The Catholic Briefcase: Tools for Integrating Faith and Work [Paperback]

Randy Hain (Author), Patrick Lencioni (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 21, 2011

The Catholic Briefcase helps Catholics integrate their faith with their jobs through practical tips, relevant examples, and the inspirational stories of others who have successfully learned how to bring their Catholic identity with them to work.

This book provides tips and ideas for finding time for prayer and reflection throughout the day and explores ways to make business decisions through the filter of Catholic teaching. Being a light for Christ is ultimately the best way to share your faith with others as they will be drawn to you by your good example and joy.

The Catholic Briefcase helps the reader evaluate where they have been in their business life and where being a light for Christ can take them. The practical nature of the content gives the reader a roadmap to a deeper faith in an area (the workplace) they have likely ignored in the past.

Editorial Reviews

Review

The Catholic Briefcase is vintage Randy Hain. Easy to read, orthodox in content with specificity for application. A pragmatic blend of Church teaching and documented examples reinforce not only an important message for our times, but the specific cases give added believability and hope for Catholic's in their own marketplace ministry. I highly recommend it.
--Dan Spencer III, Co-Founder Catholic Business Network, Executive Director National Fellowship for Catholic Men

Practical and powerful! Wherever you are in your spiritual journey, I think you will benefit tremendously from reading this book.
--Matthew Kelly, Founder of DynamicCatholic.com

Many people feel that they have to put down their faith when they pick up their briefcase. But The Catholic Briefcase teaches us how to carry both. With practical tips on how to integrate our Catholicism with our careers, we learn how our faith can make us better businesspeople--and how our jobs can make us saints.
--Matthew Warner, FallibleBlogma.com and CEO of flockNote

...Faith-filled practicing Catholics will be affirmed, renewed, and uplifted as they do their best to apply Catholic principles at the office. Those beginning their journey will receive sound advice and will come away with a clear understanding of the true harmony that exists between faith and work.
--Teresa Tomeo, Syndicated Catholic Talk Show Host

Whether your workplace is the courtroom or the kitchen, Wall Street or the corner market, The Catholic Briefcase belongs on your reading list...Randy Hain offers real world scenarios and shines light on scores of Catholics who strive to balance saintliness and productivity. With measurable suggestions, reflection and discussion prompts, and written in a motivational tone, The Catholic Briefcase will inspire you all seven days of the week to more fully live out your vocation with joy and passion.
--Lisa Hendey, Founder and Editor, CatholicMom.com

Randy gives clear and concise insights into integrating faith and work, so each will blossom more fully. Each chapter features tools, reflections and recommendations that are easy to understand and apply. I recommend this book to all Catholics interested in using their God given gifts and specific talents to their fullest potential to glorify God and serve others. --Tom Peterson, President and Founder, CatholicsComeHome.org --Tom Peterson, President and Founder, CatholicsComeHome.org

…Faith-filled practicing Catholics will be affirmed, renewed, and uplifted as they do their best to apply Catholic principles at the office. Those beginning their journey will receive sound advice and will come away with a clear understanding of the true harmony that exists between faith and work. --Teresa Tomeo, Syndicated Catholic Talk Show Host

Whether your workplace is the courtroom or the kitchen, Wall Street or the corner market, The Catholic Briefcase belongs on your reading list…Randy Hain offers real world scenarios and shines light on scores of Catholics who strive to balance saintliness and productivity. With measurable suggestions, reflection and discussion prompts, and written in a motivational tone, The Catholic Briefcase will inspire you all seven days of the week to more fully live out your vocation with joy and passion.
Lisa Hendey, Founder and Editor, CatholicMom.com
Randy gives clear and concise insights into integrating faith and work, so each will blossom more fully. Each chapter features tools, reflections and recommendations that are easy to understand and apply. I recommend this book to all Catholics interested in using their God given gifts and specific talents to their fullest potential to glorify God and serve others. --Tom Peterson, President and Founder, CatholicsComeHome.org

About the Author

Randy Hain is a devoted family man, business leader, active steward in our community, writer and a passionate advocate for our Faith. He converted to the Catholic Church along with his wife in 2006. Randy is involved in a number of ministries and groups whose mission is to promote a unity of life, centered in Christ, that will help Catholic men and women integrate faith, family, and work. He is the Business Manager and Senior Editor for the fast-growing Integrated Catholic Life eMagazine which he co-founded with Deacon Mike Bickerstaff in 2010.

Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Liguori Publications (November 21, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764820524
• ISBN-13: 978-0764820526
• Product Dimensions: 0.5 x 5.5 x 8.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (49 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #127,003 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Randy Hain is the co-founder and Senior Editor of Integrated Catholic Life eMagazine (www.integratedcatholiclife.org) and the Managing Partner of Bell Oaks Executive Search in Atlanta. He is an active member of his community and serves on a number of non-profit boards. His passions involve the Catholic Faith, developing young people and promoting autism awareness.

Mr. Hain has had dozens of articles published over the last few years on the topics of faith, parenting, work/life balance, integration, leadership, career search and human capital related subjects. He is also a sought after speaker on these topics.

