Category: Core Values

“When wealth is lost, nothing is lost; when health is lost, something is lost; when character is lost, all is lost.” – Billy Graham

Power and influence come with success.   But a lack of character cannot stay hidden forever, nor will it preserve power and influence.  When failure comes and it will, character is the difference between a quick comeback and a lonely exile in mediocrity.

Keep an eye on your moral compass.

 

BloggingGazelle is published daily by Shawn Carson

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The greatest rewards don’t come from winning the game – they come from playing the game – Archie Manning

A great win becomes history in the first second after the championship game.  You can take the memory with you but the win doesn’t make you who you are.  It’s all the practice in the mud and the rain.  It’s the bruises and aches you have to get over.  It’s struggling with defeat and it’s how you learn to rely on your teammates.  These are the things that make you who you are.  These are the lessons that shape your life.

All champions eventually lose and true character is revealed in the losses.  And there comes a time for all athletes to leave the game.  The question is, what are you going to do next?

 

BloggingGazelle is published daily by Shawn Carson

“Man was made at the end of the week’s work when God was tired.” – Mark Twain

God’s ultimate creation was given a great gift; the ability to choose.  Consequently, the ultimate creation is burdened with imperfection.  Our journey on the planet is in part to learn how to get past imperfection.

Companies are plagued with imperfection.  In fact, the successful startups and  large corporations I’ve been honored to work with have all managed to succeed despite some profound stupidity and bizarre decision making.

Your company will never be perfect.  You will make dumb decisions.  Your ego will be bruised.  You’ll hire deadbeats and you will have doubts.  Your competitors will lie about you and you may get sued.

Guess what? Every CEO has these same problems.

That’s why it’s important revisit your Core Ideology regularly and stay focused on delighting and solving problems for your customers.  Your Core Ideology is where your Core Values and your Purpose come together to define the enduring character of the company.  These are the things that do not change over time.

Write down your core ideology and keep it handy.  Post it in plain view.  Share it on your website.  It’s what brings you back when you lose the path.

 

Blogging Gazelle is published daily by Shawn Carson

“Why is there never a big red button?” – Dr. Who

We all want the obvious answer.  We want all the customers to agree.  We want the big bold sign to tell us which direction to take.  We want to know in advance what will happen.

When it’s big decision time, we want the big red button; partly because of the fact that we need rituals to emphasize the importance of the moment, but mostly because we want the clear binary, black and white scenario where we know what happens if we push the big red button.

But it’s never that way.  You can’t know the outcomes, one choice over another and you can’t collect enough data to make you comfortable making the decision.

The best you can do is be true to your core values and make the decision based on the best data you have available.  Then you have to own it. If you’re wrong, fix it or pivot, but don’t sit around assigning blame.  Move on.

You’re going to be wrong a lot.  That’s the way it is.  You probably won’t even be right half the time but that’s usually good enough.  Sailing never follows a straight line.  It’s a series of moves and counter moves that gets you where you are going.

 

Blogging Gazelle is published daily by Shawn Carson