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Forty years ago I started my own business. ComPsychIt was founded with an idea and $1,000. Fast forward to now, we’re the world’s largest mental health services provider, serving 78,000 organizations of all sizes, from small businesses to Fortune 500 companies, and helping over 163 million people across 200 countries.
People often ask me how I did it, and I always come back to the principles I have in business and life. Here are seven principles that have guided me as I grew my company from a startup to what it is today: achieving my wildest financial dreams and committing to my mission. These can help you, too, build a business that is both profitable and personally satisfying.
Related: Have a business idea? Here’s how to get it done.
1. Imagine the unimaginable
It is essential for entrepreneurs to not only set their goals high, but reach the stratosphere. When starting your business, don’t limit yourself by setting a vision that is too modest. “Dream big” sounds like a cliché, but it can also become a self-fulfilling prophecy. History is full of examples of entrepreneurs who others thought were crazy, but who ultimately achieved unimaginable success.
Of course, you will need to set incremental goals along the way, but throughout your journey as a business owner, remember that the only person who can truly limit the potential of your business is you.
2. CommitMent Compare to committea
One of the pitfalls I see business school entrepreneurs make is spending too much time building consensus. Instead, focus on building commitment to your vision. Why? Because bold ideas often don’t get accepted by consensus. I often say that regression to the mean is settling for mediocrity. Trying to please everyone often results in the idea becoming a shell of its original concept. A classic example of a “committee” project is when everyone is on board with the idea and they think it’s the right fit. heard And nobody Happy.
Instead, hire a group of people who believe in you and your unimaginably big vision, and who are inspired by the future and possibilities you see.
3. The crowd is usually wrong
Challenging the herd mentality is not only a good thing, it’s essential. If you want to differentiate, why do exactly what your competitors are doing? My advice is to chart your own unique path.
When I started, everyone else was trying to deliver care to every corner of the country through their own separate offices and in-house clinicians, but it was impossible to do it effectively. I bucked the trend and adopted a national network model. This centralized approach allowed us to offer a wider range of services at lower prices while cutting bureaucracy and overhead. As a result, we quickly gained a competitive edge and grew rapidly.
While online-only tools dominate today, we are still facing headwinds as a hybrid provider. both In addition to digital tools and telehealth services, we also offer the industry’s largest face-to-face network and comprehensive organizational support services.
4. Lift rental
As you grow from a small team (or even a team of one!) to a company with dozens, hundreds, or thousands of employees, you realize how important it is to hire with intention. I believe the people you hire can make or break your company. Look for people who will drive your business forward.
These people are not all the same. Some have a wealth of valuable experience in their field, while others come from diverse backgrounds. Most importantly, they embody the traits that are central to your mission and culture. Frankly, I value qualities like intellectual curiosity, tenacity, and rigor just as much, if not more, than traditional experience because I know those people will thrive at my company.
5. Be smarter than your problems
Most problems in business have relatively simple answers. We overcomplicate the problem. Humans are prone to catastrophizing. This can lead to a ton of extra work and heartache.
Instead of going around in circles, I fall back on the old Navy adage, “Keep it simple, stupid.” Let’s simplify what the problem really is (hint: it’s usually do not have It’s about thinking about what everyone is talking about and how to solve it. This open and thoughtful approach is often not only the quickest but also the most effective.
6. Perfection is the enemy of success
We all strive for excellence, but remember that if we become too obsessed with perfection, we do ourselves a disservice. Like Nike’s famous slogan, sometimes you just have to “just do it.” In the future, you will have the opportunity to iteratively improve. In the meantime, strive to execute your vision as best you can while knowing that there is literally always room to grow and improve.
If we waited until everything was perfect, we would never get very far. Executing quickly but thoughtfully is the key. Over time, we hone our instincts, spot persistent patterns, and learn to trust our intuition in making decisions. Most importantly, don’t get unnecessarily bogged down or bogged down in considering your options. The worst decision you can make is to make no decision at all.
7. Become bulletproof
I believe integrity, or reputation, is the most important thing in business and in life. When I say “be bulletproof,” it means living your values 100% of the time. This will ensure your business never strays from its mission and build a reputation that people can trust. It also helps foster a culture of accountability and protects you from criticism that comes from hypocrisy.
About 20 years ago, Warren Buffett said,Newspaper test“— the idea that if you wouldn’t want what you do to be on the front page of the newspaper, then it’s not the right thing to do. This is a simple way to make sure your actions match your words.
These may seem like simple concepts, and they are. The challenge is putting them into practice as you weather unexpected adversity. It’s the rigor and discipline of applying the same set of principles to every situation that makes the difference over time. After 40 years in business, I’ve found that there’s nothing you can’t overcome. If you dream unashamedly big, are unwavering in your vision, have the confidence to forge your own path, surround yourself with the right people, enjoy simple, sensible actions, and have strong values to guide you, you’re more likely to succeed in business and in life.