His first book, entitled "The Catholic Briefcase: Practical Tools for Integrating Faith and Work", was released on November 23, 2011 by Liguori Publications and is available through Amazon and Catholic bookstores everywhere. The book provides practical advice on how to integrate the Catholic faith with our work and offers inspiration through the examples of real Catholics in the workplace. The Catholic Briefcase was recently voted the Best Catholic Book of 2011 in the About.com Reader's Choice Awards. His second book, "Along the Way: Lessons for an Authentic Journey of Faith" will be released by Liguori on December 1st, 2012.

A convert to the Catholic Faith in 2006, Randy and his wife have been married for 18 years and have two sons.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent! If faith isn't everything, then it's nothing. November 20, 2011

By Stacy Trasancos

Format:Paperback

I chose to review the following book for three reasons.* 1) It is written by a convert, like I am. 2) It is written by a man who successfully integrates his faith in every aspect of his life, like my husband does. 3) When I once carried a briefcase as a career professional, but not yet a Catholic, it was the people who lived the way Randy Hain, the Business Manager and Senior Editor for The Integrated Catholic Life eMagazine, advises in "The Catholic Briefcase" who impressed me, people of faith in the workplace. Though they may not know it, their testimony was influential later in my decision to become Catholic. Thus, I endorse this book with full conviction.

I've often thought, "If faith isn't everything, then it's nothing."

There can be no division or compromise when you realize what it means to have faith, and that is what Randy Hain addresses in his book, "integrating faith and work." This book is as useful for young professionals just beginning a career as it is for more mature professionals already navigating a career. It's practical, no-nonsense, cogent information delivered in a way that doesn't dull the beauty and fullness of the Catholic faith. The reader is not left with a sense of guilt for all that he has failed to do, but rather a sense of awakening to the excellence of living a coherent life of faith that makes sense. So, here's my review.

First, if you are like me, you ask yourself in this digital age, "Do I need this book sitting on my bookshelf or not?" I have e-readers but I still reserve shelf space for the more meaningful books that I actually want to put in my hands or pass around to friends. "The Catholic Briefcase" is a book written for those with careers - either single or married - and while I am a homemaker, this is something I would hand my husband if he asked me for something to read, which he often does. I'd want to see it poised on the shelf because it's a little treasure, a gift and reminder, whether you read a chapter or the whole thing in one sitting. Further, it's valuable to the spouses of those with careers. Having read it myself, I am now in mental possession of some tools to offer my husband as he de-compartmentalizes his life and seeks to fully integrate his job with his greater vocation as man of God, husband and father.

In the early part of the book Randy Hain puts a list of compelling questions to the reader: "Do I want to be a better spouse?" "Do I want to be a better parent?" "Do I want to be a better friend?" "Do I want to be a better leader at work?" Who doesn't? The book contains explanations from other career professionals and role models. When you read their accounts you think, "Yes, that's the way to be."

Second, the content is full. By that I mean there are passages the will leave you smiling, or almost in happy tears, and there are passages that will suddenly challenge you. There are passages that will leave you very serious, and passages that will give straightforward practical wisdom. Of course integrating your faith with all you do, including your time at the office, is the right thing to do and everyone knows it. It would be easy to write a flowery book all about nice ways to do that, but if there is no attention to the very real issues men and women face when they do live their faith openly, without compromise and without apology, then the flowery language won't inspire courageous action, for it is only platitude. Randy Hain did not sugar-coat any real life difficulties, but in addressing them he also proposes the means to find the inspiration and support that are needed to successfully live your faith more fully anywhere you go.

In the middle of the book there is a touching story about how the simple, but not showy, act of making the sign of the cross before meals in public touches people unexpectedly. It is a sign of courage. He asks, "What would happen if everyone who reads this makes a simple commitment to make the sign of the cross and say a blessing over every meal from now on, regardless of our companions?" Indeed. That is a worthy, simple and true challenge.

Third, the book is appropriately tailored for the audience, career professionals, that is - people who carry briefcases. However, the practical advice and inspirational encouragement apply, or at least can be extended easily, to people who carry other things, like backpacks, purses, diaper bags, or gym bags. So, maybe we can expect a series of these books from Randy Hain in the future: "The Catholic Backpack" for students, or "The Catholic Purse" for women, or "The Catholic Diaper Bag" for new parents, or "The Catholic Gym Bag" for athletes. I think Mr. Hain is on to something special here, and relevant for our times.

In the end of the book the reader is clear what powerful tools should fill a Catholic briefcase, and there is a lengthy section of appendices for anyone interested in putting what they have read into even further action. Appendix Two is my favorite, and my life is better for knowing it now. Consider that a teaser.

Thank you for a excellent book, Randy Hain!

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A must-read for all Catholics November 24, 2011

By Dorothy Polchinski

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

This book review can also be found at redrubyslippers.org:

Have you ever thought about how to make your faith integrated into your everyday life? Perhaps you've made that quest a part of your New Year's (or even Lenten resolution) but still haven't discovered the right guide to help you. Well, look no further! Randy Hain's first published book The Catholic Briefcase: Tools for Integrating Faith and Work (Liguori 2011) is a great resource! A must-read for all Catholics!

