Illustration by Neil Webb
Thinking about the many entrepreneurs I’ve met, to be successful you have to truly love your business.
Good business is about caring about and paying attention to every aspect of your business, and all of its stakeholders.
Warren Buffett, the super successful investor of Berkshire Hathaway, was once asked: “What’s the secret of your success?”
He replied, “I personally meet the CEOs of potential investees. I look into their eyes and I try to figure out whether they love the money, or they love the business. Everybody likes money. If they don’t love the business, I can’t put that into them. We count on people loving the business. Then my job is to make sure that I don’t do anything that in effect kills that love of the business.” (1)
That said, does love really go together with business?
I believe that love is to business what grapes are to wine!
The word 'love'; can mean many things.
In a business context, I’m referring to values such as care, empathy, authenticity, purpose and compassion.
Of course, a business exists to make money and grow shareholder value, but there are many ways to go about that.
It’s a choice.
In my experience, businesses that value 'love' in the way that I’ve defined it above, are more financially successful, and more sustainable, in the long run than businesses that are focused solely on profitability (that said, there are exceptions).
Robert Haas, Chairman and CEO of Levi Strauss, said, “What we’ve learned is that the soft stuff and the hard stuff are becoming increasingly intertwined. A company’s values — what it stands for, what its people believe in — are crucial to its competitive success. Indeed, values drive the business.”
In one workshop I ran for a group of entrepreneurs, I asked them why they might believe that love is important in business and some of the answers included:
Love is sustainable.
Love is a driving force.
Love means connection and empathy.
Love makes things grow.
Love puts the value into the people and the work.
Sustainable entrepreneurship means loving your customers.
Steve Farber, author of 'Love is just Damn Good Business' (2), cites Stephen Klemich and Mara Klemich, who has a PhD in Clinical Neuropsychology.
They led a team that spent nearly 20 years researching what drives effective behaviours in organisations (3).
They found 16 key thinking styles – eight ineffective and eight effective.
At the heart of the eight ineffective thinking styles are pride or fear, both of which are ‘self-promoting’ and ‘self-protecting’.
They are at the root of behaviours characterised as sarcastic, controlling, easily offended or dependent.
The eight effective thinking styles are rooted in ‘humility’ and ‘love’.
They concluded that these styles are authentic and reliable, and create personal growth, encourage others, demonstrate compassion and lead to growth in others.
Again, all related to love.
The culture of love
Love in business can be about rewarding the people who make up the company and creating a culture in which innovation can flourish.
It’s about pulling everyone together in a spirit of partnership.
One of the businesses that I started and grew was based on this ethos.
Part of this was done by implementing a share trust and a bonus scheme for all team members so everyone got a share of the profits; this information was shared openly at quarterly town hall meetings.
Every member of the team from the board to the receptionist felt appreciated and valued, which was reflected in their work.
Although creating and implementing these initiatives was time consuming and costly, it garnered shared values ('love') for the business across the entire team.
When I sold the business, everyone gained.
I’m particularly proud of this example of love in business which follows through to today, as many years later I’m still in touch with some of the employees; they still remember the company and the share trust and bonus scheme. Ultimately, it is about creating a positive experience for all concerned.
It's always inspiring to watch others examples of blending business with love. Take Jony Ive, former chief designer at Apple. His inherent passion for purity, integrity and for giving a damn is the powerful force behind his new venture, LoveFrom, I'm excited to watch what he does next!
Tough love
Making difficult decisions and acting on them is also an important part of love in business. For example, there are times when a person may no longer be the right fit for the business, and it’s time to part ways.
This kind of decision has to be genuinely good for the business.
Although such decisions are tough for all concerned, the individuals can still be treated with respect and care.
With this in mind, I believe it’s important to treat the individual fairly, aiming to equal or exceed legal requirements; this will result in the best (or least bad) possible outcome for everyone concerned, as well as enabling the business to grow, innovate and prosper.
Conclusion
I absolutely get that many entrepreneurs may be uncomfortable using the word ‘love’ in business. If you don’t want to, don’t!
The key point is that for your business to grow, innovate and prosper, your team needs to feel safe, trusted and uninhibited - free to share ideas and give honest feedback.
Exhibiting and espousing the values I’ve referenced above will not only foster the best chance of innovation taking place in your company but it will also give you a company filled with excitement and joy.
Two of the main ingredients of love!
References