We Don’t Need a Babysitter
Americans are demanding a new approach
By Jim Walton
CEO, Brand Acceleration, Inc.
Indianapolis and Charlotte
When I was a child, my brother and I were thrilled at the idea that our mom and dad would go out and leave us at home without a babysitter. “We’ll be okay,” we would say, “We can take care of ourselves.” Part of the maturing process is a desire for independence, a chance to grow, stretch, and show what we can accomplish when given a chance.
As a parent, I remember doing everything possible to teach my daughter to be independent, to grow and take measured risks. Today, she is one of the most mature and independent young individuals I know. While she works well with others, she is also willing to step up, take the lead and be responsible for the outcome.
As we approach a very important election, it’s interesting to watch politicians and constituents wrestle with the “What are you going to do for me?” mentality. At a time when federal government spending and the national debt have grown far beyond sustainability, it seems the American people are beginning to realize that spending cuts are inevitable. They are absolutely necessary for survival. The challenge is deciding what to cut.
A dependent class
Over the decades, many have become dependent on the government to take care of them. As a result, there seems to be an inability (or unwillingness) to make even the most basic decisions without first consulting the government (law) to determine how or if something can or can’t be done. We’ve become a paralyzed and dependent class.
I recently saw a news story about an experiment that was conducted to see how people would react to an injured person in a public place. A man pretended to be injured in a railroad station, stretched out lifelessly on the platform to see how other passengers would react. Countless people walked by, looked at him, and then walked away. No one offered help. Why?
When they were asked why they did nothing, several reasons were cited. First, most people thought the railroad officials would call for help. Next, they thought it was a police issue – none of their business. Many were afraid of the liability if their actions were wrong. Finally, a few said they just didn’t have the time. The point is that we’ve become a dependent class, afraid of taking even the most basic responsibility to help ourselves or others. We expect someone else to handle just about everything.
The times, they are a changin’
Today, with a lingering recession and a federal debt that has spiraled out of control, even the dependent class has begun demanding that the federal government go on a diet. They’re saying it’s time for them to back off and stop spending money we don’t have. For the first time since the 1920’s, Americans are demanding that the federal budget be reduced, dramatically. The difficult part though, is that we’ll need to take more personal responsibility. For example, we’ll need to be smart enough to get a flu shot and cover our mouths when we cough without waiting to hear a government funded ad telling us to do so. Duh!
Just as many families, due to a job loss, have had to learn to live without restaurant dining, vacations, expanded cable television service and other luxuries, our bloated federal government is being told by voters that it, too, will have to cut back.
How will we survive?
Like an addict who struggles to break an addiction to alcohol or drugs, Americans are indicating that they are ready to break the addiction to government. I’ve been amazed to see people do whatever it takes to pay the bills, reduce their debt, and provide for themselves and their families. They’re showing that they can survive without government dependency.
Having started several businesses over my career, I’ve learned that when left alone, businesses will grow, thrive, expand, and hire. We often hear about all of the money that is sitting on the sidelines, just waiting on a sign that the economy is improving. I believe, and I think most business owners would agree, that investors and employers are waiting to see which direction our elected officials will take the country. Will they raise taxes and expand government or will they cut spending and taxes and trust the American people to jump start the economy of the greatest job producing engine ever seen on the face of the planet? Personally, if I had to choose between government babysitters or the ingenuity and work ethic of the American, people, I’d choose the latter.
Just as we did when we were children, people are saying, “We’re big boys and girls. We don’t need a babysitter. Just get out of our way.”
Brand Acceleration is a full-service advertising, brand management and public relations firm operating from Indianapolis, Indiana and Charlotte, North Carolina. The agency’s focus is on economic development, architecture/engineering/construction, real estate and motorsports.
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Get Out of the Way, Dr. Jekyll
Or, are you Mr. Hyde?
By Jim Walton
CEO, Brand Acceleration, Inc.
Indianapolis and Charlotte
Something that has often puzzled me is when a company of community spends vast time and money to hire great people or vendors and then seeks to change them. What the heck is that about?
