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There’s been a lot of talk this year about companies expanding their focus beyond just shareholders, employees, and customers. It’s easy to think that this is all just wordplay, fanciful notions that don’t relate to the real world of business.
This is actually the world tilting on its axis, a permanent and lasting shift for the better.
It’s easy to forget that companies are a relatively recent invention. For most of human history, “work” was tightly linked to an individual’s skill. As those skills developed into areas of expertise, the concept of a “trade” was created. People in your community would exchange their money for the products created by your skill.
As we head forward into 2018, I’m hearing various questions and concerns about the uncertain future.
- We might see a big housing bubble.
- International relationships are jumping all over.
- Customers and markets are acting in unpredictable ways.
The truth is that there are always concerns, questions, and issues. When we look back in time, we see the patterns. But while it’s happening?
Not so easy.
There have been lots of challenges out there in the real world recently. Hurricanes. Fires. North Korea.
The approach of many businesses is basically to ignore all that stuff, because … what can you do about it anyway? Well, maybe write a check to Red Cross, but that’s it.
The problem is that businesses that approach it this way have no heart. It looks like you have a heart because you wrote a big check, but that doesn’t go very deep.
And your employees know it.
I had a bit of a down day yesterday, which got me thinking …
Sure, my work as a coach is all about helping people. But how do I balance that with what I do outside my business? Here’s today’s thought:
Running a business is hard work, and you don’t have enough hours in the day. Big surprise! Your attention on self-care is one of the first things to go.
You know as well as I do that this is hurting the business. And it may well put you in the hospital at an early age.
So how do you maintain health and balance as a leader?
Physical health
Your mental state reflects your physical health. I’m not talking about extraordinary health care, either, just attending to health issues quickly, eating wisely and maintaining a good weight.
The whole concept of work-life balance is a distraction, in my opinion.
The problem is that we usually think about putting our life into tight little categories. Work. Sleep. Recreation. Spiritual. Networking. “Quality time.”
So what happens when you’re networking, at work, and it turns out to be a quality spiritual experience?
We don’t know how to deal with it.
You’re on a mission to achieve great things in your business, even to change the world. But the truth is that you spend more time worrying about how the economy is doing, and whether you’ll be able to make enough money to survive.
There’s hope for you!
The first question to ask yourself is: How essential is your mission to your business success? Read the rest of this entry »
Ten years ago, Bo Burlingham wrote a business book named Small Giants which became quite popular. So much so that communities have sprung up around the world to support businesses which are putting these concepts to work.
What’s the new idea?
Bo profiled a number of companies who built powerful organizations by choosing to remain privately held. Read the rest of this entry »
I’ve been putting together a workshop at the local SBDC next week about incorporating mission and values into your business. There’s a breakthrough concept that can be applied here which changes how you achieve your goals.
In business, we have assumptions that:
- If it can’t be measured, it won’t get done.
- Everything has to be measured in numbers, preferably with a dollar sign in front.
When I state it this bluntly, you can see where the fallacy is. Can you imagine measuring your personal happiness this way?
Business Coaching Northern Colorado 