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Entrepreneur, are you a polymath?

Edward Tufte, appointee on the Obama administration’s Recovery Independent Advisory Panel, is a very diverse persona. Starting out as a Yale statistician he went on to self publish a book that changed the way businesses look at design. After becoming one of the leading thinkers in infographics he transitioned into the role of an accomplished installation artist and now sits on a presidential advisory panel.

With the wealth of technology, techniques and information out there can you think of a valid excuse not to be as multifaceted in your own career?

Deadly Myopia

For the corporate professional specialization is a key to success, working within a large organization each individual plays a specialized role. For an entrepreneur this kind of narrow focus becomes deadly myopia. The amount of networking, wrangling and on the spot decision making necessary to run your own business requires that you look beyond specialized job skills and become a bit of an uber mensch.

In his short essay Destruction and Creation, Col. John R. Boyd lays out a primary basis for human existence:

“Studies of human behavior reveal that the actions we undertake as individuals are closely related to survival, more   importantly, survival on our own terms. Naturally, such a notion implies that we should be able to act relatively free or independent of any debilitating external influences—otherwise that very survival might be in jeopardy. In viewing the instinct for survival in this manner we imply that a basic aim or goal, as individuals, is to improve our capacity for independent action.”

This is easily adapted to better understand the economic and professional position of the entrepreneur or small business owner. Without the large investment capital of a corporation we need to constantly keep in mind ways to “improve our capacity for independent action.”

On a Desert Island

If you knew that you were going to be stranded without any outside help you’d probably want to spend some time gaining the skill set necessary for survival. Although our businesses exist within a complex economic environment we often find ourselves going it alone. Do you have time to hire all the help that you need? Or the money? Can you always turn to your local network for advice or assistance?

Becoming mutli-faceted allows you to be agile and self sufficient. This doesn’t mean building a mote around your business, it means being able to help yourself and others when resources are scarce and challenges present themselves. This makes us valuable to our communities, to our peers in business world, and in the end it will help us better serve our clients.

Entrepreneur…are you a polymath?

Parasite or Provider

Any well traveled tourist knows one of the worst experiences while venturing outside of your comfort zone is picking up a parasitic infection. Laid out in a feverish haze while your bowels roll with opportunistic organisms can turn a grand adventure into a nightmare. Without the proper medical treatment picking up even a mild infection carries the potential for long term health problems or in the worst cases, death.

So what happens when a community picks up a nasty case of parasites?

Community parasites aren’t invisible food born micro-organisms, but they’re often equally hard to identify. Most communities in the United States are riddled with them and yet few seem to notice. These infections come in the form of self centered small and midsized businesses that feed off of their host communities while providing nothing in return.

At the Heart of It All

Entrepreneurs and small businesses make a community what it is. Unfortunately a large portion of businesses today are focused solely on their profit margin and put little effort towards giving back to the communities where they take up residence.

A healthy community can only exist when the balance of elements is perfect. When businesses promote pure self interest they are acting like virus inhabiting a host cell; replicating their genetic material at the expense of the infected organism.

Donations Are Great…What About Your Hands?

Local school districts are struggling, students are getting sub-par educations, libraries are closing and yet business buzzes on. We talk about ROI and best practices while right outside our doors the communities we’ve been entrusted with are falling apart.  Tossing some change to charity only goes so far, at some point we’ve got to get our hands dirty and do some work.

Have you offered to teach a class on small business issues at the local highschool? Do you have a hobby that you’re passionate about that might make a good class at your local library? Is your blog about you or is it about issues going on in the world?

Review Your Responsibilities

If you’re a small business owner it’s your responsibility to keep the community afloat. If you’re staring at your pocket book and tripping over curbs your community is going to fall down with you. Sucking off a community’s life blood only lasts so long until you’ve got nothing in your mouth but an empty husk.

What kind of community do you want to live in? One filled with thinly veiled parasites or a thriving community based on solid leadership and innovation?

As a business owner or community professional it’s up to you to lead the way, so prepare your hands…there’s a lot of work to be done!