Parshas Eikev 2023: ABC's of Business and Torah Teachings Unveiled

0:01 In the art of business, the science of sales is very crucial, because until that sale actually does close, you don't get paid. And they tell you. I once heard this from a smart entrepreneur. He told me you should remember ABC when it comes to sales, and that means always be closing. You know that If you're not closing you're not getting paid. You could do all the work in the world, but that's even worse if you don't get paid. So always be closing. But perhaps this concept is just borrowed from the divine and holy Torah, part of parashah, as the akev, the famous and majestic soliloquy and monologue of Moshe Rabbeinu, khol Ha Mitzvah, the beginning of the eighth chapter, parachas, all of the Mitzvah, sh'anu'ichi Mitzavchah hayom that I've commanded to you today.

0:52 Tishmur and lasso is protected. Do it, lamant'ch hiyun, so things will be good, you'll live it, says Rashi. Khol Ha Mitzvah, all of the Mitzvah. Which Mitzvah? What does it mean to do? All of it, says Rashi, citing a Medjish Im HaSh'al Aspah Mitzvah. If you begin a Mitzvah, you take your first step on this holy endeavor. G'mor osa, finish it. Be sure to finish it, for you don't get credited for the Mitzvah, even with all of your effort and all of your sales pitches. If you don't close the deal, you don't get the credit for the Mitzvah. Until you, goymer, until you complete it. Really, there's something that is such an important piece from Rabbi Yeruchim Levavets.

1:33 It gives a whole new context to a Mishnah of us that we've heard so many times and sometimes we never elevate our elementary and rudimentary understanding of the Mishnah. But listen here to Rabbi Yeruchim's words. We say have a az kanamer. A person should begin. He should be very, as bold as a leopard in his actions in the service of Hashem. He should be khal kinesher, as light as an eagle, rotz kitzvi, run like a deer, vegebor kaari and be as strong as a lion. It seems like a nice children's idea. Berchazalov told us to mimic the ways of animals and borrow certain attributes. Rabbi Yeruchim, taking it to new heights, tells us this isn't just some sort of out of order type of friendly pieces of advice, but this is one long, constant flow of advice how one should start an action and then complete it.

2:26 For you need to be as bold as a leopard in order to jump into something that is actually worth taking, something that is really a large undertaking that you should really embark. To become a maggot sheared, to start a sheared, to donate that much money. Be like a leopard and then after that it can be hard. Be very, very light, fly like an eagle, get to it, get to it and then, as you hit quarter three, rotz, kitzvi, make sure that you are pushing hard. There's a lot of depth there on the word rotz, run, finish it, finish it and then, at the end, citing also the chazanish, everyone knows that if you have one page left of the mesechda, how many gomaras, how many mesechdas have we left? Just one page left, because the yaitzahara knows how crucial it is for us to finish the mitzvah, to make the seemit so hard.

3:14 That's when you become like a lion. It should be the gibor kaari last letter. It's on avicha shabbat, shama'im to do the Almighty's will. You should remember ABC always be closing, close the deal, start mitzvahs and then use these different pieces of advice from the mishnah to act boldly, to act quickly, to act fly, to act swiftly and then to act with strength to close the deal.