"In business, it doesn't pay to be honest"

 

At one recent training event, one of the activities required participants to make as much money as possible, and it was done as a closed economy. Everyone received $500 toy money at the start of the game. It was a zero sum game. During the debrief, I came to a difficult situation. I asked the participants their biggest takeaway, and more than one said, "In business, it doesn't pay to be honest". If you were the trainer, what would you do? 

Indeed in this activity, those who are desperate enough can cheat. We did have people who broke rules without getting caught, and indeed they did well. This was what I said. 

"Business is about trust. By being dishonest, you can win in this activity today, but if you lose the trust of a friend today, how many future opportunities have you lost?" 

Those who conduct business unscrupulously may well win one deal, close one transaction. But they will need to keep hunting for the next victim. Those who conduct business with integrity will build a network of trust, and this network grows and compounds. 

What would you do if you get to play doctor for a day?

 

This was what I kind of did, when I had the opportunity to put on professional grade medical scrubs from Oslo Scrubs (https://www.iamoslozen.com). I had this opportunity because of the BNI business network I am in. I started my own business as a leadership trainer only 5 years ago. Back then I had run other people's businesses, but I had not built my own from scratch. It was my business community, the BNI Lighthouse Chapter, which helped me tremendously to get my business off the ground and to a sustainable stage. I learned to be a better entrepreneur. I received business referrals. I also built meaningful friendships. Being able to cosplay is just a minor perk. If you are in business, find a community of like-minded business leaders, and you will grow as your help others grow too. 

"What is the ROI I get out of your leadership training?"

 

If a potential client asks me this question, it usually means I will walk away from the discussion. Now it is fair to want training to be effective and to yield results. However when a potential client frames the question this way, it is an indication that they expect the leadership trainer to magically transform the participants into great leaders who quickly make more money for the company. Developing good leaders is not a 2-day affair, or even a 2-month exercise. A leadership training programme introduces leadership concepts and tools, and offers a platform for participants to reflect on their leadership. However it takes determined and consistent application of what they have learned to become good leaders. Leadership training is not magic. It is about opening minds and setting the stage for continued practice. 

The challenge of 2nd generation businesses #2

 

Lack of exposure outside of the family business. 

Some 2nd generation business owners started their career in the family business right after graduation. They have never worked for someone else other than family. They have not played the role of just an employee. They have always been the scion, the successor. They have a world view which is different. It gives them different insights, and also comes with limitations and blind spots. 

If this has been your path for the past 20 years, you can't go back to change that. What you can do is to spend time with people who have walked different paths. Not just your employees, but also friends with whom you have no business transactions or business interest. Acknowledge you want to leverage others' experience, and that will save you time and pain.

The challenge of 2nd generation businesses #1

 

Conflict between 2nd generation owners and 1st generation staff. 

If you are the 2nd gen, and these uncles and aunties have known you since you were a kid, it may not be easy for you to ask them to change the way they work. "We have be operating this way for years and we have been fine." It is hard for people who have worked in the same company for 20 years to get out of their comfort zone. Also, some have strong egos. What can a young 2nd gen do? 

Start with the soft approach. Respect the elders. Build relationships and trust. If you have known them for years, it helps with this approach. If you want change, they need time to gain confidence in you. Build your credibility and prove your capability and sincerity before pushing for drastic changes. Let them feel listened to. Despite all the above, you still need to be prepared that some may not be willing to change or may not be capable of change. Then you eventually have to proceed without them. 

Are you using Artificial Intelligence intelligently?

 

AI is here to stay. It is going to help us in many ways, and make life better for us. Unfortunately as we learn to use it, we are now also misusing it in many ways. Do you notice some social media personalities who post very consistently and write long, comprehensive articles? They churn these out regularly, and after a while, you realise it is mostly the same content. You realise you are not reading a social media post, just a generic advertisement. 

I recently had a WhatsApp conversation with a person who found me through a community of business owners. At first I was curious about how he found me and how we could potentially collaborate. However I quickly realised I was talking to an AI bot which had probably scoured some database and found my name amongst many others, and blasted messages to a large group of people to initiate such conversations. 

When we use AI, we have to keep in mind the value we want to create. If what we use it to create is of little value, then we are wasting other people's time. In our busyness and pursuit of efficiency and time-saving, never lose sight of value. 

Do you have a door mat Whatsapp group?

 

Do you have one or several? I am in some WhatsApp groups which are not particularly important. I don't read all the messages. I get those good morning and generic motivational messages. There are many messages in such groups - a lot of noise. Sometimes there is useful information, but the signal-to-noise ratio is low. There is one particular way I use these unimportant groups which stops me from leaving. They are my door mats. Let me explain. 

I use WhatsApp groups and messages heavily in my work. They are my inbox. My to-do list. When messages come in, usually I can read parts of them from the phone notification system. I don't necessary have to open them. I often don't want to open them yet, because a chat group or a chat with another person with unread messages means a task I need to do. I use the unread status as my to-do list. If I read a message, and there is something I need to do about it, I prefer to get it done immediately. For example simply responding to it. Or sometimes I need to get something else done which may take more time. When I can't complete the task immediately, I get a little anxious because that chat is no longer unread. I might forget that I need to do something because there is no unread status to remind me. 

This is how unimportant groups help me. If I read a message snippet from a notification and I know there is something I need to do, but I don't have time yet, I don't open the message. I stay in one of my unimportant groups. I know it is safe to ignore messages from the unimportant group. It is my door mat I can stand on without "dirtying" my other important chats. I don't want to click into my important chats and lose the unread status. 

Does anyone else do this? Or do you use WhatsApp or messaging apps in your own unusual way?