Every organization dreams of adding a real winner to the team, a person who will outperform any and all previous records. They put the word out that they’re looking for a killer salesperson, manager, economic developer, vendor (you name it) to take them to new levels of success.
They glean resumes, scour references, and put candidates through the interview wringer in order to discover Mr. or Ms. Glorious. A winner! After a few days or weeks on the job, they discover that Mr. Glorious does things a little differently.
I once met just such a winner. He was known industry-wide for achieving incredible sales and division growth. He was young, brash, aggressive, and allowed nothing to stop him. He showed up at the office around ten, took long and expensive lunches (with clients), played golf almost daily, and soon racked up sales that were three times higher than any other salesperson. The company president loved his sales but hated his style.
The “old man” was a by-the-book traditionalist who made it his mission to reign in Mr. Glorious. He expected employees to be at their desk, working, by eight and to never, ever, leave before five. He was obsessed with getting every minute of work out of every employee. The idea of paying for unproductive time made him crazy.
The office was full of eight-to-five drones who plodded along, as expected, putting in their time, and accomplishing very little. They followed the rules, did what they were told, kept quiet about any disagreements and probably took their frustrations home to their families. You see, the company president was notorious for using his authority and strong personality to mold employees and vendors into nice, neat clones of himself. As a result, few new ideas came out of the company. Not only was the place only mildly productive, it had become boring.
Long story made short, Mr. Glorious soon moved on. His personality and work style were far too different and he wasn’t about to change. But the story didn’t end there. A few years later, the company was purchased by a larger competitor that was buying up smaller companies in a massive acquisition spree. At the helm of the buyout giant was, you guessed it, Mr. Glorious. His company was widely known as the place to work. There were few rules. The employees functioned as a team and they had fun in what was a very unique, yet functional, workplace.
It happens to vendors, too!
If you’re a regular Rants reader, you are aware of my position on brands. You can’t change them by getting a new logo. If your company or community has a bad reputation (brand), a new logo won’t change a thing. You’ll simply become a bad company or community with a new logo.
I once saw a Fortune 500 company hire a respected marketing communications firm and spend hundreds of thousands of dollars for a new logo. The brand team viewed countless concepts. Some were very conservative and others were wildly unique. They wanted to modernize the company image and position it as the cutting edge leader they believed it to be.
After almost a year, a decision was made. The CEO, who had not been part of the process, chose to stay with the same logo the company had used for over a century. The brand manager, under massive pressure to explain what he was thinking when he suggested a new logo, fired the agency.
Today, the company is stuck in a rut, globally viewed as old, slow and vulnerable to takeover. It does great work but a musty cloud of age hangs over its future.
It takes a visionary!
Companies and communities want the excitement and rewards of being at the center of a flurry of success. The problem is that their leadership is often unwilling to do the things required to create that success. Leaders must be willing to take risks and break with tradition in order to create the kind of success and excitement they desire.
Wildly successful organizations are almost always led by a top executive who has a vision and courage to make bold moves. He or she is often seen as a bit odd, maybe even nutty. My experience however, is that this type of undisciplined visionary will make amazing things happen. They are willing to be different, refusing to follow the crowd.
Here are just a few business visionaries who became famous for their risk taking tendencies and courage. Each grew massive empires and created countless jobs:
Henry Ford (Ford Motors)
Sam Walton (Wal-Mart)
Oprah Winfrey (Harpo)
Bill Gates (Microsoft)
Steve Jobs (Apple)
Meg Whitman (eBay)
Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook)
Jeff Bezos (Amazon)
They were not afraid to be different. They were notoriously odd. Their friends, colleagues and the business community labeled them as dreamers. They were privately and publicly scoffed. But, they didn’t stop. They sought partners and employees who were also different.
Are you such a visionary? Are you willing to be different?
When are you going to get started?
Brand Acceleration is a full-service advertising, brand management and public relations firm operating from Indianapolis, Indiana and Charlotte, North Carolina. The agency’s focus is on economic development, architecture/engineering/construction, real estate and motorsports.
Or, are you Mr. Hyde?
By Jim Walton
CEO, Brand Acceleration, Inc.
