Growth and Organic Evolution

Growth is a natural evolution of living things. I believe that if we are to achieve success in our businesses we must come to view them as living, breathing, evolving organisms that need our care and nurturing to survive and thrive.

Nurturing my company's organic evolution means listening to customers and observing the market. Just as it would be destructive for a parent to attempt to force a child to become exactly what that parent wants the child to be, it would not be constructive for me to force my company to become exactly what I envisioned regardless of what my customers and the market are telling me.

As counter-intuitive as it may seem to loosen our grasp, we must let go of rigid expectations and learn to observe with open minds. We must let our businesses grow and become what they will as we assume the role of a supportive parent honoring the child with guidance, gentle coaxing and unconditional encouragement.

In order to honor and exemplify the spirit of organic evolution, I am making a commitment to writing this blog in unhindered honesty and openness. I will share my thoughts, observations, mistakes, faults, lessons and accomplishments as they unfold in hopes that not only may I help others on their way toward success in business, but also that I might in turn come to better understand my own drive and motivations.

I believe that if we stay accountable to others and ourselves above all, conduct our affairs with unyielding integrity, honor our innate creativity and focus on the attainment of balance in our business and personal lives we can all experience success beyond our wildest expectations.

Walking In Circles

Do not confuse motion and progress. A rocking horse keeps moving but does not make any progress. —Alfred A. Montapert

An Experiment

Try this: Find an empty field and have a friend track your path as you attempt to walk blindfolded in a straight line. Do you think that you could do it?

Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics say that you couldn't. Jan Souman and Marc Ernst of the Multisensory Perception and Action Group in Tübingenat claim to have proven what many people have observed---that without reliable visual clues humans are incapable of moving in straight lines. Left to our own devices, we can only walk in circles.

In what direction do lost men veer? Studies show that without reliable visual clues humans will walk in circles.

Souman and Ernst used global positioning to track walking trajectories of several groups of people instructed to walk a straight course through unfamiliar terrain. Results showed that when the sun was not visible, subjects repeatedly walked in circles.

Circular Thinking

One of the ways we prevent progress in our businesses is by engaging in what is known as circular thinking. In psychology this type of thinking is defined by the tendency to ruminate about the same thing over and over with no end in sight. It is a nonconstructive pattern of thinking that has roots in our mental conditioning and hinders us from seeing possibilities outside of our circle of thought.

For people suffering from disordered circular thinking it can be very difficult to break the cycle and escape from conditioned thought reflexes that influence behavior and outlook. Similarly, it can be equally as difficult for us to free our minds of repetitive and unfavorable thinking patterns that influence leadership and decision-making strategies in our businesses.
  


Directional Cues

So how do we jump out of our spiral and exit the proverbial roundabout? The answer is clearly defined directional cues. For a person to walk in a straight line he or she must be able to see a monument or visual marker to determine and continually correct for intended direction.

The observed trajectory of a blindfolded subject trying to walk a straight line. 

Likewise, without clearly defined goals and measurable guidelines how are we to know if our businesses are progressing in a linear direction or merely circling round and round like a blindfolded wanderer?



A beneficial directional cue can be something as simple as a vision statement. At its most basic a vision statement is a description, usually written, which broadly outlines desires and intentions for the future.

Other directional cues can be measurable guidelines for success including percentages, numbers or timelines such as "I would like to contract three new accounts every month between now and July," or "increase production by 7% in 2011."

Once goals are clearly defined it will be easier to judge progress and decide if you are indeed proceeding toward goals in relation to established "monuments."

Choosing Monuments and Fixing Focus

In cognitive behavioral therapy, which helps people modify faulty or distorted thought patterns and associated behaviors, patients are encouraged to break down large goals into smaller, more attainable goals.

