATION

THE ENVIRONMENT – There is the need to understand ones environment; the present and the future. Wealth is created within the environment.

• The geographical area – a continent, country, region, district, location etc

• The people • The cultural values• The taste • The demography of the people

GOD’S TOOL FOR WEALTH CREATION

KNOWLEDGE• Eze. 28:4 “ By wisdom and understanding you have gained wealth to yourself and amassed gold and silver in your treasuries.

• Pro. 24:3-5 “By wisdom a house is built and through understanding it is established; through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare beautiful treasures

• When you increase your knowledge you increase your wealth; for you need knowledge to make money.

• Pro. 8:10 “Choose my instruction instead of silver, knowledge rather than choice gold”

• Zeal alone does not matter – Rom 10:2 (The zeal of the Jews was not based on knowledge)

• Knowledge is acquired through formal and informal training (eg. cooking) and it takes time and discipline.

SKILLS• Eze. 28:5 “By you great skills in trading you have increased your wealth”.

• Pro. 10:4b “diligent hands brings wealth”

• The widow’s oil in 2 Kings 4: 1-7• Ecc. 10:10 “If the ax is dull and its edge unsharpened, more strength is needed but skill will bring success”

STRENGTH/ABILITY• Deut 8:17 -18 “ My power and strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me. I give you the ability to produce wealth”

• In Gen 26 Isaac became rich and his wealth continued to grow until he became very rich through farming.

• In every specific area of endeavour God has given every individual either:

a. Knowledge – eg. in formal education accounting, mathematics, visuals

b. Skills – eg. in vocation sewing, baking, hair do, mechanics, trading

c. Abilities – eg. Farming, heavy mechanics,

• Somebody can have a combination of two.

• It can also be looked at from a different perspective:1. Trade – Knowledge and skills2. Vocation – Knowledge and skills3. Formal Education - Knowledge

• Having these or any of them will not necessarily bring wealth for ‘talent is never enough’ – J.C. Maxwell

• You need to develop what you have and must have total belief in yourself despite the doubts and disbelief of others.

INTEREST AGAINST STRENGTH AND OPPORTUNITIES

• Many people tend to pursue endeavours of interest as against their strength and the opportunities.

• The knowledge/skills acquired and abilities create wealth through the opportunities the environment offers.

• Whether in education, vocation, trade etc. one must not fail to assess the present and future opportunities in the environment (as discussed above) if it is intended to create wealth.

THE SWOT ANALYSIS• An effective process companies use to assess themselves and their competitors and formulate their strategies is an analysis called “SWOT.” But this exercise isn’t just for businesses. It can be helpful for individuals who seek to create wealth . Here’s how the process works… 

• After you’ve defined your career aspirations and goals the next step is to understand more about yourself and your external environment. This is where the SWOT analysis is helpful. It stands for:

•S = Strengths (internal)•W = Weaknesses (internal)•O = Opportunities (external)

•T = Threats (external)

STRENGTH (Internal)• A distinctive competence (i.e. what you do better that others or advantages you have)– eg. dealing with figures, proven successful sales abilities. Few examples are

• Efficiency in cost - Production• Location advantage – Business/education/trade• Adequate financial resources• Naturally strong• What gives me competitive advantage over others.

• In trade you consider your strength from both an internal perspective and the point of view of your customers and the people in your market

WEAKNESS (Internal) A personal weakness is a liability or an area of opportunity for growth. Examples are:

• Financial constraints• Missing any essential skills or competence

• Weak image• What are people in your market likely to see as weaknesses?

• What factors lose you sales? • If you improve upon these, you increase your opportunities

OPPORTUNITIES (External)This relates to what offers you job/profit/growth. Examples are:

• Changes in social patterns, population profiles, lifestyle changes, and so on.

• Local events. • Diversify into related courses/services

• Faster market growth.• Expand courses/services to meet broader range and customer needs.

NOTE: look at your strengths and ask yourself whether these open up any opportunities. Alternatively, look at your weaknesses and ask yourself whether you could open up opportunities by eliminating them.

THREATS (External)The obstacles that you face. Try to compare yourself to

people you will likely compete against for that next

job/customer. Examples are:• Likely entry of new competitors• Emergence of substitute products• Shift in consumer taste• Changing technology• Government policies

STRATEGIES1.S-O Strategies – Pursue opportunities that a good fit to your strength.

2.W-O Strategies – Overcome weakness to pursue opportunities.

3.S-T Strategies – Identify ways that you can use your strength to reduce your vulnerability to external threats

4.W-T Strategies – Establish a defensive plan to prevent your weakness from making it highly susceptible to external threats.

FINALLYMatch: Strength with Opportunities

Convert: Weakness to Strength