ClearYourMind is our company blog about business, the Internet and everything a "web-guy" loves by Javier Cabrera, owner and principal of Emastudios, a tiny web design agency based in the beautiful caribbean-like Buenos Aires, Argentina.

April 24, 2008

Why you should not run to get there faster

I was taking a beer with my ex-boss (back from the dot-com golden age era) and talking about business and life. He owns a telecommunications company today and I own EmaStudios. We were actually talking about the changes that comes to the every day business life and came to the conclusion we both have different ways to “get there” and although, both are valid; my way may be better to avoid surprises.

My ex-boss likes to run

He started on the business life very young; when he was 18 actually. He loves to have those dot-com era stories where you set up a company in a month, gathered a few couple of good programmers, started working on something and before you know it; you are already on a plane to see your angel investor who will pay for the whole company 2, 3 million dollars. He loves those stories where the guys didn’t even had a parking lot or a building, and had to put their Ikea desks together by themselves while eating on the floor because they didn’t even had a meeting table.

That’s running. That’s being in a rush to “get there before” someone. And it is good, it has worked for a lot of people: but not for everyone. Usually, if you do that, you may have a big chance of burning down your contacts (coders, designers, etc) who will begin to claim for your head when you business model isn’t paying off (for example, if your angel investor never shows up) and they start seeing those “exiting” times where they have to install the internet at the office by themselves like “he is making me work for free”.

It can work. Don’t get me wrong. But it can also be a mess.

Let’s say you are like my ex-boss. You like to run. You want to do it overnight and run like mad up the hill. The problem is, you won’t be paying the proper attention to details; and remember: devil is in the details. You may lose a lot of opportunities you won’t see up the road because, you see, you are running. You aren’t taking the time to think about things and plan, set up a strategy and review the whole picture of your current situation.

You are running. You just want to get there. There is a potential investor or business in Canada? well, what the heck, let’s travel there right now. Someone mentioned your company name in New York and wrote about how cool it will be to talk with the CEO? well, why wait; let’s go tonight. That other agency came down to the city with a new idea that may work with ours? well, let’s shake hands on it and let’s put our teams to work together. Let’s do it; it may no be a tomorrow.

That can work. That can be exiting. That can be also, dangerous for business. You may find yourself running towards the unknown without a clear plan and being just “too” flexible. That may give the impression you don’t have control over things, not to everyone else, but to you. That may end up badly with you having debts and running even more just to get there faster before the debts catch up with you.

Or it can end up well. Either ways; it’s your call. Just think before you start going up the hill. Maybe the better strategy is run a little; and walk a little. You never know.

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