smac97 Posted May 3, 2012 Posted May 3, 2012 http://www.economist.com/node/21554173JOKES about sacred underpants have reached epidemic proportions, thanks to Mitt Romney’s presidential bid and the musical masterpiece by Matt Stone and Trey Parker, “The Book of Mormon”. But the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, to give it its full name, is fighting back. A huge advertising campaign features ordinary people doing ordinary things—a white man sporting a beard, a black man sporting a moustache and a young skateboarder flying through the air—with the tag line: “I’m a Mormon.”The snag is, not everyone will buy the idea that Mormons are just like the rest of us. They don’t get drunk. They have large families, stable marriages and a three-month supply of food in the larder in case of Armageddon. They are usually clean-cut and neatly dressed (the facial hair in the “I’m a Mormon” ads is thankfully atypical). And they have a passion for business.Less than 2% of Americans are Mormons, yet their commercial prominence belies their numbers. Mitt Romney founded Bain Capital, a private-equity powerhouse. Jon Huntsman senior (the father of Mr Romney’s rival for the Republican crown) founded Huntsman Corporation, an $11 billion chemicals giant. David Neeleman has founded two cut-price airlines: JetBlue in America and Azul in Brazil. Ralph Atkin started a third: SkyWest Airlines. Eric Varvel is the boss of Credit Suisse’s investment bank, Harris Simmons heads Zions Bancorporation, a more local bank, and Allan O’Bryant runs the Japanese arm of Reinsurance Group of America. J.W. Marriott runs the hotel chain his father created. Had Max Weber lived a century later, he might have made sweeping generalisations about the “Mormon work ethic”.Mormons have constructed a huge pro-business infrastructure. The Marriott School at Brigham Young University provides among the best value for money of any business school in America, charging Mormons just $10,000 a year, a fifth of the fees at the leading schools. Mormons are such a force at Harvard Business School that people joke about being dominated by the three “Ms” (the other two are McKinsey and the military). Clayton Christensen of Harvard is one of the world’s leading management thinkers. Stephen Covey, the author of “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People”, is one of its leading self-help gurus.Small wonder young Mormons keep pouring into business. Provo, the home of Brigham Young University, is a high-tech hub, the home of Novell and hundreds of other computer and graphic-design companies. Big investment banks have added the Marriott School to Harvard and Wharton as one of their favourite hunting grounds. Goldman Sachs has opened one of its largest offices outside New York in Salt Lake City. Jeremy Andrus, a young chief executive, has recently taken Skullcandy, a headphone company, public for $125m. Household income in Utah, where Mormons predominate, is above the American average.What explains the Mormons’ success? Clean living probably helps: alcohol clouds judgment and lubricates bad deals. A history of persecution may breed self-reliance: 19th-century Mormons trekked westwards across plains and mountains to escape the kind of bigots who murdered their founder, Joseph Smith, in 1844. Modern Mormons have something in common with other industrious minorities, such as Parsees, who are prominent in corporate India, the overseas Chinese and Jews. But some of the answer may lie in the faith itself. Mormonism—the only global religion to have been invented in the past 200 years—is in some ways more business-friendly than its more ancient rivals.Mormons revere organisation. They believe that God created the world out of chaos, rather than out of nothing. They also believe that men and women are capable of “eternal progression” towards “Godhood”, so long as they conduct themselves like busy little bees. The church is probably the best-organised in the world and certainly the most cost-effective. The president and his 12 advisers sit at the top like the board of a multinational. Below them, the church depends on a throng of lay volunteers. Church members begin to perform in public at the age of three. They become “deacons” at 12 and are given more demanding jobs as they grow older. The faithful are expected to give 10% of their pre-tax income to the church. No one knows how much money it has, but unofficial estimates are in the billions.The missionary traditionThe fiercest crucible for young Mormons is the mission. Mormon men serve as missionaries for two years when they turn 19; women for 18 months when they turn 21. They have no choice over where they go and often have to learn a foreign language. They are cut off from their families (they are allowed only two phone calls home a year) and assigned a “companion” to keep them on the straight and narrow. They are expected to proselytise for ten hours a day, six days a week. Few other groups experience anything as demanding at a similar age. One exception is young Israelis, who spend gruelling years in the military, and who also have an outstanding record as entrepreneurs.Missionary work provides young Mormons with a fluency in foreign languages that is rare in America. Mr