Because of the instant-nature of my job, I often don’t find time to sit down, reflect and compute the bytes of information that I feed into my head daily via Twitter, Facebook and a number of other networks. I try not to lose focus of my personal goals as I gain more work experience and become more confident and self-assured daily.
I consider my current phase of life as a “training” period for my next phase of life, which is running my own business. I think a lot about how I want my life to make a difference, the impact I want to make. I will be honest – my primary goal is to build a highly profitable and financially successful business and I don’t harbor false notions about my capitalistic desires. However, I also want to be a strong leader and I want to create a business that will impact more than a handful of lives. An honorable business that will create jobs and hopefully, contribute to the general well-being of society. There is a lot of work that needs to be done, but for now I am also sub-consciously training myself to be a leader, to understand how to run a business and to learn from both the good habits and the bad habits of entrepreneurs. I’ve picked up a few ideas and values that I want to build my business around. I just wanted to put them down on paper, so here:
1) Execute quickly and efficiently: This is the most important thing I have learned and it is the single most common factor all entrepreneurial minded have in common. I must have heard, ‘better to ask for forgiveness than permission’ about 10 times from all different people. It is branded in my head now. It is important to think things through and be doggedly focused on the end goal. It is equally important to not gloss over the details in the beginning, because it is not a pleasant situation to deal with midway down the road. But the point is – do your homework fast and just execute. Start making, building, selling – whatever it is your idea is. But just start it.
2) Cut a good deal, but provide equal value: I don’t like asking for or doing free work unless it is a fair barter. When doing a free project for an author, he asked me “How can I make this worth your while?” I had never been asked that question before. It showed me integrity. It showed me that I was dealing with a fair businessman who was also looking out for my best interests. Not everyone in the business world is going to look out for my best interests, but those who do – I know I want to hang on to them.
This is a principle I want to live by and do business by. So when the time comes for me to start pulling in favors, I want to know that I have earned those favors or that I will pay for them. Yes – there are no free lunches.
3) Brilliance shines effortlessly: Some entrepreneurs or wanna-be entrepreneurs feel a strong need to constantly talk about how smart they are, how connected they are and how cool they are. And it gets frankly annoying after a while. The leaders I admire are the ones who know when to talk, when to namedrop and when to shut up. And that is the kind of leader I aspire to be everyday.
4) Inspire loyalty: The founder/ public face of a huge non-profit never thanked his volunteers or even bothered to find out their names when he flew into Philly for a conference organized and managed by the volunteers. Three months later, every single volunteer had quit or moved on. A small gesture of appreciation would have avoided this situation and kept the volunteer roster loyal and motivated. Instead, the non-profit had to struggle for another few months before they could build a sound volunteer board again. Lesson: No employee is too lowly. Don’t gush, but certainly don’t ignore anyone’s contribution. I admire companies and entrepreneurs who are able to retain employees long-term. To me, it says a lot about the company.
5) Give control: I read these stories about how once you are an entrepreneur you cease having a life. No vacations, no time-off. But I have met an equal number of amazing entrepreneurs who build their business around the idea that it will survive and run smoothly without their continued presence. And that happens upon relinquishing control and trusting the right person to take care of the business in your absence.
So that’s what has been on my mind so far. Would love to hear your thoughts and your ideas on what you think makes a good entrepreneur/ leader.
Another terrific discussion on BBH Labs blog about the digital narrative:
And here’s my comment.
I don’t think that digital storytelling and the brand storytelling are necessarily divorced from one another. Infact, I’m not sure if a narrative-based digital campaign will be successful on its own. Narrative and a story builds over time. To think that digital can manage that with one campaign, one microsite, one widget is to basically apply the same, tired old advertising-thinking to new behavioral models.
I should share the story of Amul Butter. Amul is one of India’s leading dairy companies. Since the 70’s (probably even before) Amul Butter advertisements (print, billboards etc) have been satirical observations of culture, politics, cricket and bollywood. Yet – tied effortlessly to the brand. This three-decade old archive of advertisements might as well be the best interpretation and elucidation of the country’s pop culture. The consistency, the witty-writing/ creative and the dogged dedication to the narrative have made these advertisements and Amul Butter one of India’s most loved brands. The brand inspires passion, loyalty and patriotism as the new entrants try to bite off Amul’s share of the market.
Amul is not a ‘digital brand’ yet – but it operates in very different markets where billboards are more relevant and pervasive than the internet. But the larger lesson I hoped to highlight by sharing this story is that: the point of storytelling is to evoke passion. And that happens over long-term.
