Rules of Thumb (for business…and more)

Networking events for the sake of networking are generally lame, in my experience.

Networking events that surround some meaningful content are not.

So, I jumped at the chance to attend the Greater Washington Board of Trade’s breakfast event that was an interview of Alan Webber, the author of Rules of Thumb (52 truths for winning at business without losing yourself).

Webber is also the co-founder of Fast Company Magazine and his interviewer was none other than my client, Dan Pink.

While I haven’t read the book yet (Alan inscribed to me with the mantra “Never Stop Navigating”- a play on my title [Marketing Navigator] and the company name, Never Stop Marketing), I am very excited to begin digesting it.

Dan described it as “52 shots of espresso. You should really only have one or 2 a day.”

I walked away with some great nuggets of advice:

1. “What is the point of the exercise?”
   Alan said we need to “ask the last question, first” so that we know why we are doing what we are doing. Hint: the answer isn’t “maximize shareholder value.”
   
2. Keep 2 lists
   On one list, “what gets me up in the morning?” (or what are you most passionate about?)
   On the other, “what keeps me up at night?” (what are your concerns?)
   Those should be your guideposts each day.
   
3. What is your “definition of victory?”
   When starting a business, people often look at the mechanics first and don’t take a moment to say…what will it look like when I’ve succeeded? After all, that’s the only way you’ll know you’ve “made it.”
   
4. The financial crisis means we need a “reset button not just on the economy, but on management.”
   Webber thinks the CEO concept is outdated and that the way managers are taught in B-schools is part of the reason we are in this mess today.

I’ll have a lot more on this in the days to come as he helped me think about the nature of the business organization going forward.