Below Momma’s Money Tree has shared an excerpt from our upcoming book, Home Business Basics: Lessons From The Proverbs 31 Woman. For more information or to purchase the book, please visit our Products & Services page.
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Woman of Legend
It happens all the time on social media. You’re scrolling through your feed or timeline, and something catches your eye. It’s a heart-rending (or perhaps enraging) story that grabs you by the “feels”. Before you can stop yourself, you are linking, copy-pasting, hash-tagging, and sharing to the outer limits of your social universe. Two seconds after you hit “send” for the umpteenth time, there’s a ping. Your device shows a notification from a friend – or a friend of a friend. The wording is simple and usually to the effect of “It’s not real. This is a hoax.” There’s a pause. Frustration sets in. You’ve been hoodwinked, swept up the drama of the internet streets.
It’s a frustration that’s been shared by anyone who has ever had a social media profile. It’s also the exact opposite of the experience that I want for readers joining me in this exploration of the business methods of the Proverbs 31 woman. You won’t be asked to make assumptions or suspend disbelief while reading. Instead, our first goal will be to examine the Proverbs 31 description to determine if the “Wife of Noble Character” is truly an ancient example of a businesswoman.
Out of curiosity, I typed “wife of noble character” into the Google search engine and hit enter. Up popped multiple references to Proverbs 31: 10-31 with books, blogs, and articles on the subject. It would seem that she is the primary historical figure with an accepted claim this rather unique and archaic title. It’s an interesting fact to note, but who is this person described to be in her daily reality?
If you read the passage named for her, the woman described in Proverbs 31 is almost immediately noted to be the wife of a gentleman, whom we later learn is well respected in their community (verses 10, 11, 23). The Proverbs 31 woman is also the mother of at least two children (verse 28), and she runs her household with the assistance of young ladies who are stated to be her servants (verse 15). As we continue reading, we find that this noble wife is also a wealthy landowner (verses 11, 16, 18, 21, 31). Finally, she is praised for being charitable to the needy in her community (verse 20), and she is honored for being a revered and wise elder (verses 26, 28, 31).
However, these titles are almost to be anticipated. There is a certain expectation that a lady awarded the title of “Wife of Noble Character” might also be socially shiny and popular. That being said, the title doesn’t imply that she has any kind of business acumen. For that, we would need to dig further into her description.
Entrepreneurial Maven
Before we can determine if an individual is a businessperson, it would probably be wise to identify what we mean when we use the term “business”. According to the Oxford Dictionary, “business” is “the practice of making one’s living by engaging in commerce.” Additionally, the Oxford Dictionary describes “commerce” as being “the activity of buying and selling…” Combined, these descriptions would cause our definition of being in business to become “the practice of making one’s living by engaging in the activity of buying and selling.” So let’s see if Proverbs 31 provides evidence that our lady fits this definition. If she does, she would also be considered a businesswoman.
We are first given a glimpse into the business life of the Proverbs 31 woman in verse 13. Here, we find her selecting flax and wool, which she spins into thread for fabric (verse 19). The fabric is then sewn into various articles of clothing and sold (verses 19 and 24). Her activities keep her busy because she wakes early in the morning and works into the night by lamplight (verses 15, 18, 27). Fortunately, the work is rewarded with income. The ventures are described as helping to provide ample provisions for our enterprising mistress, her family, her maids, and less fortunate members of her community (verses 11, 15, 18, 20, 25). To continue the expansion of her entrepreneurial empire, the Proverbs 31 woman uses her earnings to purchase a field and plant a vineyard (verse 16). We aren’t explicitly informed of our lady’s final plans for the vineyard. However, given her other activities, one might suspect that she plans to eventually add grapes and wine to her list of products for sale.
Given this information, does it appear that the Proverbs 31 woman is involved in “the practice of making one’s living by engaging in the activity of buying and selling”? My answer is “Yes.” She is clearly helping to support her family, household servants, and community by making and growing products for sale.
But wait, there’s more. Our lady isn’t just an entrepreneur. The passage’s author implies that the Proverbs 31 woman is actually doing very well in her business. She has systems for the local and distributed sale of her clothing (verse 25). Additionally, both her family and servants wear clothing dyed in red, while the lady of the house opts to wear fine linen and clothing dyed in purple tones (verses 21 and 22). This is notable because scarlet and purple would have been two of the most expensive dyes of the time period. In fact, purple dye was so expensive that only royals could afford to buy items colored with it. It isn’t an exaggeration to say that, by today’s standards, we would say that the Proverbs 31 woman’s business has permitted her family to become very wealthy.
In summary, we’ve established that the Proverbs 31 businesswoman owns a clothing business with garments that are sold locally and abroad. At the same time, she appears to be expanding into viticulture and wine production. Where did she learn her business savvy? We aren’t told. Given the size, scope, and implied age of her business and sales network, there’s a high likelihood that she studied under another skilled businesswoman. Perhaps her mother, aunt, or grandmother? Time has permitted the answer to this question to remain a mystery.
Walking in Her Footsteps
Have you ever tried completing a major project from home? Maybe you were attempting to complete the task to meet a rapidly approaching deadline. How did it go? If young children were involved in the situation, you might have been forced to complete most of your work while the rest of the family slept. Even if you found yourself working from a home that you occupied alone, you probably encountered the temptation to procrastinate or take yet another “work break”.
The same issues are part of what can make building a home-based business so challenging. In addition to starting the business, you have to develop a system for managing daily life while forcing your relaxation space to also double as your corporate headquarters. It’s a nuanced process that can’t be solved by just heading out to the office – because the business hasn’t yet grown to support a separate workspace.
What’s an aspiring home businessperson to do? I suggest that we start by studying the Proverbs 31 businesswoman’s approach. With an established business that is clearly being run from her home, her description might provide an old-fashioned example of home-based business fundamentals. With a good grasp of basic principles, a person would be more prepared to explore the use of modern amenities offered through technology and leverage.
However, before making that kind of leap, we must start at home-based business level 1. Join me in chapter 2 to explore how the Proverbs 31 woman positions her home business for success!
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Thank you for reading! If you’d like access to this section’s author notes and assignments, click here to purchase ebook access.
Until the next chapter, good luck with the growing!
D’Loreyn