Indianapolis and Charlotte
Something that has often puzzled me is when a company of community spends vast time and money to hire great people or vendors and then seeks to change them. What the heck is that about?
Every organization dreams of adding a real winner to the team, a person who will outperform any and all previous records. They put the word out that they’re looking for a killer salesperson, manager, economic developer, vendor (you name it) to take them to new levels of success.
They glean resumes, scour references, and put candidates through the interview wringer in order to discover Mr. or Ms. Glorious. A winner! After a few days or weeks on the job, they discover that Mr. Glorious does things a little differently.
I once met just such a winner. He was known industry-wide for achieving incredible sales and division growth. He was young, brash, aggressive, and allowed nothing to stop him. He showed up at the office around ten, took long and expensive lunches (with clients), played golf almost daily, and soon racked up sales that were three times higher than any other salesperson. The company president loved his sales but hated his style.
The “old man” was a by-the-book traditionalist who made it his mission to reign in Mr. Glorious. He expected employees to be at their desk, working, by eight and to never, ever, leave before five. He was obsessed with getting every minute of work out of every employee. The idea of paying for unproductive time made him crazy.
The office was full of eight-to-five drones who plodded along, as expected, putting in their time, and accomplishing very little. They followed the rules, did what they were told, kept quiet about any disagreements and probably took their frustrations home to their families. You see, the company president was notorious for using his authority and strong personality to mold employees and vendors into nice, neat clones of himself. As a result, few new ideas came out of the company. Not only was the place only mildly productive, it had become boring.
Long story made short, Mr. Glorious soon moved on. His personality and work style were far too different and he wasn’t about to change. But the story didn’t end there. A few years later, the company was purchased by a larger competitor that was buying up smaller companies in a massive acquisition spree. At the helm of the buyout giant was, you guessed it, Mr. Glorious. His company was widely known as the place to work. There were few rules. The employees functioned as a team and they had fun in what was a very unique, yet functional, workplace.
It happens to vendors, too!
If you’re a regular Rants reader, you are aware of my position on brands. You can’t change them by getting a new logo. If your company or community has a bad reputation (brand), a new logo won’t change a thing. You’ll simply become a bad company or community with a new logo.
I once saw a Fortune 500 company hire a respected marketing communications firm and spend hundreds of thousands of dollars for a new logo. The brand team viewed countless concepts. Some were very conservative and others were wildly unique. They wanted to modernize the company image and position it as the cutting edge leader they believed it to be.
After almost a year, a decision was made. The CEO, who had not been part of the process, chose to stay with the same logo the company had used for over a century. The brand manager, under massive pressure to explain what he was thinking when he suggested a new logo, fired the agency.
Today, the company is stuck in a rut, globally viewed as old, slow and vulnerable to takeover. It does great work but a musty cloud of age hangs over its future.
It takes a visionary!
Companies and communities want the excitement and rewards of being at the center of a flurry of success. The problem is that their leadership is often unwilling to do the things required to create that success. Leaders must be willing to take risks and break with tradition in order to create the kind of success and excitement they desire.
Wildly successful organizations are almost always led by a top executive who has a vision and courage to make bold moves. He or she is often seen as a bit odd, maybe even nutty. My experience however, is that this type of undisciplined visionary will make amazing things happen. They are willing to be different, refusing to follow the crowd.
Here are just a few business visionaries who became famous for their risk taking tendencies and courage. Each grew massive empires and created countless jobs:
Henry Ford (Ford Motors)
Sam Walton (Wal-Mart)
Oprah Winfrey (Harpo)
Bill Gates (Microsoft)
Steve Jobs (Apple)
Meg Whitman (eBay)
Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook)
Jeff Bezos (Amazon)
They were not afraid to be different. They were notoriously odd. Their friends, colleagues and the business community labeled them as dreamers. They were privately and publicly scoffed. But, they didn’t stop. They sought partners and employees who were also different.
Are you such a visionary? Are you willing to be different?
When are you going to get started?
Brand Acceleration is a full-service advertising, brand management and public relations firm operating from Indianapolis, Indiana and Charlotte, North Carolina. The agency’s focus is on economic development, architecture/engineering/construction, real estate and motorsports.
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