Sharing examples of Charlie-bit-me videos is fine – but thats a one-time hit. When was the time we spoke about the Numa song or the Chinese backstreet boys ? One-time hits fizzle out eventually – everything on the web fizzles out eventually as newwer, shiner, funnier stories emerge. I don’t argue the value of a one-time growth spurt for a brand, but if we are talking about storytelling, lets not look at the web as a as a very in-the-moment/ instant-gratification medium. Investment in new media and its planning should be a strategic long term plan, not a short-term hit. Only then, will we be adding any tangible value. AND creating stories that will be conversed about for years to come.
(Img via Flickr)
This is where the recession has its upside. Its pushing everyone out of their comfort zones.
DDB West created a snazzy, clever website for a new project “The Rebound Project” positioning themselves as an agency ready for a gaming project. In another instance, this months’ Fast Company issue carries a full-page advertisement (yes print!) by innovation consultancy Fahrenheit 212 making an open bid for interesting projects to work on for free*.
I don’t know if its working for either of them, but I have to applaud their efforts 
The PSFK Conference yesterday was kicked off by a very interesting panel on re-inventing healthcare and innovations in the industry. I have many thoughts on what I learned at the conference and so I’m breaking it up in several posts so that I can focus and collate my thoughts on each of the big ideas and not just regurgitate it.
Richard Fine of Help Remedies has a very interesting idea. Help Remedies products are stripping apart the frills of medicine packaging and bringing it down to its purest levels. Fine made some good points about the packaging, the upselling and the choices that pharmaceutical companies package up to gain a larger market share on simple products like acetaminophen and band-aids. Now, you cannot not love the packaging and presentation of the Help Remedies products – it stands apart and it makes a point.
But what disappointed me was the total lack of dialog or questions around the bottom-line and the business model. Innovation in design is not the answer to curing the health industry of its woes. It is a part of the answer. Help Remedies sells its 12 tablets of simple acetaminophen for $6. And they sell 8 surgical band-aids for $6. As compared to a Rite-Aid tablet pack that sells 100 tablets for $5.95 or 80 band-aids for $3.99.
Now the obvious question is, do I simply want to look cool by buying a better packaged drug or do I want value for my money? And I think the answer to this is also very obvious. Screw the packaging, give me more value for my money.
At the presentation, Fine mentioned that their products are currently being sold at top hotels (Mondrian) museums and elite boutiques. See the full list of venues here.
My contention with this idea is not that their products are sold and currently cater to an obviously design-conscious, upper strata of the society. It is OK that this is their business model. But my problem is with the idea that when presenting to a creative crowd, do not just highlight the creative/ differentiation and the positioning. The panel was about altering the way we think about medicine -and the way we think about heatlhcare or medicine or anything for that matter cannot be divorced from the business of it.
Perhaps the responsibility of illuminating both sides of the coin lies more with the moderator of the panel than the actual speakers.
Now I don’t own a business or have never run one. So I am sure that there is a reason why a simple product like theirs is not competitively priced. Manufacturing, Distribution, Formulations – perhaps Help Remedies CANNOT afford to sell their products for a more competitive price, but the point is – talk about it! Don’t underestimate the intelligence of a creative community by not addressing the business implications and challenges of actually trying to change how we view an industry.
Just my opinion.
As someone who works in the ‘creative’ industries, I find the word “creative” far too limiting in its scope. I am uncomfortable being termed a creative. In New York speak and in agency speak, a creative is someone who designs or someone who makes things. Graphic designers, fashion designers, product designers, sculptors, artists is the general nomenclature that I and most other people associate immediately with the word, ‘creative.’
Funnily enough, I don’t immediately think of dancers or actors as creative in the first minute. Is it because I think of their talent/ skill as a craft? Do you think of them as creative immediately when you hear the word?
Why? I’ve often asked myself this.
Most intelligent people on giving this question more thought will say, but creative is not limited to the artitic – being creative is being a good problem-solver. Then whether you are an enginner, a coder, or even an event planner. But I find that the word “creative” alienates people instead of making them feel comfortable. The word in a sense is more isolating than embracing.
Just something that bothers me a little when I let it
.
My job mostly involves thinking/ consulting and being held accountable for it. Knowing my client’s problems, understanding the landscape and offering possible solutions that will meet the clients objectives. Of late, I’ve been tasked with work that involves a teensy bit of project management/ execution: problem solving on the go. And not million dollar client-related problems, but more simpler, where do I order bevrages and snacks from (food services or wholesale!)? Should we purchase the product first or the storage/ containers first? Should I invoice first or order first? Little things like those that left me flustered!