Several years ago my dear friend, Susan Parkin, suggested that Randy and I should meet knowing that we both had a passion for engaging young adults in their Catholic faith. I remember the first time I met Randy - and feeling a little intimidated. Who could blame me? I thought about Randy's credentials: Managing Partner with Bell Oaks Executive Search, a devoted husband and father with a successful new website, the brains behind the highly acclaimed Atlanta Business Leader's Conference, and a key player in the monthly speaker series at his parish ...just to name a few. At the end of our meeting I left thinking - as most people do when they first meet Randy - "How does he do it all?" The Catholic Briefcase is the blueprint for how Randy is able to do it all, a how-to guide if you will.

While underpinning the theological knowledge of the laity's role in spreading the Gospel involves studying various Church documents, it wasn't until now that I've found a book which puts practical resources into peoples' hands. The Catholic Briefcase: Tools for Integrating Faith and Work - already in its second print - is practical, insightful and inspiring.

The Catholic Briefcase is an action-oriented book which provides concrete ways to share one's faith in the workplace. Randy begins by listing five ideas to help with this integration. The action items don't merely illustrate faith in the workplace, but in every facet of life. These ideas include how to incorporate time to think and reflect, ways to grow in charity, aspects of discipleship that include stewardship beyond monetary giving, and tips on spending more time with family. Interwoven throughout the book these practical applications encompass a theme which focuses on the foundation of integrating faith and work which is prayer.

Randy doesn't just talk the talk, but he walks the walk! Case-in-point: during my first meeting with Randy, his 1pm appointment reminder popped up on his Blackberry and read "Find God in All Things". He went on to explain how the Jesuit Daily Examen is a method of prayer reflection on the events of the day to help us identify God's movement in our lives and discern his path for us. It's also one of the 'small steps' that Randy mentions in his book to help us find quiet reflection time. The practical aspect of this prayer tool is that you can 'put it on your calendar' scheduling these five minute blocks of prayer around travel, meals, and bedtimes. Thanks to Randy, I, and other professionals, have made the Jesuit Examen part of our own everyday prayer life.

In addition to the thoughtful ideas that Randy shares regarding the integration of faith and work, he also provides keen insights of several prominent Catholic business leaders and how their faith shapes their work lives. I found these insights inspiring, not only for the examples shared, but also because I've seen many of these business leaders live out their lives as authentic witnesses. They are active members of the Atlanta Business community and have poured out their time and energy to share their faith with others.

In my humble opinion, The Catholic Briefcase is the Best Catholic Book of 2011-2012, not just because it is practical, insightful, and inspiring, but because Randy's words are echoed through his everyday witness. Apparently About.com is in agreement with me, the site has selected The Catholic Briefcase as one of their top 5 finalist for the About.com Catholicism Reader's Choice Awards for Book of the for 2011. Buy the book today and find out why! Then go and cast your vote on About.com - voting is open until March 22nd: About.com Catholicism Reader's Choice Awards.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars The Undivided Life - The Secret to Authenticity, Character, Leadership, Meaning, and Holiness January 31, 2012

By Thomas M. Loarie TOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

I have been intrigued about the onslaught of books over the past decade addressing authenticity ("True North"),character ("Questions of Character"), Leadership ("Living into Leadership"), and meaning in life ("Finishing Well," "With Purpose"). There appears to be a vacuum of wisdom on how to live life. For us Catholics, it is clear that God came as Man in the person of Jesus Christ to provide The Way. A way that does not enslave us, but liberates us to become all God intended for us to be - to live a full life as an integrated or whole person (or "holy" person as author Matthew Kelly smartly says).

A whole person for a Catholic means being fully integrated in accordance with the divine command to be "pure in heart" (Matt 5.8), which implies undividedness in following God's rules. This "holy" person is one who discerns, in all aspects of his or her life, what is right and what is wrong based on God's Truth; acts on what has been discerned, even at personal cost; and says openly that he/she is acting on his/her understanding of right from wrong. This person is undivided and is not unashamed of doing the right thing at all times in all settings.

While this person lurks somewhere inside of each of us, integrity is missing today with many Catholics compartmentalizing their faith, saving it for Sunday, and separating it from their career and workplace - where it is desperately needed. This is where the culture battles are being fought.

In "The Catholic Briefcase," author and successful national search consultant, Randy Hain, gives us his toolkit for Catholics who want to be whole and have come to understand to do so means an undividedness in being Catholic... all the time. Randy, who comes from a Baptist upbringing and came into full communion with the Catholic Church in 2005, provides a full arsenal of tools - from real life situations he and others have encountered - for the workplace where there are great challenges.

His book consists of 13 chapters on subjects ranging from fear that may inhibit us, to the use of silence and prayer which will free us. Meditations and probing questions complete each chapter. He also includes in the appendices, a chock-full carry-on case that includes recommendations for useful websites, ministries, programs, books, a daily examin for busy people, and a guide for creating a Catholic Business Group.

As for Randy Hain's "Catholic Briefcase," don't leave home without it!