Better Bible Business with Paul Erickson

Your customer list can help you stay connected when a social media account disappears or disaster disrupts your business. Do you have a list you can actually recover and use?
In Episode 007 of Better Bible Business, Paul Erickson explains why a customer list matters, how to build one without complicated software, and how to maintain and protect it. Drawing a practical business application from Proverbs 27:23, this episode connects diligent care for customers with wise preparation and responsible stewardship.
Learn how to:• Start with a simple spreadsheet of current customers’ names and email addresses.• Organize current, former, and prospective customers without overcomplicating the process.• Collect contact information through your existing business workflows, while asking clear permission for marketing emails.• Keep your list portable, secure, backed up, and recoverable.
CUSTOMER LIST CHECKLIST◻ Portable: Can you export your list to a useful format, such as CSV?◻ Secure: Is access limited to trusted people who need it? Keep sensitive payment information out of the list.◻ Backed up: Do you have a reliable backup process?◻ Recoverable: Have you tested restoring the list from your backup?
Start simple. Build it. Maintain it. Protect it.
Be smart. Be good. Be humble. Be active.
CHAPTERS:00:00 It’s All About the List01:41 What Is the List?03:05 The Value of Your Customer List06:14 When Disaster Strikes10:01 What the Bible Says About Knowing Your Customers13:59 How to Build Your Customer List17:49 Automate Your Customer List18:57 Protecting and Backing Up Your List22:07 Review
🎁 FREE: 7-DAY BIBLICAL ENTREPRENEUR DEVOTIONALSeven short daily readings designed to realign your heart, head, and business with God’s heart:https://BetterBibleBusiness.com/7days
Better Bible Business helps Christian entrepreneurs apply Biblical truth to the practical realities of business, leadership, marketing, work, and life.
Have a question about applying biblical principles to business? Have an idea for a future episode? Or a comment about this one? I'd love to hear from you.Visit: https://betterbiblebusiness.com/ask
If the Lord has used Better Bible Business to encourage or help you, and you would like to help us continue producing and distributing the podcast, you can support the work through https://www.givesendgo.com/betterbiblebusinessPlease note: Better Bible Business is not a nonprofit organization or registered charity. Contributions are voluntary support for the production and distribution of Better Bible Business and are not tax-deductible charitable donations.
SOURCES & FURTHER READINGThe Holy Bible, King James VersionScriptures discussed: Proverbs 27:23–27 (knowing and caring for your flocks in context); Proverbs 22:3 and 27:12 (prudence and taking precautions); Proverbs 21:31 (preparation and trust in the LORD).https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Proverbs+27&version=KJVhttps://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Proverbs+22%3A3&version=KJVhttps://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Proverbs+21%3A31&version=KJV
Hebrew study: Proverbs 27:23 — Hebrew Text Analysis, Bible Hub. Shows the two forms of yada (“to know”) used together in this verse.https://biblehub.com/text/proverbs/27-23.htm
Further reading: CISA, #StopRansomware Guide. Practical guidance on protecting backups and regularly testing backup procedures.https://www.cisa.gov/stopransomware/ransomware-guide

What if finding your next client looked less like a sales pitch and more like joining a roundabout?
In Episode 006 of Better Bible Business, Paul Erickson explains The Roundabout Principle: a practical approach to meeting people, earning trust, and discovering opportunities without forcing the relationship. Instead of colliding with people at an intersection, learn to come alongside them.
Three actions to remember:• Be where people are.• Be interested.• Come alongside.
“We don't trust people we collide with. We trust people we collaborate with.”
And remember: business isn't merely about turning relationships into opportunities. Business also gives us opportunities for relationships—because people matter to God.
Be smart. Be good. Be humble. Be active.
CHAPTERS:00:00 Introduction: The Roundabout Principle01:33 Why I Love Roundabouts02:41 Why I Loathe Intersections03:29 We Trust People We Collaborate With06:13 The Three Steps of the Roundabout Principle11:06 People Matter More Than Opportunities13:53 The Biblical Roundabout18:02 Be Active: Map Your Roundabouts19:30 Closing Thoughts & Resources
🎁 FREE: 7-DAY BIBLICAL ENTREPRENEUR DEVOTIONALSeven short daily readings designed to realign your heart, head, and business with God’s heart:https://BetterBibleBusiness.com/7days
Better Bible Business helps Christian entrepreneurs apply Biblical truth to the practical realities of business, leadership, marketing, work, and life.
Have a question about applying biblical principles to business? Have an idea for a future episode? Or a comment about this one? I'd love to hear from you.Visit: https://betterbiblebusiness.com/ask
SOURCES & FURTHER READING
The Holy Bible, King James VersionGalatians 6:10Matthew 5:411 Thessalonians 5:11John 14:16
Never Split the Difference: Negotiating As If Your Life Depended On ItChris Voss with Tahl RazBuy on Amazon (affiliate link): https://link.amazon/B0byJKff2
Affiliate disclosure: I may earn a commission from qualifying purchases made through the affiliate link above, at no additional cost to you.