For instance, one of my larger goals in business is to eventually sell a part of my company for a profit while still retaining a portion of the business and a seat on the board. Looking at that goal in its entirety can often seem overwhelming and unattainable. Yet when I break it down into multiple smaller short-term goals the task not only feels much more manageable, but also provides several monuments along the way that I can pass with renewed confidence and a sense of accomplishment.

Some of my smaller goals include hiring more employees, opening a few more stores, making a consistent effort to maintain organization and constantly recommitting to deliver the best products on the market at the best value with superior customer service.

These smaller goals can be in turn be broken into even smaller components, down to daily or even hourly tasks. And whenever I do hire a new employee or get a letter from an ecstatic customer, I have monuments to pass and acknowledge with confirmation that I am indeed moving along my intended trajectory toward ultimate success.

Navigating the Roundabout

Have you ever driven in a roundabout? These are road junctions where traffic circles around a central island. They are common in Europe and less common in the States. Recently a new roundabout was built in the small town of Valparaiso, Indiana. It was a new concept for the residents of Valparaiso, and many drivers admitted to cutting through a nearby parking lot to bypass the roundabout while others avoided the area altogether.

A diagram demonstrating how to navigate a traffic roundabout.

Mistakes were common when drivers panicked while navigating the roundabout, creating a dangerous situation and a high probability of accidents. One of the mistakes that drivers made was stopping in the roundabout. Traffic is supposed to flow smoothly and continually, and stopped vehicles can quickly turn into a pileup. Similarly we cannot allow fear of new situations in our businesses to paralyze us because as soon as we stop moving and adapting to changing conditions, problems are bound to accumulate.

The second mistake confused drivers made in the new roundabout was to keep circling and circling round and round, too afraid to exit. This fear comes from not understanding the system, and from understandably wanting to avoid making dangerous blunders. Better than stopping, continuing to circle can be a way of assessing the situation and formulating the best plan. But at a certain point, we must have the courage to make our move or risk circling forever and never reaching our destination.

Fear of Exiting the Roundabout

Do you ever fear making a move because you don't want to do the wrong thing? I know I sure do. That is part of life and definitely part of running a business. But just as there is a fine line between caution and paranoia, there is a fine line between preparation and procrastination.

Lately I have been trying to limit my decision-making time and just make a move. Of course my move must be well-informed, but I have learned that no amount of deliberating can ensure the perfect decision.

When exiting the roundabout, there is a small chance that we will end up driving in the wrong direction. However if we have checked for traffic, used our signal and driven with caution there is no harm besides a possible wasted two minutes if we have made the mistake of exiting south instead of north. We have our monuments. If they end up behind us we can simply turn around and head the other way.

When Circling Is Beneficial

At the end of the day, in business - as in life - there are no rules that can't be broken. In the Chinese martial art of Bāguàzhǎng the characteristic stance and integral part of training is a movement called circle walking, or "turning the circle."

Bāguàzhǎng master Chang Chan Kuei practicing circle walking, or "turning the circle."

Practitioners of Bāguàzhǎng face the center of a circle and walk around its edge in a variety of stances, changing directions as forms are executed. The practice of circle walking is revered as both beneficial and necessary for learning flexibility and proper alignment. 

Sometimes we do not have the knowledge or skills required to make an informed decision. Like the driver circling the roundabout to gather information we must educate ourselves in order to set a goal and choose our monuments. This can be likened to reading books, attending seminars or finding a knowledgeable mentor.

My Wacky Model of Spiral Progression

We don't need to get where we're going overnight, and we don't need to make the choice of where to go if we're not sure about who we are or what we really want. It's okay to reevaluate and reconsider; it's okay to change. I don' t think that I can set a goal and know that my desires in ten years from now will be the same as they are today. Yet I have a general direction that's based on my integrity, which I hope will not change but rather continue to get stronger. I might get caught up in a bunch of little tangents along the way, but I still move along - and that's why my path looks something like this:

My model of spiral progression.

I may be going in circles, but that doesn't mean that I'm not moving forward ( :

What does your path look like?