In the workforce, I’m used to feeling on top of my game or at the very least in control of situations assigned to me. In my personal life however, my sister and my fiance will attest to me being quite a disaster in the kitchen and the wardrobe. I organize and then re-organize stuff in my wardrobe a million times trying to out-do myself and get better – only to get flustered and end up with a result that does not please me. Sometimes, even giving up half-way. Not a particularly proud moment, but I’ve been trying very hard to address this.
And this really really confuses me. I’m not boasting, but I think I’m good at my job with a ridiculous desire to continue to get better at it. Why is it that then I’m not so good or so confident about the little tasks? I get flummoxed and boom! My self-esteem plummets.
I am certain this is a weakness and I’ve decided to mend it. I tried a little technique today and it seems to be working for me. Upon being assigned a task that is outside my comfort zone, I first write it down. And then I think and list out the steps that need to be done to achieve the given task. Once that is done, I then think through each step and try to imagine the most efficient and productive method to get it done. Wrting helps me. Listing helps me. Once I see the entire task broken down like that, I feel much more confident and in control. Now, I know people who do all this in their head and get on with the job without a worry. But this process is helping me overcome my weakness right now and try to stay more oganized.
The major drawback is that I end up wasting a lot of time. But maybe that’s a part of the process?
I wanted to ask you – any tips/ tools you would recommend to help a rightbrained slight scatter-brain like me overcome this weakness? How do you stay organized? And how would you advise me? What has/ has not worked for you?
Spotted on springwise.com – Authonomy is the output of the innovative minds at Harper Collins Publishing house. My mout is salvaiting with the idea of reading the books / excerpts already posted on this site! It is crowdsourcing for books. People/ Writers write about 10,000 words of their novel and upload it on this site. Readers will then read what they find interesting and vote on it. The top 5 books that receive the most votes will be read by the editors at Harper Collins! And well..from there on. .who knows what can happen?
For a writer, the writing part of the book is almost the easiest part. It’s the publishing that kills the spirit. This site, if anything, provides motivation for writers to get published. I’m very interested in seeing how this turns out – many such publishing models have come and gone and failed, but this model with the backing and commitment of a major publishing house behind it might just work.
I find it very hard to resist beautiful stationary – especially writing books. Yesterday while I was at Barns & Noble to pick up the last of the Twilight Series, I chanced upon this beautifully designed journals (see picture below) by a new company, “Working Class Studio.” Turns out, the studio is an innovative output of Savannah College of Art & Design. From the website, “Working Class studio is a product development venture of the SCAD that cultivates and promotes the work of talented SCAD students, alumni and faculty artists.” What an amazing concept. It reminded me of the Design Manifesto I had stumbled upon of Central Saint Martin’s College.
By launching this division, SCAD, a strictly creative and fine arts educational institution, is displaying more business sense than even the best B-Schools. Instead of teaching/ preaching creativity for creativity’s sake, SCAD is taking it a step further and teaching creativity for productivity’s sake. I’d like to wager a guess that participating students emerge as smarter business-men and women, and not just better creatives. Great call, SCAD!
Well, one of its kind really.
A few months back, my paths crossed with All Day Buffet and I joined them in their efforts to make social innovation mainstream. You probably know of All Day Buffet from its ridiculously successful Cause for Drinks event. If you haven’t been to one yet – you should.
Mike, Jerri and I have been fervently at work in creating a one-of-a-kind conference on social innovation aptly titled “The Feast.” It is on October 16th at the Scandinavia House here in NYC. What is the point of another conference you may ask. And I agree. Like you, we are pretty much tired of the same kind of conferences, that bring together the same speakers and the attendees and do not achieve much.
That is precisely why The Feast is so different. Our speakers are evocative and have each harnessed the power of creativity to propel social change in their respective industries. Dr. Despommier of the Vertical Farming fame, Dale Jones of PlayPumps and Tom Szaky of TerraCycle are just a sampling of the great minds we have bought together for the day.
The conference is less about ideas and more about actions. In gathering the world’s leading creative mavericks, entrepreneurs, revolutionaries, radicals, and innovators together we intend to inspire action to change the world. Our hope is to leave you high on possibilities with a new menu of connections to get it all done.
I hope you will support our vision and buy a ticket or two and come to the conference. I promise you that it will be money and time well spent. And totally worth it.
Please email me/ leave a comment if you are a member of the press and want a press pass. I look forward to seeing you there.
