Business Manager & Business Leader

Recently, I've observed some people on how they perceived & run their businesses.
Initially, any business venture is hungry for profits and cashflows as to keep their neck above the water from being drown with a loss. Upon the survival mode, it is time to switch gear to a growing mode. While growing it, we have to build a strong foundation on supporting the growth with systems, principles and teamwork. Once the compass is define with mission, cultures & values and a leadership team is formed, it is time for exponential growth, which is multiplication! Eventually, sustainability is the key to continue growing and maintaining the business without losing its essence and the original "why" that it exists in the first place.
It can be summarized as:

Creation --> Survival --> Growth --> Support --> Multiply --> Sustain

The summary is short but the process may take a decade!
That's why a business manager can only grow a business linearly.
While a business entrepreneur will grow it exponentially.
What is the difference?
One stand for profits. The other stand for something bigger than profit!!
One keep on taking. The other keep on giving.
One is looking on the short term. The other is building a legacy.
One is developing followers. The other is developing leaders.
One is working on people's weaknesses. The other is discovering people's talents.
One is thinking about greed. The other is thinking on creating values.

When a slight change of mindset & direction occurs, it will create a big impact when we stretch the time frame 10 years down the road. In anyway it is, there is no right or wrong. It is the heart & mind of the founders itself. I personally respect either business managers or business entrepreneurs because it takes guts to create something and to walk a journey separated from the crowd. But the way to create a business and the way to grow it needs a different mindsets & skillsets.

Imagine if every entrepreneur creating businesses to create values, the market will be a better place for all!!
I feel grateful and wish to thank all the business creators out there. Whatever it is, a big THANK YOU for driving a nation forward and to create jobs for people.

Dear Business People, you are the Hero afterall!

Coffee with Love

This is what we get when things are done with a heart and soul through the mind.
Can you imagine how Starbucks positioned their customers? I can feel as they treat us as good friends, judging from the act of taking the trouble to inform us on the outlet closing or re-location, with a meaningful message. I'm touched!

This is great example when a business successfully invested in People, to Perform and eventually generating Profits! When a company tries to skip the People part and jump straight to Performance and Profits, most of the time, the employee retention will be low. As people don't feel appreciated and the sense of belonging is shallow. Therefore, resignation letters are flying here and there!

Some management implement a policy where "I set the rules and if you don't play by it, take a flight and leave!". Guess what, employees will do accordingly to grant your wish.
How can one rule, conquers all? Imagine one medication to treat all kinds of disease.
People are different and we are an organic human being that are suppose to be emotional, don't we? We are not cows or chicken! We have moments of celebration, moments of achievement and moments of dissapointment as well. At the end of the day, what is so great about money if it doesn't enrich or uplift someone's life?

If we want a harvest of a year, grow wheat.
If we want a harvest of 10 years, grow trees.
If we want a harvest of a lifetime, grow people.

Eventually, People will grow your empire!

Business Owner or Business Runner?

After working for many years, most people would like to start their own business. I've written previously on the "Purpose of Building A Business". Be it Passion, Innovation, Problem-Solving, Jobs Creation or Creating More Income for oneself, there are 2 ways of having our own business.

Either you:

1. Run it ...or...
2. Own it

If you run it, you will never own it.
If you own it, try not to run it.

I've recalled a trading company having high revenues and a big operating scale, firefights daily! Their daily routines are Blaming, Pinpointing, Shooting & Firing! Imagine going to the warzone every day to work. Guess how motivating it is .... There is no teamwork, no incentive and obviously no passion, only a group of people dying mentally and waiting to be buried alive someday.

Another company run by a husband & wife team. All the employees are expected to equipped with multiple Intel processors in their whole body; MULTI-MULTI-MULTI-TASKING!!!
And all the MD knows and care of is the sales volume, margin, profit and nothing else. There is no life, no soul, no respect and no meaning at all. Eventually, everyone left!

I've observed and known a number of business people. In summary:

• Some are having big businesses with a big team but infested with the disease of employee's turnover and low morality.
• Some small businesses remain small in their whole life, due to fear and a conventional mindset.
• Some businesses firefight in their daily routine.
• Some systematically having proper flow and procedures in place.
• While a chosen few started from small and grew into a business empire coupled with solid values, mission, systems, purpose and teamwork.

I think the difference between Business Owners and Business Runners are whether the Management team brings out the Best in people or creates the Worst in people. I call it the Enablers or the Disablers.
Are you creating Drivers, Planners, Communicators and Analyst in your business?
Or you are just creating a bunch of people doing ....whatever....as long as someone doing something.
Do you have people doing the right things or just people doing the things right?
What about having people doing the right things right?

If you wish to be a Business Owner, practise the 3 Es; Educate, Encourage and Empower people.
If you wish to be a Business Runner, practise the 3 Cs: Control, Criticize and Complain people.
But you can replace it with Care, Compliment and Cash!

It is all about having the Heart and Mind for the people. Letting them grow, make mistakes and uplifting them. The alignment of Thoughts and Action from the Management will reflect the real company foundation. Another important element of it is the balance between Systems and Flexibility. Systems control the company flow and procedures while Flexibility promotes harmony, respect and care.

