Entrepreneurs have dreams they can’t ignore.
That doesn’t mean they have a plan.
Hi, I’m Christian Leadership Coach Miles Stock.
Unfortunately, in business, what you don’t know can hurt you.
Not only in terms of financial loss.
There’s been a lot of speculation about how many jobs will be lost to AI and robotics. You’ve heard stats.
The CEO of Anthropic predicted that AI will take 50% of white collar jobs in the next several years…
But that depends on some very big if’s:
Infrastructure - Construction would have to be completed on many expensive new data centers still in early stages or only proposed across the US.
Accountability - To avoid constantly monitoring their work, the companies trying to replace their employees with AI agents would need to find ways to hold these agents accountable for their output which don’t exist.
Power - This has not been answered. Until we’re able to deploy some revolutionary new power source at scale, currently, our power grids don’t have the capacity for the exponential increase in load necessary to generate the compute for enough continuously running AI agents to replace tens of millions of human workers.
Short term, the effects of this and other shifts in the economy have been mixed, sometimes depending on your generation.
Many millennials are being told to increase their output in their current jobs for the same pay with automation, as they struggle with lingering student loan debt and the rising cost of food and fuel.
The rates of new startups are climbing.
GEN-Z: ON THE HUNT FOR INCOME STREAMS
Many Gen-Z men come out of college to a cold job market where companies are hesitant to hire new talent.
Meanwhile, AI has made starting a business easier than ever, as reported by Bloomberg below:
Are you ready to start a business?
GEN-X: NOT IMMUNE TO DISRUPTION
Many men in their forties and fifties looking forward to retirement could be in for a shock, because their retirement isn’t going to look like their father’s pension, as discussed in the video below:
In changing times, survivors adapt.
FAQ’S on Starting a Business
FOR NEW AND ASPIRING ENTREPRENEURS
Q: What are the risks?
A: I watched a Diary of a CEO episode where the host asked Geoffrey Hinton what to do about the tech-induced loss of employment he predicted. I thought Hinton’s answer was darkly hilarious.
“Become a plumber.” That’s it. His best tip.
So, let’s examine that—well, more broadly, opening a new business in the trades. Is it a safe bet? That depends. Maybe, or maybe not.
Picture a skilled tradesperson who leaves his day job to start his own company. He’s stoked. He lands a big project early.
To start out, if he hires friends, leases equipment, and purchase basics, he might get away with investing between twelve and forty thousand out of pocket. But if he wants a dedicated work truck and everything else…
That initial investment could quickly turn into forty to ninety thousand up front.
Keep in mind that the truck and tools are the costs he can see, what he can plot out on spreadsheets.
What about when a client drags his feet on paying for the services rendered?
Ninety days later, that owner’s nervous. His suppliers don’t care. The crew needs their paychecks.
So, he covers the gap with his personal credit card. The balance carries with interest, and suddenly, he’s underwater.
On paper, his operation turned profits. But it folds in a year and a half.
Why?
When he worked for someone, his job was the trade.
But when he started a business, the whole scope widened.
Then, his job became the health of the business…
Marketing, bidding, collections, taxes, Human Resources, cash flow, and the trade itself.
Don’t get me wrong.
Trades enjoy a pretty good survival rate among industries, especially for those with experience and a second income from their spouse to pay bills.
But starting a business is always a gamble.
One Shopify survey found that on average, new business owners across industries invest $40,000 of their own money to get off the ground.
Putting down that kind of cash, can you afford to gamble with chance?
Sometimes, the question isn’t whether to start something.
It’s whether you’re ready to invest enough early to keep it funded through the valley of its early years.
Or… could you start it more leanly?
Check the average investment for those in your field or industry and ask yourself, “Where would that investment come from?”
What kills many start-ups is not a lack of expertise or effort.
It’s a lack of cash.
Some businesses don’t require nearly as much money up front. It all comes down to the specifics of your model, market, assets, and background.
That’s why we do one-on-one coaching.
To help you forge the path right for you.
Q: What are my chances of success?
A: Almost anyone can start a business, but making it profitable without amassing mountains of personal debt while protecting your family and integrity?
That requires not only the right steps but the right steps in the right order.
It’s not for everyone. So who wouldn’t want to quit their day job and work for themselves?
Coaches Scott Payne and Miles Stock address that in this 4-minute clip.
Q: What is business coaching for Christian men?
A: In business coaching for Christian men, we’re not here to promise quick fixes.
Our heart is to equip you with skills.
The high rate of businesses not making it past early stages is usually for one of three reasons:
(1) The owner’s a technician. He didn't know his gifts, personality, and communication style weren’t a good fit for the other two roles he needed to master—manager and entrepreneur. In his landmark book, The E-Myth Revisited, Michael Gerber wrote that new business owners have to master three roles to survive—technician, manager, and entrepreneur (visionary).
(2) The owner picked a product or service to sell based on anecdotal data or what “seemed to work” for someone else instead of selling to match the needs of his audience—then didn’t know how to get enough customers.
(3) He walked in blind with no business plan or insight into how to write one and ran out of cash.
You can prepare for each of those things in advance, or leap with your fingers crossed.
The men I coach are driven and ambitious. They have ideas.
They want to build something lasting for their families that doesn’t put them financially at risk.
They started coming to me asking for a tailor-made launch design to start something real, something tangible.
And they’re smart. They don’t buy “get-rich-quick” schemes on social media. YouTuber “results” are based on that YouTuber’s network of contacts, work experience, and capital. Not yours.
They may use—but also know the limits of AI chatbots and agents. Chatbots comb through articles from websites to reddit to return the most likely responses.
