Business Fundamentals for every entrepreneur during quarantine
Business Fundamentals by Simon Sinek you must encapsulate
With the inception of any business, as entrepreneurs, we imagine a space where every employee feels inspired, fulfilled, and does the best of their life every single day. But why is it that companies lose the motivation midway and start operating like machines without a purpose? Bodies without a soul? Simon Sinek, the author of 4 bestsellers, points out that all businesses are built on a few fundamentals. And it is straying from these fundamentals that cause confusion, demotivation and loss. Let’s understand them one by one.
- Start with Why
‘Why’ is the core of anything we do. It is the reason we get out of bed every morning. It is the reason we started a business to begin with. The basic difference between a good business and a weak business is that one starts with wanting to solve a problem they encounter, or suffer through. And the latter starts with looking at another wealthy business and trying to replicate their success. Now if you can’t function without being inspired from within, how can your business?
Every successful and inspiring business germinates with a problem and a creative solution. Airbnb started when a group of people opened up their homes for colleagues travelling for a conference, and setup air beds for them. Right there, was a problem and a solution. And we saw the birth of Airbnb.
However, these problems are open to anyone and everyone. Then what creates a good business? What answers the ‘why’?
Simon Sinek laid out the Golden Circle to explain the three aspects of any business — What they create (the product), how they create it (the production process) and why they create it (the purpose). And there is a fundamental difference in how companies approach this circle, that makes them successful or morbid. Watch this video to understand this circle directly from the horse’s mouth https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4ZoJKF_VuA
2. The Infinite Game
Simon Sinek says the best way to run a business is without an end goal in mind. Finite games like chess or football have defined rules, guidelines and one common endpoint. Whereas in businesses, rules change, players change and there are no endpoints. Finite games have winners and losers. But infinite games have an undefined playing field, with undefined rules and fuzzy markers of success. He further explains that in the world that we live in, successful leaders or businesses are all playing the infinite game. Why would you want your business to have a deadline? Business, in its inherent nature is an infinite concept and the longer it goes on, the more experience and success it collects.
What defines success in a business? Most output? Most profit? Most number of awards? But in what timeframe? 10/20/30 years? Says who? These limited goals encourage leaders to adopt conservative and narrow paths, that lead to success in the short term, and runs out of fuel in the long haul. This causes confusion among employees, and eventually the death of a business. An infinite player knows he’s not always the best and he’s never winning. He’s always behind or ahead on a road and the goal is to keep driving in ways that best do justice to the ‘Why’ of the organization. And ultimately, those who master the infinite mindset are the ones who lead us to the future.
In an ever evolving market, we can’t choose the game, we can’t select the players. We can only choose how to play. Simon lays down ‘5 Practices’ that enables one to lead in the infinite game. Take a closer look https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3vX2iVIJMFQ
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