Be The Change You Want To See In The World (What does that even mean?)
By Tim Moore 4x Entrepreneur and Partner
Everyone (Ok ALMOST everyone) has heard the phrase “Be the Change” but what does that even mean?
It’s such a broad, general and overarching phrase that most of its affect is lost before a person takes the initiative to live it. Today, I’m going to give you 4 ways that you can “Be the Change”.
1. As the Employee
Be That Employee. Yea, the employee that you wish you had; if you were a business owner. Stay longer, work harder, speak up more…for the betterment of the company. It’s not what your company can do for you…but what you can do for your company. Remember, business as in life works best when employees have a “you first, then me” mentality. Robert Cialdini, Professor Emeritus at Arizona State University said it best with his second principle, the principle of reciprocity. People repay in kind, whereby the application is “give what you want to receive”.
2. As the Leader
Be the Leader that you always wanted to have. As someone who has worked for numerous leaders/employers…mostly because I’ve almost always had 2 jobs (and even now, to businesses); as soon as I became a leader/employer I knew the atmosphere that I wanted to create.
i. Be invested in the team. Get personal! I’ve personally dropped off flowers to employees after a loss, consoled them after bad news, and planned the celebrations for great accomplishments. People don’t care until they understand how much you care. If you want to cultivate buy in…be the first to buy in…to your team.
ii. Be intentional. It takes a minimal amount of time to recognize your staff for making progress or achieving an accomplishment and pays dividends. Everyone wants recognition. Want bonus points? Make it personal. Let that recognition reflect that you know them as an individual and their goals at every turn.
3. As the Partner
Often overlooked, be that partner. Be invested in each other’s success. Full disclosure: Sometimes this gets ugly…because it’s the one of two areas where emotions are involved…and allowed. As the partner, it’s important to realize that you should be the biggest fan, but also have the honesty to say when things are going awry. It’s also important that it’s established that sometimes your biggest critic is also your biggest fan! I am ultra (read ULTRA) hard on my fiancé. Not because I don’t like her. Not because I think I can get away with it. Ultimately because I care that much. I believe in her ability that much, that anything less than what she is capable of is unacceptable. It’s a two-way street-and hopefully, she holds me equally accountable…as should your partner. If you want to do more, be more, accomplish more; don’t underestimate the value of a partner who understands your potential…plus 10%.
4. As the Parent
This is deep even for me. As a soon to be father, I often think of what I yearned for as a child. That’s my starting point for my son. At times, I know that it will shift to what he wants…and more importantly what he needs; but that is the responsibility the job.
As an individual, you virtually have an unlimited capacity to shape the world around you. Being the change you want in the world does not have to be a huge undertaking. It starts with small steps, done consistently. Never underestimate the impact that you can have by consistently giving what you want to receive.
Tim Moore is a 4x startup founder, partner and sales & marketing consultant. He writes about startups, sales and marketing. Follow him on twitter here