For instance, a company may practise the policy of non-accumulative annual leave. But due to the commitment and dedication of your team players which undertake and overlook projects completion until the point that is impossible for them to clear the annual leave, what do you do when the annual leave is expiring soon?
System wise, burn all the leave days accordingly.
Flexibility wise, pay them accordingly and show that you really care and commit to your employee's dedication.

In conclusion, it is easy to start a business. It is hard to maintain and even harder to build leaders to grow your empire. Do you want your business managing your people or do you want your people managing your business?

You choose....

Purpose of Building A Business

A typical journey that one would go through is studying, graduating, got a cert, go get a job!
After changing jobs for awhile, we realized no matter how many jobs we have changed, we are building something that doesn't belongs to us.
Finally when we reach a boiling-point, we'll say, "That's enough, I'm gonna start my own!"

That is where one more business is being born!

I've came across through reading, listening & association on why certain people started a business. I know there are many reasons but I observed a few highlights.

1) PASSION

Some people turn hobbies into a business. Eg. of housewives turning hobby of making cupcakes into a business. Pet lovers turning passion of loving animals into a pet-store. Natural therapist turning a desire of helping & curing people into a business. Donald Trump, turning his extreme passion for developing buildings and making deals into an empire. Rich Devos has great compassion empowering people doing their own business through starting Amway. Car-Enthusiasts turning car modification into a business.......and the lists goes on.

A business with PASSION is being run differently by the owners. It is more meaningful and lively!
A business that solely filled with the purpose of profitability doesn't create much value for employees to have any sense of belonging in the long run!

TLC - Truly Loving Company, embarked on a journey of selling toiletries with the purpose of donating most of the dividends to charity. It was started by a woman who was too tired of climbing the corporate ladder and wanting to do something meaningful instead.

J-Co Donuts....initially people queueing up like crazy in Pavillion DAILY, to buy donuts. Like refugees queueing up to get their rice! It was started by an Indonesian hair stylist, due to his crazy liking for donuts!

Passion can really drive a business into greater heights.

2) CREATION & INNOVATION

Another group of people started business because they wanted to turn ideas into reality.
When "Uncle Lim" first had an idea of building a resort home up in a hill, he was having around RM300 million and at that time, it was more than enough to have a comfortable retirement. Why does he take the trouble to plot a place called Genting Sempah and eventually build an entertainment hub? And he almost died 5-6 times in the process of building it as he visited the "dangerous" site daily!

Despite being a billionaire and having more than 200 companies, why does Richard Branson build Virgin Galactic and make space travelling a reality? In fact people have been making reservation 1 year before it was launch!

Talking about technology; we can't runaway from iPhone, iPod, iPad...& whatever in future that starts with an "i". Do you think Steve Jobs have created a new world of how we can "enjoy" technology?

A true Malaysia-Boleh hero, Datuk Tony Fernandes, creating a budget airline where "Everyone can fly!"

Whatever it is, any process of turning Ideas or Creation into a Reality or a Business, gives much satisfaction to those who have completed the journey!

3) SOLVING PROBLEMS

Think about it.....what kind of business that is created and doesn't solve any problems?
F & B business is to solve hunger problems....
Computer business is to solve inefficiency problems...
Financial consultation is to solve financial problems...
Maid agency is to solve helper's problems...
Interior designers is to solve home decoration & renovation problems...
But sometimes PASSION in starting & running a business overruled the LOGIC of creating a business.

4) PROVIDING JOBS

Well, this would be a macroscopic level of starting a business or businesses and helping a nation to grow! That is more on a Free Enterprise concept where wealth is freely created & distributed through the channel of capitalistic investment.

It is sort of a "Father" that creates a roof of employment for people especially for developing nation.

Malaysia is a good hub that provides job for foreign workers and thanks to the entrepreneurs who take the risk to start from nothing to something. People that developed this vision when they started a business is reaching the Self-Actualization level of achievement.

Some people thought buying a Ferrari is a waste of money. Why not donating the money to 3rd world countries?
But can you imagine how many jobs that Ferrari has created and empower individuals to feed their family through their dedicated effort?

5) PROFIT GENERATION

Eventually, we can't be doing a business that we like, passionate and solving other's problems without profits.
In which I had friends who actually think we should not make money out of friends if we do business with friends.
How naive! Imagine going to a friend's cafe and insist of paying only the cost price of foods & beverages everytime!

Well, money is not good or bad but it depends on how we use it. Money is also a measurement of how good we tapped into our potential and use the available resources. It can help turn Dreams into Realities as well.

We can't be adding values to our employees without profits.
Team-Building needs money.
Employee-Development needs money.
Salary & Bonus needs money.
Company's annual dinner or trip needs money.

As Jerry Mcguire said...."SHOW ME THE MONEY!"

In conclusion, how the management or business owners run their business depends on the mindset of creating the business in the first place. Whether the top management is greedy or generous, feeling insecure or fully delegating, money-oriented or people-oriented will eventually increase or decrease employee's retention.

If a company has a Vision, Culture, System, Values, Branding, Positioning and Growth, it will not only attract Talents but retaining them as well.

LOVE MONEY & USE PEOPLE......NO, NO,NO....
LOVE PEOPLE & USE MONEY instead!