04.04.07
What is business?
I didn’t even get to finish my to do list before two colleagues lined up outside my cubicle this morning. I do not enjoy having my flow interrupted yet it’s been happening increasingly lately.
A quick check in my client folders on the current issues I keep track of, I counted a total of 38 folders. My inbox in the morning welcomed me with 17 new emails over the course of the night… none of them junk.
When a customer called to lecture me on proper business conduct to ensure customer satisfaction, I agreed and apologized. My thinking is this: get their money, what is the outcome they want and if the outcome is worth the time/money invested.
About a year ago, I remember thinking that I can never be like this. Looking back, I understand exactly the knowledges that I’ve gained which caused the shift in thinking. To sum it up nicely à la Warren Buffet style: “Act like an owner.”
There are two primary filters that are in effect within me. The first one is the constant calculation of return on cost & value over time. The second is the understanding of the outcome that people are seeking with each sentence they speak. (It’s annoying to arrive at a gain/loss price whenever I think about something, but it does make things easier most of the time)
But why would I want to benefit my employer by thinking for them and acting out of their best interest? My response is, why not? For me, it is a great training in decision making process. I am getting paid to learn and experiment. Of course, when time comes to choose between my own development as a person and benefiting my employer, we all know that my thirst to experience will trump everything else.
More and more, I see myself stepping through all these characters that I swore I can or will never be. Am I descending into hell? Or is this actually evolutionary progress? Either way, I have no regret.
Jeff said,
April 4, 2007 at 11:09 pm
It’s the latter. You said it yourself. You understand the knowledge you’ve gained that causes the shift in thinking. It means you’re growing. You’re taking more experience, and learning from it.
Be proud of this. When it comes to good people who have the ability to improve, the only constant should be change.
Causalien said,
April 5, 2007 at 1:20 pm
The definition of hell, is that of an extreme case coined into existence by my youthful and innoncent self. I am worried that I am just picking up that line and putting it somewhere farther as i go along.