entreprethinking will get you a head
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Entreprethinking™ gets you a-head!
Abel Mukwevho
A few weeks ago I acquired a new client whom I’ll be doing executive coaching for her and her employees. During our conversation over coffee she mentioned her challenge with the people who work for her; “they are just not pro-active, they expect me to do everything.” I asked her if they sleep on the job, the answer was no. I asked her if they don’t deliver on the tasks, her answer was they do deliver. I asked her whether or not they are competent for that job, her answer was they are very competent. All her answers were positive, it’s what every boss would love; a competent staff which delivers, they are always at work on time, they just do everything that is required of them. I was left startled, I didn’t know what else could be the problem.
A few more minutes into the conversation, I discovered something; she was an entrepreneur, she hired a team but what she was looking for was a group of creatives so the business could run without her. Her current position as an entrepreneur was at a place where she was looking for opportunities to sustain the business and her life. Their position was to keep the administration stable and wait for the next pay cheaque. And that’s where the problem was; while she’s the input of the business – what she puts in they take out. What she needed was a team who would have an equivalent input into the business an output equal to their input. She almost felt like she was working for them, while they do the little staff and wait for her to bring in the money. I told her this simple thing; “what you are looking for is a team which thinks and acts like entrepreneurs.” And it’s true considering the character of entrepreneurs and what she needed in her small business. The difference between an employee and an entrepreneur is this; an employee looks for one opportunity which has a monthly pay and that’s it. The entrepreneur looks for opportunities and what day of the month he gets paid doesn’t matter, as long as he has more clients/customers he’s okay. Go into the brain of an entrepreneur and what you see is someone chasing a vast number of opportunities. Look through the eyes of an employee, and what you see is the eagerness for the end of the month. The passion and drive are different, and this is exactly what employers are looking for; someone who will contribute to the business, more than someone who will withdraw every month. They are looking for the entrepreneurial spirit.
When you think entrepreneur, you’re already thinking someone who starts, and grows a business; you’re right. But it takes a particular someone to start and grow a business – it takes a particular character and it takes
specific thinking. I for one think that, everybody who makes money (legally) should carry themselves around as a business does, whether they are employees or not. If there is a system and a transaction of money then you qualify to be a “business.” Take for instance; you wake up every morning to go to work, you get to work and do what you were hired for and at the end of the month your boss pays you. The same business you are working for serves other businesses or individuals and they get paid for the service they provided. You get paid for serving your company. The company you work for gets paid for serving other businesses or individuals. It’s the same system, the difference is, your services are not registered as a business, their services are. You serve your boss, the business serves outsiders. The system is the same. Why then, are businesses more successful and fulfilled than their employees? It’s because of entreprethinking™.
Your boss runs the business, therefore he thinks like an entrepreneur. You serve your boss therefore you should think like an entrepreneur. You might not be running a business, but you are providing a service. That’s all that business is – business is all about serving. If they don’t serve they are out of business. You’re all about serving, if you don’t serve (work), you won’t eat. So how do you ensure you’re always ahead of the pack you work with? The answer; through entreprethinking and the character that goes with it. The following 5 concepts and ideas are what makes successful entrepreneurs and what will make you as a career person successful in your career:
1. Passion, energy and drive for life – Do you have those always-happy people in your office? These people that are always jolly and get things
right, they seem happy for everything. They are passionate about life. Alway happy to see a new day – happy that they woke up in the morning. Happy that they can live to impact on other people. they know that no matter how bad some situations in their lives are, at least they are alive to see a better day. So GET EXCITED ABOUT LIFE!!!
2. Mental and emotional resilience – Human Resource has what we call, The Total Person Approach (TPA). And what this says is that as an employer you need to understand that you are hiring an individual who has family and friends and when you approach them, don’t just approach them as employees – they go through things at home, and some of the things overlap to work and affect their performance. but, for an entreprethinker, it’s different – work is work, home is home. They have a special ability to block out all emotions from home at work and continue being perfect performers even though they are going through a tragedy. Psychologists will tell you that this isn’t healthy, but this what gets them ahead while people are feeling sorry for them. The other extreme though, is that this quality gets addictive – people run away from their troubles and hide behind their work – not healthy, but perfect for getting ahead.
3. Great Attitude – Never complain. One of my mentors who happens to also be my spiritual father always says; “comply now, complain later.” If you can do the job right now, do it, get results and then complain. But always have a great attitude about your work.
4. Intelligence – this isn’t a matter of getting a degree. This is a matter of applying some of your knowledge, and how that knowledge is acquired is by reading books, newspapers and YES getting a formal degree. An entreprethinker is content about what they know, they always want to know more and they want to do better.
5. Leadership – taking control and responsibility. This has a lot to do with taking risks too, but if it gets the job done then do it. But mostly great leadership is an act of purposeful function. For me, before you become a great leader, we need to ask the question; is there purpose in that function?
Ultimately, you don’t have to run a business to be an entreprethinker – you just need to have the qualities that will ensure you stay ahead. So today go out there and influence the world with GREAT THINKING!
