A Rule of Life for Redemptive Entrepreneurs

by Praxis Labs

What is a Rule of Life?
From the The use of a rule of life — a set of practices to guard our habits and guide our lives — goes at least back to the Old Testament figure of Daniel. As an exile, Daniel was in an unfamiliar cultural context that provided no support for the practice of his faith — and as a leadership trainee in the court of Babylon, he was exposed to powerful pressures for assimilation to Babylon's dominant ethos....

Similarly, at many times in history, notably in the monastic movements, Christians with particular vocations have adopted a particular rule. At its best, a rule of life is an expression of community, undertaken in the belief that we need help from one another to live the lives God meant for us....

What is this Rule of Life meant for?
As a community of practice for redemptive entrepreneurship, we at Praxis believe the starting point for all our work — before organization vision and mission, before strategy and business models and organizational functions — is what we call the “Leader’s Script.” By the Leader’s Script, we mean the leader’s internal answers to questions like What are my motives for leadership and entrepreneurship? How do I understand my identity, vision, and mission? What is the source of my creativity and what shapes my imagination? How do I internalize the pursuit of power, prestige, and wealth?

The key to forming and sustaining a godly script is the leader’s practices and rhythms. To this end, we offer A Rule of Life for Redemptive Entrepreneurs as a set of shared practices for the Praxis community, and for anyone interested in faithfully pursuing a vocation as an entrepreneur, innovator, or creator.

40 pages, paperback

Published May 10, 2018

Reviews

[Michael Barrett · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m clearly not going to hit my 2025 reading goal, but that doesn’t mean I can’t jam in a few reads that narrowly meet the requirements of being a book. This was a good read, but not particularly revolutionary. Probably helpful for people who have never considered a rule of life or how their faith might impact more than just their “spiritual life.”

[Jenai Auman · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Our vocation places us in intense working environments that grant us power and status, tempting us to use these gifts for our own control, gratification, fame, and ego—often at the expense or exclusion of others. Our inherited patterns of historical injustice have not afforded equitable shares of power or status to women, people of color, and many others within our vocational reach.
Instead of accumulating power to benefit ourselves or exploit others, we use it to generate possibility for those who have less access to opportunity."

(p. 30)
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This is such a small little booklet, but it is chock-full of goodness. Clocking in at a simple 40 pages with room for notes, A Rule of Life: For Redemptive Entrepreneurs does a wonderful job of condensing biblical exhortations for Christian living. By the title, it is obviously geared toward working professionals who manage teams and people, but I believe it's edifying material for all Christian believers to read.

I'm usually very anti-practical. Practical information has a way of being too specific so that it cannot be applied generally. However, this small book is practical, faithful, and can apply to multiple cultures. I especially appreciate that there is an aim to recognize the historic injustices and they guard against repeating those errors.

I'm not currently on an entrepreneurial endeavor, and I don't expect to be on one soon, but I would bet I'll turn to this repeatedly as a way to reorient how I view my work and vocation.

[Jordan J. Andlovec · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nothing mind-blowing here, but then again rules of life shouldn't be. They're guides to the everyday rhythms of life, it's in the process of following them that the real insight comes.

[Chuck Mingo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simple, doable practices for leaders

This is one of the clearest and most helpful guides on leadership I’ve ever read. Very thankful for this Rule of Life

[Nosa Igbinedion · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved this. This is a book you read multiple times a year. Helps to think less of self which is highly important in today's world.

[Eric · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Book!!!

simple and focused on what matters most Well presented. Highly recommend this book for anyone in a leadership position. A must read!!

[Julie Masson · Rating 3 out of 5]

The premise and ambitions are really good. They are aspirational. But it leans a little bit to much on only one way of doing things and for a certain personality type.

[Brice Bishop · Rating 4 out of 5]

Incredible content. However, it was more of a blog post than a book.