Neeleman, for example, was born in Brazil and returned there as a youngster to do missionary work. His feel for the local culture, and fluent Portuguese, make it easier for him to adapt what he learned about running airlines in America to the Brazilian market.Missionary work also teaches young Mormons to persevere despite harsh odds. They must sell a product for which there is almost no demand: an idiosyncratic version of Christianity that teaches that Christ made a post-resurrection visit to the United States, that the Garden of Eden may have been in Missouri and that drinking alcohol is a sin. After that, selling airline seats or life insurance must be a doddle._________I think the work ethic borne of the LDS missionary experience is probably the single most significant causative factor in Mormons succeeding in business.I don't think this is an entirely good thing. As a lawyer practicing in Utah County, I've seen too many instances of Mormons engaging in questionable or outright dishonest business practices. IMO, business zeal arising out of the missionary experience, coupled with the vice of greed arising out of the relentless pursuit of wealth, can cloud a person's judgment and lead him/her to dishonest dealings.Thanks,-Smac 1
Log Posted May 3, 2012 Posted May 3, 2012 Since nobody else has responded, I shall merely point out that Nibley published two books in reaction to the same observations, minus the attribution of it to missionary service - Approaching Zion, and Brother Brigham Challenges the Saints.I think they oughtta be required reading for all church members. 1
thesometimesaint Posted May 3, 2012 Posted May 3, 2012 Log:I have all of Nibley's books in my personal library. But then I'm kinda of a book nerd. 1
smac97 Posted May 3, 2012 Author Posted May 3, 2012 Since nobody else has responded, I shall merely point out that Nibley published two books in reaction to the same observations, minus the attribution of it to missionary service - Approaching Zion, and Brother Brigham Challenges the Saints.I think they oughtta be required reading for all church members.To clarify: I think the problem is not with missionary service, but rather with people who misuse the skill sets developed as a missionary and combine them with greed to engage in questionable/dishonest business activities.Thanks,-Smac
Log Posted May 3, 2012 Posted May 3, 2012 (edited) I understood that. A relevant anecdote:The group leader of my high priests' quorum is a solid and stalwart Latter-day Saint who was recently visited by a young returned missionary who came to sell him some insurance. Cashing in on his training in the mission field, the fellow assured the brother that he knew that he had the right policy for him just as he knew the gospel was true. Whereupon my friend, without further ado, ordered him out of the house, for one with a testimony should hold it sacred and not sell it for money. Edited May 3, 2012 by Log
smac97 Posted May 3, 2012 Author Posted May 3, 2012 I understood that. A relevant anecdote:Yep.I have a personal policy against doing business with anyone in my ward or my stake. To be more precise, I don't provide legal advice/services to people in my ward/stake. If I am requested to provide such services, I either do it for free or refer them to another attorney. I will occasionally hire ward members to help with home repairs/improvements, though.Thanks,-Smac
Log Posted May 3, 2012 Posted May 3, 2012 That's my policy as well - I don't sell my professional services to my brothers and sisters, but I do willingly give them on request.That's my small part in trying to honor my covenants until the day we may live them in full in Zion.
cdowis Posted May 3, 2012 Posted May 3, 2012 A few years there was a Japanese VIP visitor being escorted at the BYU Arts Center. But there was a problem, his interpreter was ill and could not come. The escort stood up and asked if anyone could speak Japanese. A returned-missionary who happened to be there volunteered to do the translation.On a random basis you can find a language speaker from almost any country.
smac97 Posted May 3, 2012 Author Posted May 3, 2012 A few years there was a Japanese VIP visitor being escorted at the BYU Arts Center. But there was a problem, his interpreter was ill and could not come. The escort stood up and asked if anyone could speak Japanese. A returned-missionary who happened to be there volunteered to do the translation.On a random basis you can find a language speaker from almost any country.My family (my parents, siblings, siblings' spouses) includes speakers of Chinese (Mandarin), Russian, Spanish, Romanian, Portuguese, Samoan, Tagalog, Cebuano, Bislama and, of course, English.-Smac
Calm Posted May 3, 2012 Posted May 3, 2012 One very minor complaint: "a three-month supply of food in the larder in case of Armageddon"No way is a three month supply going to be sufficient for Armageddon and I have never heard of a LDS who is sufficiently worried about the "last days" to put in food storage stopping at three months. I am wondering if they really thought that or if it is just used to be eye catching. Saying they have "a three-month supply of food in the larder in case of job loss or other emergencies" just isn't as interesting though.