And a custom-made launch plan isn’t something to put together from tips on the internet.
No, these men wanted a clear plan that fit their situation based on interaction with humans who’ve been there.
I knew that, regardless of industry, choosing the right product or service then building a sound business plan and budget while knowing your financials are huge factors for anyone’s chances of turning a profit.
So, I got to work and built what they’d asked for.
We’re not into gimmicks and quick fixes.
We work one-on-one with each client to help him build strong from day one, based on the time-tested best practices of business, teachings of God’s Word, and 80+ years of combined experience in entrepreneurship, coaching, and leadership.
That’s what we do. Because it’s who we are.
Q: How do I know if entrepreneurship’s a good fit for my strengths?
A: If you sensed that successful entrepreneurs have a certain mix of personal qualities, you’re right.
To be clear, God can call anyone for his purposes.
But starting a business and making it grow isn’t for everyone, just like many other lines of work.
Not everyone can be a fighter pilot, fireman, or teacher. That doesn’t make them less in God’s eyes. And starting a business isn’t inherently better.
Unless that’s what you’re called to do.
We see in the parable of the talents in Matthew 25 that God calls us to use what gifts he’s given us—not those given to someone else.
Knowing yours can help discern your calling.
So how do you know if you’ve got the right mix of traits for entrepreneurship, and what you can compensate for if you don’t?
Leadership Coaches Miles Stock and Scott Payne share some tips in this second video.
Build on a strong foundation.
Whatever your dream is, if you’re serious about building a new future for yourself and your family, we’re here to help.
Click the video clip below for more details on what we do.
In changing times, survivors adapt.
Who we are:
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SCOTT TISCHLER
Scott is an entrepreneur, executive coach, superintendent, and pastor experienced in leading teams of many sizes and empowering leaders in the church and marketplace.
He built a company from a single idea to four million dollars in sales, and he has also had to close one, so he knows both the mountaintop and the valley.
He was elected to public office and learned what it costs to keep your integrity in rooms where integrity isn't always welcome.
For the last sixteen years he’s served as lead pastor of Life Church in Virginia and superintendent of its attached K-12 school.
Through all of it, one conviction has held: a man's calling was never meant to be split into "sacred" and "secular." God cares about a man's Monday as much as his Sunday — his boardroom as much as his prayer closet, his marriage as much as his ministry.
That conviction has put Scott alongside leaders in the church, manufacturing, IT services, banking, and real estate — five very different worlds asking the same handful of questions.
Men leading in ministry and feeling a loneliness no one warned them about. Believers in the workplace trying to lead with integrity while the pull to compromise never quite lets up. Men who are simply worn down — still showing up, still faithful, but running on fumes and wondering how long they can keep it going.
Scott has been all three, and he'll tell you that what a man needs in those seasons is rarely another program. It's usually another man who has been there, and the reminder that God isn't finished with him yet.
Most men who coach have lived in one world. Scott has lived in two, and by God's grace he has kept his faith, his marriage, and his family intact through both.
That's why he cares about a man's walk with God and his bottom line — his calling and his character, his leadership and his marriage. No religious performance, no jargon; just honest, brother-to-brother conversation and hard-won wisdom.
Whether you're praying over an idea you haven't told anyone about yet or carrying a company and a payroll that depend on you, Scott can meet you right where you are — because he believes God has more for you than the place you're standing today. -
MILES STOCK
Miles is an entrepreneur, business coach, mentor, and bestselling author. With a background in Biblical studies and media, Miles is a lifelong student of Scripture and a content creator in art, music, and video production.
At thirty, Miles suffered catastrophic brain injury from a brain tumor. Spiritually, it was a pivotal moment. He was disabled, advised by his neurologist to never expect to return to work.
Despite this, through years of intensive research, Miles set his sights on rehabilitating himself and becoming a writer. In 2016, he suffered further setbacks from chronic concussions that temporarily left him unable to type at a screen.
But he persevered.
In 2021, responding to his call to ministry, he broke into another new field. After completing his training from three schools, Miles founded ChristianCoachOnline.com, which quickly grew to the number-one-searched destination online for coaching services for Christian men.
Through his pen name Miles Rozak, he’s since published multiple #1 Amazon bestsellers. In 2023, his novel Starship Found, Child Missing broke Amazon’s top 350 (out of 40 million+ ebooks in their library) without an industry agent or publisher.
Today, he divides his time between ministry, creative, and business ventures.
In business, Miles specializes in quickly establishing market share in new arenas.
As a digital strategist, he researches the ethical and economic impacts of science and tech.
As a health coach, he has a passion for helping men increase their energy and vitality to serve at their best in the kingdom of God.
As a discipleship coach and Bible teacher, his focus is breaking down complex subjects into simple steps.
In every pursuit, Miles’ passion is to equip men with Scripture and research to experience their own personal transformations so they can expand the kingdom of God.
To Him be the glory for all he has done. -
SCOTT PAYNE
Scott has served churches in ministry for over thirty years, most recently as the executive pastor of ministries at Liberty Live in Virginia.
Scott’s passionate about using in-depth knowledge of the CliftonStrengths methodology to help the large staff he oversees discover and pursue their God-given callings.
Over the last eighteen years, he’s watched Liberty Live Church grow from one campus to seven and 8,600 people in attendance.
Scott holds a doctorate of ministry with a specialized focus in Coaching.
In a warm and engaging manner, he excels at motivating and training teams of leaders to greater unity in their purpose through conflict resolution and communication like Christ.
QUESTIONS?
