“This is not personal, this is business.” Has anyone ever said this to you? I have never understood this statement. In every business deal, there is a personal side. After all, we are “persons”. I don’t believe we can separate and compartmentalize in life. Motivational speaker Dennis Waitley shared, “A life lived with integrity – even if it lacks the trappings of fame and fortune, is a shining star in whose light others may follow in the years to come.” And maybe, just maybe, if you lead with your heart instead of your wallet, you still might get that fame and fortune.
1. Choose Relationships Over Revenue. When I agreed to become a board member for NSIDE Magazine, it was because this magazine believes in this ethical standard. The true role models in business are not the ones who turn the largest quarterly earnings, but the ones who treat their employees better than themselves and choose quality of life over profit. It’s not easy, but maybe if we all just attempted to practice this concept, the effect might be pleasantly surprising. A neat example of this is the CEO of Chick–fil–A. Author of the book “God is my CEO,” Larry Julian remarked, “What impresses me most about Truett Cathy is that he has had the courage to follow his beliefs even though he’s pressured by the world to do otherwise. Even though the business world said it didn’t make sense to take Sundays off, Truett insisted on a day of rest.” The result? Chickfil– A restaurants surpassed $2 billion dollars in sales in 2006. The chain often generates more business per square foot in six days than many other quick–service restaurants produce in seven.
2. Run Your Business With The Long–Term Goal In Mind. I remember an assignment in one of my college communications classes. We had to write our own obituary. Talk about life–changing! This exercise immediately put things in perspective. At my funeral, no one cared if I graduated first in my class, or cut costs at the company. I wanted an obituary that said I was a good friend, a loyal companion and fair employee. As we near the holiday season, pop “A Christmas Carol” into the DVD player. Ebenezer Scrooge – now there is a man who had the opportunity to experience this first–hand. He turned a profit and could care less about the people he worked with. His partner, Jacob Marley, learned this lesson the hard way. After death, he returns to tell Scrooge, “in my life, my spirit never rose beyond the limits of our money changing holes! Now, I am doomed to wonder without rest or peace, incessant torture and remorse!” Scrooge replies, “But it was on that you were a good man of business, Jacob!” It is here that Marley identifies the truth, “Business? Mankind was my business. Their common welfare was my business.” If you have never done it, I challenge you to write your own obituary today. Put it in a place where will see it everyday. Run your business with the ultimate long–term goal in mind. It may just affect your business decisions today.
3. When Success Comes, Give Back. “The fact is donating or giving away your products or services is also a very good way to build your business. When you involve your employees, it’s a very effective method of building company morale and loyalty.” USA Today columnist Rhonda Abrams reminds people that donating your time to sit on boards or volunteer in the community can only help. It will help you and teach you about serving others and putting others needs before your own, and it will help the actual charity who needs volunteer work done. It’s a win–win situation. And if one day you suddenly find yourself without a job, what a great networking structure you have built with people who care. Those that volunteer have already shown their moral integrity. So give back – it’s the right thing to do – remember that obituary! How do you want to be remembered?
