Foundations

"If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost, that is where they should be. Now put foundations under them." -- Henry David Thoreau

“Castles made of sand melt into the sea, eventually.” – Jimi Hendrix

January 23, 2010 --

Over one hundred twenty years separate those two perspectives on the permanence – or impermanence – of human creations, dreams, relationships. The first was written by a contemplative rebel near a New England pond, and the other by a late 1960s guitar-burning, acid-dropping musical innovator. Yet the point both make is the same: you need to build your dream on solid foundations. You can play “catch-up” in the entrepreneurial “ready-fire-aim” tradition (says Thoreau), or you can fail to put in the foundations or systems that your dream (your business, perhaps?) needs to survive to maturity, and watch it slip into the sea, eventu-al-ly (sings Hendrix).

You need foundations – systems and procedures that support consistent quality in products or service – on which to grow a business that is sustainable. These foundations will support your growth as a business owner, which needs to evolve and change as the business grows.

The important thing to remember is that these foundations must be designed to support the business, not bind it like a straightjacket (see “Systematize, Don’t Bureaucratize”, Jan. 15, 2009). Flexibility and innovation are survival tools in an era of constant change. Even skyscrapers must be designed and built with some “give” to help survive the buffeting winds. So you must create a business environment that fosters new ideas – both yours and those of others in the organization (see Sharing the Sandbox, Dec. 15, 2008).

Brainstorm! Blue Sky! Mind Mapping! New product development! They should be ongoing processes in your organization. If you are B2B, ask customers what kinds of services would help improve their businesses or make their lives easier. Experiment. Not only will these help lead to new sales – they will provide the “juice” for your employees that makes them look forward to coming to work. Share the Sandbox.

-- Steve Caccavo, President of Constructive Business Solutions™, draws on his years of entrepreneurial experience to help owners strengthen and grow their small and mid-size businesses. © 2010 by Constructive Business Solutions™, a division of Positive Employment Practices, Inc.