05 Aug On Business, Life and Russian Dolls ….
This is an extract from my book Power Quotes, published by Business Expert Press, New York
Business is a bit like Russian nesting dolls: many worlds packed into one. Business is much more than just business. It’s an infinite universe made up of multiple galaxies. It requires a combination of technical skills, leadership, talent, inspiration, persuasion skills, drive, curiosity, competition, diplomacy, thick skin, adrenaline rushes, creative obsession with an idea or a product, resistance to pressure, tolerance for failure, love for risk, appetite for success, ambition, empathy, self-discipline, inflated egos put in good use, the art of transforming people’s desires into needs, and the list goes on. Business demands that you function in beast mode. You have to be a mental athlete and it goes beyond beating the competition. Above all, it’s about beating your own last record performance. In fact, it’s about an endless marathon, an operation that requires alertness of all five senses. Sometimes even a sixth sense is needed, as intuition is the human version of animal instinct and does play a big role in business.
There’s something else I love about business. Business is an act of optimism. You cannot embrace business and fully invest yourself into it without an optimistic outlook or at least without the willingness to overcome fears and self-doubt. Competing in the business arena has a cathartic effect. To enter this arena one must first purge oneself from a lot of their emotional bucket. There is no such thing as a pessimistic entrepreneur. It would be a contradiction in terms. Can you imagine a pessimist trying to start a business? It’s an oxymoron! He would see the potential for failure every step of the way. Business, by its very nature, is a risky place. True innovation requires doing something that has never been done before and for this a good amount of optimism is needed. To believe you can convince enough people to part with a good amount of their hard-earned cash to support your idea and create a business than can survive among five billion others is proof enough. There are millions of people who, out of convenience, choose to work nine-to-five jobs they feel completely unpassionate about. On the other hand, there is not a single entrepreneur out there who does believe in what they are doing.
It is precisely this enthusiasm that encourages entrepreneurs to take the risks others don’t. Where figures, statistics, and advisers suggest they will fail, entrepreneurs believe they can actually succeed. That’s what pushes them to look for opportunities where others dare not look. They seek sales in places where others don’t even bother pitching. They form partnerships and ventures with people others dismiss and get the deals and discounts others don’t bother asking for. The very act of doing business breeds confidence, whether through the natural hope of increasing one’s income, achieving a better standard of living or through one’s forced determination to prove wrong the people who doubt their business idea. When realism overrides optimism a business is left with an unhealthy culture of fear. Smart business owners understand the value and necessity of maintaining healthy amounts of both optimism and caution when it comes to decision-making. They’re neither hopelessly naïve in the pursuit of their goals nor reluctant to experiment with new concepts and products. Instead, they fight to keep creativity and innovation at the heart of the game.
Business is the most elemental form of exchange. It is about give and take. Some times more “giving” is involved, while at other times more “taking” takes place. In many ways, business is about maintaining a certain balance. A balance that is hard–almost impossible–to maintain at all times and on all levels. In both Life and Business everyone is competing for the same thing. Attention. Everyone is trying to rise above the crowd and get noticed, preferred over, chosen, hired, or purchased from… out of an infinite pool of similar-seeming options.
Business is Life!
In fact, I can’t conceive Life without Business. I have often come across people arguing that either you have a natural inclination, a talent for business, or you don’t. Whichever career path you choose to take in life, you will soon realize that business is an essential part of whatever it is you do daily, even if your job title suggests otherwise. It can be a product, a service, a particular skill, an idea or a point of view that you trade. A number of people set out in business quite early in life, through family tradition, genuine interest or personal inclination. Others through academic qualifications in economics, finance, and management, while a larger number set out through other routes, circumstances, financial needs or the pursuit of a hobby that ends up being a profession. Obviously, some are more successful than others. However, all of them have to follow similar paths when it comes to monetizing the product of their labor. In your social and professional life you have met people with hobbies and passions. Some make a living out of them, while others don’t seem to be very successful at reaping any financial benefits. Perhaps, the most challenging part when people are passionate about something is ….
To read the full chapter and access the book on Amazon you can follow this link.
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