1/5/15 - 1/9/15: 12:40 PM
This week I read further into the book Good to Great by Jim Collins.
The chapters that I read focused on the so-called Hedgehog Concept, which contains three circles that comprise of what you are passionate about, what you can be the best in the world at, and what drives your so-called "economic engine" (which is a fancy way of saying you get paid for what you are doing). The intersection of all three points becomes the Hedgehog Concept. What this translates to in real life is if you have only the economic circle, you will only create a successful company, but not a great one.
This is similar to our class. If we are not invested emotionally or psychologically, we will never be able to bring our company to greatness, and likewise will not be able to put our greatest effort into the project/company. In addition, we are not getting paid, but at this stage it is not about the many (although Collins might argue about that). But when is the right time to get paid? Do you have to start getting paid a six-figure salary right away? Later on? Or is it even a six-figure salary?
Collins also talks about how to make a great company by focusing on what your strengths are, and also paying attention to your weaknesses. Just like in C4E, we were made to writeup our strengths and weaknesses in the Parts 1-6 document of the Storefront Project. Collins comments that by focusing on the strengths that a company has, they can excel in that aspect, and blow the competition out of the water. He uses the example of Wells Fargo and their international banking operations. Wells Fargo was attempting to become an international bank, but they realized they would never be as large as Citicorp, so they focused on the western United States, which they were good at. This allowed them to excel farther than they had before.
Therefore, by focusing on relative strengths and staying away from weaknesses, a company can go from Good to Great.
More to come next week!
C4E Associate:
Noah Mark
Glad you're finding this a useful way of thinking about business. how might it apply to your $200 project? Be thinking about this for your case study.
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