KIMBERLY: I want to talk about the idea of running a spiritual center as a business, but you recreated it in your own way. Tell me about that experience.

THE REV. OGUN HOLDER: I think the issue that faces a lot of folks in establishing a spiritual business is that sometimes folks are a little more lenient with the business aspects, and they start to think that because I’m a spiritual person who practices, prosperity principles and law of attraction are just going to all magically work out. I call that ‘magical thinking’ and this really isn’t magic, this is about applying principles. It’s a spiritual business, you apply spiritual principles, and you also have to be clear about applying business principles. So, have a budget, even if you want to call it something more fanciful like a prosperity plan, but have a budget. Stick with your budget. Have a business plan. Create a business plan. Create goals. Create objectives and really be good about sticking to your boundaries around them.

Yes, it will sometimes call you to make some hard choices, especially when you have come to a place with employees. If your business is dependent upon donations from other people like churches, which often are, those donations will ebb and flow. When they’re flowing – hurray! And when they’re ebbing, sometimes you’re going to have to make hard choices. The ‘fun’ part is realizing that when those times come, that’s really when your spiritual practices help whether they affect you or those individuals during those tough business times, but really don’t mistake one for the other. Spiritual practices are integral to a successful business, but good business practices are also integral to a good spiritual life.

KIMBERLY: That’s such a great. What do you think is one of the biggest challenges in creating a spiritual center or a church and being able to bring people in?

OGUN HOLDER: I’ll start with inside out. Inside, one of the biggest challenges is overcoming the fear. Overcoming the fear that people won’t come, overcoming the fear that you’ll be able to sustain this, overcoming the fear that you’re not good enough, all those fears are in place. Being in a position to run a spiritual business is an opportunity to work through them, overcome them, embrace them.

I think the other obstacle, especially in this day and age, to creating a spiritual business is two-fold. One, there is a lot of complimentary things out there. And we’ll say the word ‘competition’, but not so much competition. Being in a church is particularly interesting because we’re at a time where the fastest growing spiritual group is the spiritual, not religious group of people, most commonly associated with millennials but really spans all ages. They want to develop a deep spiritual life but they want nothing to do with the church, and so how does one maintain a business with that when across the board fewer and fewer people are coming to churches? There’s that aspect of, “How do we do that? How do we…,” and I will use the word now, “Compete with or make what we have attractive when there are so many other options out there?”

KIMBERLY: For those who want to start their own spiritual center or a community for spiritual awakeners to come together, what recommendation would you give them to start it?

OGUN HOLDER: Research, research, research! Go explore! Go find out what other people are doing. Go find out what works well, what doesn’t work well. There is no need in 2016 to ever reinvent the wheel. Go see what their successes have been, what their failures have been. Keep your ear out for what is being asked. Are people looking for just a safe space? Are people looking for something around a certain niche area? Whether it’s health or politics or whatever, what is the need out there that you might fill?

Declare who you are and how you might help! Fill that need! I think the recipe for disaster is trying to make yourself into something to fill a niche that is not authentically you. If you want to succeed be fully who you are.

Be patient! This may take a while. It may take a week. It may take a decade. So, create your plan, create your objectives and at the same time, this is where the spirituality comes in – release attachment to the deadlines of things. There’s certain benchmarks you set for yourselves, and there may be times when you push them out a little bit, and that’s okay too. But be patient with yourselves on this. At the same time, be persistent, you will realize that this is an opportunity full of paradoxes. Be patient yet persistent. Have a plan, but be unattached to the outcome. The Buddha said that the secret is in the middle way and that’s what I encourage people, who are starting these ventures, to hold to that middle way.

Finally, while you realize that this is a business that you are establishing under certain guidelines, again let your emphasis always be, like in any business, about the customer. Don’t be looking at them as a way of profit, don’t be looking at them as dollar signs, really look at them as here are folks who have a need. Whether it’s a need for community, connection, healing, prosperity, whatever it is you’re creating, they are there because they are looking for you to help provide the space to meet that need.

Notice I said, “To help provide a space”, not, “Looking for you to fulfill that need.” It’s not about you, it’s about you creating the space that they can come in and be empowered to meet their own needs. Realize that you’re there to serve them, and in serving them well, your business will succeed and thrive. Customer first, always!

The final thing I would say as a leader, please, get yourself a mentor! Establish a relationship with someone who has been there, done that, who has wisdom, who can advise you, who you can go to with questions like, “I’ve never experienced this, what are some of the pitfalls?” I have a mentor, he’s been a minister for decades. In doing that, be open to learn, don’t ever think you figured it all out no matter how long you’ve been doing this. Mentor-mentee relationship is priceless. you can’t do anything without that. There’s no need to reinvent the wheel. If you’re going to avoid some of the pitfalls that others have made before you, granted it made them who they are and your mistakes will make you who you are, but there are some obvious ones that you can avoid.

KIMBERLY: If you could look back, knowing what you know now, what was the one thing would have made a huge difference in pulling the center together?

OGUN HOLDER: Perhaps the greatest thing is I would have said yes a lot sooner. When I was first approached about this position I said no because I was afraid for many reasons. It was calling me up to be a different kind of leader. Prior to this, I didn’t have to make all the big decisions, that was good enough for me. I was also speaking and teaching at various seminars across the country on my own, and that was a lot of fun.

When this opportunity came to me, I realized that it would be calling me up to a grander higher version of myself, and the thought of that frightened me at first. It also frightened me about this community, they’ve only had the one minister before me. I would be stepping in to fill the shoes of the founding minister who grew this place from a small group to this center. Who would be crazy enough to fill those shoes? Well, evidently I was. There’s that old joke about, “How do you make God laugh? You tell Him about your plans.” My plan was to keep on doing what I was doing, and I realized ultimately that that was not going to bring me the fulfillment that I wanted.

The other thing I would say is, back then I was really worried about not meeting expectations. How can I meet the expectations of all these people? It took me a little while to realize that the only expectation I needed to meet was my own sense of fulfillment ultimately, and to realize that other people have so many expectations of you, there’s literally no way you will meet them all.

I don’t believe there’s a God out there calling me into anything, but at the same point in time, I believe that energetically when I said that intention of who I want to be and what I want to experience, it attracts me to the opportunity that’s there. I get pulled into it. The choices I make point me in that direction.

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