Do you really understand your customers—or do you merely know about them?
Demographics and psychographics are useful, but understanding your audience requires something more: getting out of your chair and sitting in theirs.
In Episode 005 of Better Bible Business, Paul Erickson explores how biblical others-mindedness can transform the way we understand and serve customers. Through real-world examples from grocery delivery, heavy-equipment repair, user experience design, and even getting fired for advocating for the customer, we’ll examine what it means to look out the window instead of into the mirror.
We’ll also consider insights from Theodore Levitt, Steve Jobs, and David Ogilvy—and a simple framework you can begin using today:
Listen. Understand. Serve.
The customer isn’t always right. But the customer is always worth understanding.
Be smart. Be good. Be humble. Be active.
CHAPTERS:
00:00  How to Understand Your Audience04:00  Loving Your Neighbor in Business07:12  Knowing About Someone ≠ Understanding Them12:02  Start With the Customer18:34  What Business Are You Really In?21:29  Why I Got Fired24:54  The Customer Isn't Always Right27:13  Listen. Understand. Serve.
🎁 FREE: 7-DAY BIBLICAL ENTREPRENEUR DEVOTIONALSeven short daily readings designed to realign your heart, head, and business with God’s heart:https://BetterBibleBusiness.com/7days
Better Bible Business helps Christian entrepreneurs apply biblical truth to the practical realities of business, leadership, marketing, work, and life.
SOURCES & FURTHER READING
The Holy Bible, King James VersionPhilippians 2:3–4Matthew 22:39Proverbs 18:13
Theodore Levitt — “Marketing Myopia”Harvard Business Review: https://hbr.org/2004/07/marketing-myopiaBuy on Amazon (affiliate link): https://link.amazon/B06Qw0tHm
Steve Jobs, Apple Worldwide Developers Conference, 1997“Start with the customer experience and work backwards to the technology.”Video: https://youtu.be/EZll3dJ2AjY
David Ogilvy — Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud advertisement (1958–59), The New YorkerHeadline: “At 60 miles an hour the loudest noise in this new Rolls-Royce comes from the electric clock.”

You can’t be great at everything—and you were never meant to be.
In Episode 004 of Better Bible Business, Paul Erickson explores specialization, mastery, and faithful stewardship through an unlikely starting point: a root canal.
What does the Bible say about developing skill? And how can Christian business owners faithfully concentrate what God has entrusted to them so they can become exceptionally useful in serving others?
We’ll look at Proverbs 22:29 and biblical examples of skilled work, along with examples from Steve Martin, Bruce Dickinson, and Steve Jobs — yes, seriously!
Three questions to consider:
• STEWARDSHIP: What has God entrusted to me?• MASTERY: What deserves deeper development?• SERVICE: Who becomes better served if I get exceptionally good at it?
Be smart. Be good. Be humble. Be active.
CHAPTERS:
00:00 Introduction00:19 You Can’t Be Great at Everything01:06 Lesson From a Root Canal04:45 What Specialization Really Means13:34 Why Specialize?19:36 Specialization is Mastery24:19 Specialization is Service26:09 Conclusion
🎁 FREE: 7-DAY BIBLICAL ENTREPRENEUR DEVOTIONALSeven short daily readings designed to realign your heart, head, and business with God’s heart:https://BetterBibleBusiness.com/7days
Better Bible Business helps Christian entrepreneurs apply biblical truth to the practical realities of business, leadership, marketing, work, and life.
PHOTO CREDITS:
Steve Martin & The Steep Canyon RangersPhoto: TriviaKing at English Wikipedia, via Wikimedia CommonsLicensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 (CC BY-SA 3.0).Cropped/scaled for video.
Bruce Dickinson at Campus PartyPhoto: Campus Party Brasil, via Wikimedia CommonsLicensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 (CC BY-SA 2.0).Cropped/scaled for video.
Steve Jobs at Macworld 2005Photo: mylerdude, via Wikimedia CommonsLicensed under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 (CC BY 2.0).Cropped/scaled for video.
Ed Force One (Boeing 747)Photo: Foto-dus, via Wikimedia CommonsLicensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 (CC BY-SA 4.0).Cropped/scaled for video.
SOURCES & FURTHER READING
Scripture referenced: Proverbs 22:29; Ezra 7:6; Psalm 45:1; Exodus 31:1–6; Exodus 35:30–35; 1 Chronicles 12; 1 Chronicles 25:6–7; 1 Kings 7:13–14; Romans 12:4–8; Philippians 1:10.  Scripture quotations are from the King James Version (KJV).
STEVE MARTINBiography: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Martin
Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life — Steve Martinhttps://link.amazon/B0dKtktX6
BRUCE DICKINSONBiography: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruce_Dickinson
What Does This Button Do?: An Autobiography — Bruce Dickinsonhttps://link.amazon/B05hoQPDL
STEVE JOBSBiography: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Jobs
Steve Jobs — Walter Isaacsonhttps://link.amazon/B03Vwx1cJ
FURTHER READINGSo Good They Can't Ignore You — Cal Newporthttps://link.amazon/B0fHsRXsW
Some book links above are Amazon affiliate links. If you purchase through one of these links, Better Bible Business may receive a commission at no additional cost to you.
VINCE LOMBARDI“Perfection is not attainable. But if we chase perfection, we can catch excellence.”Vince Lombardi — Quoteshttps://vincelombardi.com/quotes/

