Steve Dulin is the esteemed Founder and CEO of MasterPlan Business Leaders, an organization he established in 1996 to mentor business leaders through the integration of biblical principles into their professional lives. Prior to this, he founded Milestone Construction in 1990, where he successfully managed commercial interior finish-out projects for two decades before selling the company in 2009.
Mr. Dulin’s current endeavors focus on guiding business leaders with faith-based principles. He has created a widely adopted curriculum on conducting business according to biblical teachings and produced instructional materials, including the CD series “How to Do Business God’s Way.” In recognition of his contributions, he received the LASER award from King’s College and Seminary in 2006, presented by Dr. Jack Hayford.
A graduate of Rice University with a major in economics, political science, and business management, Mr. Dulin has shared his insights on platforms such as TBN, Daystar, and various business podcasts. He has also served on the boards of several national nonprofits. Steve and his wife, Melody, have been married for over 40 years and cherish time spent with their daughters and grandchildren.
What is your typical day, and how do you make it productive?
The first thing I do every morning is read and meditate on the Bible. In a typical day, I will speak with pastors and business leaders, often providing guidance. I work out at the gym or play pickleball several times a week. I go to almost all of my grandson’s and granddaughters’ activities. I enjoy spending time with my wife, Melody, and we go on frequent dates and vacations.
How do you bring ideas to life?
Once I get an idea, I will hibernate in my office or go somewhere and focus on getting it on paper. I write lessons for Christian business leaders and speak at conferences and churches. Three times a year, I go away by myself for 3-7 days and spend time with God. That is where I get most of my ideas.
What’s one trend that excites you?
I am excited by AI and all the possibilities surrounding it. If you are not using AI, you will probably be left behind.
What is one habit that helps you be productive?
I have a detailed, prioritized To-Do list which I reference and update throughout the day. I almost never forget to do something I have committed to and always have a “next step” to get things done. Many people start their day by responding to emails. I start by working on my To-Do list. I know that most of my priorities for the day are already on that list.
What advice would you give your younger self?
Become a Christian at a much earlier age (instead of 21 years old). By the time I became a Christian, I had been in 13 car wrecks and over 13 fist fights. Read the book “How to Friends and Influence People” by Dale Carnegie. I think that would have kept me out of a lot of fights as well.
Tell us something you believe almost nobody agrees with you on?
You don’t have to work 60-80 hours per week to be a very successful business owner. I worked 15-20 hours a week at my company, but we were able to build the finish-out construction for over 100 doctors’ offices a year.
What is the one thing you repeatedly do and recommend everyone else do?
Read and meditate on the Bible every day. Every night I go to sleep meditating on Scripture. It is amazing the insights God will give you in the morning when you meditate on the Bible the night before.
When you feel overwhelmed or unfocused, what do you do?
I pray by myself or with my wife and seek wise counsel and the Lord.
What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business or advance in your career?
I applied biblical principles to my business and had success and profits that could not have been attained otherwise. If you want to outdo your competitors, you have to have ideas that they do not have and almost none of them are looking in the Bible for those ideas.
What is one failure in your career, how did you overcome it, and what lessons did you take away from it?
A failure early in my career was almost not getting a project done in time for my supervisor because I was spending too much time trying to get it perfect. What he said is something that I have always remembered and shared with many others. “Get it ordered and get it here. I can work with something. I can’t work with nothing.” Sometimes we can get stuck in paralysis by analysis and really stall things out. I believe very strong in excellence, but perfection is very difficult to achieve and is rarely worth the resources required to achieve it.
What is one piece of software that helps you be productive? How do you use it?
I do my To-Do list on Excel with everything prioritized and color-coded. It really keeps me on track in completing my priorities for the day.
Do you have a favorite book or podcast you’ve gotten a ton of value from and why?
The Bible. I have written over 70 lessons on how to run a business that are all based on Biblical principle. I also read and listen to John Maxwell often and always gain valuable insights. I learned from John the idea of trying to add value to every person that I meet with.
What’s a movie or series you recently enjoyed and why?
The Chosen. It shares the life of Jesus with the world.
Key learnings
- Helping others succeed is essential to living a fulfilled life.
- Biblical principles work in every area of life, including business.
- Being generous blessed both the giver and the receiver. Jesus said, “It is more blessed to give than receive.”