Keeping the genesis of a brand alive

When starting a business one inevitably gets tugged this way and that in a long series of compromises. Things can erode pretty quick into a washed out mess without a clear vision and the gumption to stick with it. Plus the all-important ability to listen to the right folks along the way and adjust things as needed. Often easier said than done!

Having a clear, compelling vision in place to anchor the business from day 1 is critical. "Vision" is a much-used and often poorly understood term. We like Jim Collin's version best. We've had a 'place-holder vision' in place for the past six months but sense it needs some additional massaging before we unleash it on the unsuspecting universe, so hang in there for the final version, coming soon!

In the meantime, I'm going to share a little trick I've developed when advising founders of small companies over the years. Inevitably, at some point in the evolution of any business, the founder arrives at a place when they feel completely and irreversibly lost (thank God we're not there yet, but being proactive never hurts). To illustrate, a snippet from Dante's Divine Comedy:

In the middle of the road of my life
I awoke in the dark wood
where the true way was wholly lost

What then? What to do? How to find the way again?

I like to go back to a company's genesis, back to the source, so to speak, so I ask entrepreneurs: take me back to the beginning. How did things evolve from the very first inkling that this might be more than a passing idea in your noggin'? What were you feeling at the time? Walk me through the series of events, experiences, feelings, etc. that led you to actually set off and start this business.

Often, after a period of reflection, the entrepreneur's eyes begin to sparkle as he (or she) begins to reminisce viscerally about why they started their business, what problem they were trying to solve and what they love doing. Inevitably, the mood brightens and the entrepreneur's spirit quickens as he/she gets reacquainted with the genesis of what has probably since become their life's work.

 This line of inquiry is one path to the passion and purpose that got things going in the first place. A good place to start when the way is "wholly lost". Our hope is to avoid that fate by making sure we anchor our vision in an authentic, purposeful beginning (or genesis, or narrative), and the first step in doing that is to write it down. But wait, it's time for lunch, so I guess we'll have to cover that in our next a subsequent post!

Photo: Oliver