Buzzard Posted May 3, 2012 Posted May 3, 2012 My family (my parents, siblings, siblings' spouses) includes speakers of Chinese (Mandarin), Russian, Spanish, Romanian, Portuguese, Samoan, Tagalog, Cebuano, Bislama and, of course, English.-SmacFrench, Spanish, Italian (twice), Cantonese, and Afrikanns for my parents brood....
smac97 Posted May 3, 2012 Author Posted May 3, 2012 French, Spanish, Italian (twice), Cantonese, and Afrikanns for my parents brood....Oh, I forgot Navajo. My sister-in-law speaks that.-Smac
Tepui Posted May 3, 2012 Posted May 3, 2012 I understood that. A relevant anecdote: QuoteThe group leader of my high priests' quorum is a solid and stalwart Latter-day Saint who was recently visited by a young returned missionary who came to sell him some insurance. Cashing in on his training in the mission field, the fellow assured the brother that he knew that he had the right policy for him just as he knew the gospel was true. Whereupon my friend, without further ado, ordered him out of the house, for one with a testimony should hold it sacred and not sell it for money.Apparently, it's ok to buy Dr. Nibley's books, because none contain his testimony, let alone insurance. 1
Log Posted May 3, 2012 Posted May 3, 2012 Apparently, it's ok to buy Dr. Nibley's books, because none contain his testimony, let alone insurance.I wonder if you've read any of them?
volgadon Posted May 3, 2012 Posted May 3, 2012 (edited) My family (my parents, siblings, siblings' spouses) includes speakers of Chinese (Mandarin), Russian, Spanish, Romanian, Portuguese, Samoan, Tagalog, Cebuano, Bislama and, of course, English.-SmacBetween just my wife and myself we speak four languages, English, Hebrew, Russian and Ukrainian. Branching further out there is Spanish, Arabic, German, Polish, Japanese and Hmong. Edited May 3, 2012 by volgadon
Calm Posted May 3, 2012 Posted May 3, 2012 For some reason, my immediate family were all sent to Spanish speaking missions though one was Mexico, another Uruguay, and the other Australia.My son was sent to a foreign mission, but it was English speaking....Ogden, Utah. (we lived in Canada at the time for those not in on the joke)My side nieces and nephews all went to State missions for some reason (maybe health, didn't ask). On my husband's side his brothers and nieces and nephews have been all over, Japan, Sweden, Italy, Russia, South Africa and others I have forgotten.
blackstrap Posted May 4, 2012 Posted May 4, 2012 Apart from the language ,experience in other societies gives many missionaries and more "global" outlook and understanding,and,hopefully,compassion.
Calm Posted May 4, 2012 Posted May 4, 2012 Apart from the language ,experience in other societies gives many missionaries and more "global" outlook and understanding,and,hopefully,compassion.I have encountered a number of humanitarian projects, such as schools, set up by returned missionaries for the areas they served in. It seems like many come home with a real love for and a desire for permanent connection with the people they served.
Ariarates Posted May 6, 2012 Posted May 6, 2012 The article seems to suggest that Mormons are disproportionally successful. Is this actually true? The article does not provide any numbers. Yes, some Mormons are successful in business but others are not. Yes, some successful business people are Mormon but others (most?) are not.The primary reason why I think Mormons are successful in Anglo-Saxon businesses (hierarchical, top-down) is that they are used to functioning in a hierarchical system. I wonder if they are equally successful in other business models, e.g. the Rhineland model. The article doesn't tell.I think Max Weber would have done a little more research before making sweeping generalizations about the Mormon work ethic.
Kemara Posted May 6, 2012 Posted May 6, 2012 ...a little more research before making sweeping generalizations about the Mormon work ethic.Good advice and not only in relation to the Mormon work ethic, but in all things Mormon, don’t you think?
Storm Rider Posted May 6, 2012 Posted May 6, 2012 I hate it when someone writes something positive about the LDS Church. You would think they could do "real" research and determine that they are a bunch of slothful indigents that are forced to pay 10% of their earnings to get to heaven! Dang those bloody Morons; just because one is good in business does not mean they all are. It is quite evident that among critics there is seldom any degree of inteligence of logic; much less any degree of decency.
Ariarates Posted May 7, 2012 Posted May 7, 2012 Good advice and not only in relation to the Mormon work ethic, but in all things Mormon, don’t you think?I do. What's your point?
Ariarates Posted May 7, 2012 Posted May 7, 2012 (edited) I hate it when someone writes something positive about the LDS Church. You would think they could do "real" research and determine that they are a bunch of slothful indigents that are forced to pay 10% of their earnings to get to heaven! Dang those bloody Morons; just because one is good in business does not mean they all are.It is quite evident that among critics there is seldom any degree of inteligence of logic; much less any degree of decency.WHy the sarcasm? Don't you think the first point in my post is valid? Edited May 7, 2012 by Ariarates
Log Posted May 7, 2012 Posted May 7, 2012 (edited) Don't you think the first point in my past is valid?Well, if it isn't, then I guess your entire history is invalid.Oh, come on! It was funny! Edited May 7, 2012 by Log
Ariarates Posted May 7, 2012 Posted May 7, 2012 Well, if it isn't, then I guess your entire history is invalid.Oh, come on! It was funny!Yep, I corrected it but you beat me to it ;-)BTW, why don't you include the rest op Popper's statement on Darwinism in your sig line?
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