Episode 003
Most businesses know what they do.
Far fewer know why they exist.
But what if even that is the wrong question?
As Christian business owners, perhaps the better question is: **For Whom am I running this business?**
In Episode 003 of Better Bible Business, Paul Erickson explores what happens when we stop thinking like owners and begin thinking like stewards—recognizing that God owns the business, we are responsible for faithfully managing what He has entrusted to us, and our work becomes a means of serving others for His glory.
You’ll discover:
Why “to make money” and even “to glorify God” can be too general to give your business practical direction
How changing one question transformed the way a mechanic understood his work
Why knowing WHO you serve brings greater clarity to WHAT you do
The difference between transactional and relational business
What it means to treat God as the true Owner of your business
Why faithfulness—not merely growth, revenue, or recognition—is the standard of biblical stewardship
Three questions that can help clarify the purpose of your business
1 Corinthians 4:2 says, “Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.”
Your business is more than a mechanism for making money. It is something God has entrusted to you—an opportunity to work with Him, faithfully serve people, solve real problems, and glorify Him through ordinary work.
So get alone with God and your journal and answer three questions:
Who am I serving?
What problem am I solving for my customers?
What does faithfulness look like in how I do it?
Then consider one final question:**How has God called you to serve others?**
The answer could radically change your business for the better.
🎁 FREE: 7-DAY BIBLICAL ENTREPRENEUR DEVOTIONALSeven short daily readings designed to realign your heart, head, and business with God’s heart:BetterBibleBusiness.com/7days
Be smart. Be good. Be humble. Be active.
SOURCES & FURTHER READINGMichael Jr. — “Know Your Why” youtu.be/1R2P88jKK3k1 Corinthians 10:311 Corinthians 3:9Matthew 22:391 Corinthians 4:2Romans 10:17

Episode 002
Fear is a terrible business advisor.It rarely announces itself as fear. Instead, it sounds reasonable:“I’m just being careful.”“I need to think about it a little longer.”“Now probably isn’t the right time.”
But sometimes what looks like caution is really fear — fear of failure, rejection, criticism, or what other people will think.
In Episode 002 of Better Bible Business, Paul Erickson looks at Proverbs 29:25 — “The fear of man bringeth a snare”—and explores how fear can quietly distort the decisions Christian business owners make.
What if your job isn’t to protect your reputation at all?What if your job is simply to be faithful—and trust God with the outcome?In this episode, we’ll look at:
Why fear often disguises itself as wisdom
How the fear of man entangles our decision-making
Why discomfort and genuine danger aren’t the same thing
What raising your prices can teach you about fear
Why your reputation ultimately belongs to God
How faith frees you to stop endlessly tweaking and start acting
You don’t need certainty or perfection before you move forward. You need faith. You need obedience.
Think of one decision you’ve been delaying.What are you actually afraid of?Then take one step forward—not because you feel ready, but because you trust the One who is always ready.
🎁 FREE: 7-DAY BIBLICAL ENTREPRENEUR DEVOTIONALSeven short daily readings designed to realign your heart, head, and business with God’s heart:BetterBibleBusiness.com/7daysBe smart. Be good. Be humble. Be active.
SOURCES & FURTHER READING2 Timothy 1:7Proverbs 29:251 John (all 5 chapters)