By: Nicolas Hauff
Founder/CEO
FILLGAP BUSINESS GROUP
Many times, what makes you successful in something is not necessarily what you think it was.
In the fall of 2015, after two years of work I published a book titled The Three Challenges: How to Become the Strategy-Based Leader that the Modern Business World Demands.
I had been very successful in an information technology business for years until I encountered a severe setback between 2007 and 2008. As I stood in that difficult situation, I realized that I wasn’t aware of what had made me successful and why my success was suddenly slipping away. After I started to assimilate my loss, I began a time of self-discovery to uncover both, the roots of my success and the obstacles that stood in the way.
My discovery process led me to conclude that I personally had not fully undertaken whatever was necessary to grow as a leader and meet the new demands of my growing business. I had not maintained a unified vision for the company as it grew. And I had not consistently made things happen. I realized where I had fallen short on each challenge.
From that process, it also became clear to me that I was not the only business owner trying to grow his company day to day without direction, that most of them lacked a sense of personal purpose, and that most leadership teams of small and mid-sized companies were missing alignment around a shared vision and a well thought out strategy to get there.
As a completely unexpected benefit of this discovery process, I was introduced to a new but fascinating opportunity for me: The world of commercial personal and business growth programs, for which I quickly developed a big passion and became actively involved with; partnering with some of the leading international content and program providers and, this way, helping other entrepreneurs expand their awareness, grow as individuals and leaders, and grow their businesses.
There are so many programs and sources of knowledge to address specific business and leadership issues that when people would ask me whether they should go for A, B or C, I would answer, “You will most likely benefit from all, but in the right context of your life and business and in the right sequence.”
Based on my intention to help others find the common denominators of all that wisdom, is that The Three Challenges model came to life; first as a presentation for my speeches, later as a book, and today as a model to blend the different methodologies into one roadmap.
I created The Three Challenges as a model for personal growth for entrepreneurial leaders. The book, however, was far more than just a retelling of other people’s ideas. I blended in what I had lived through countless experiences that had given me a unique perspective. I had seen success, experienced troubled times in my life and career, and reassessed myself.
As I was about to finish this work, I realized that I was addressing a large part of it to my past self. I had been telling that younger man what he needed to understand about life as an entrepreneur and business owner. I had been sharing the things that I wish I had known then, while I was also telling my present self what I needed to remember for my own future.
Based on the above, I would like to go over three of the most important lessons hoping that they serve you in your own entrepreneurial leadership journey.
1. BECOME AWARE OF YOUR LIFE PURPOSE AND YOUR NATURAL GIFTS
Each of us has a purpose. I believe that everybody and everything in the universe has a reason for being, and early in life we should develop an awareness of it. Don’t wait until you are middle-aged to discover your own purpose.
Start by identifying your talents and gifts. The book StrengthsFinder published by Gallup is a great resource for becoming aware of what you do best and how to build upon it. It will step you through how to identify your top five strengths. The book suggests that building on those strengths will bring you a greater return on investment than trying to fix your weaknesses. The online assessment included with the book revealed my five strengths: I turned out to be a strategic, a futurist, a positive, an input, and an adaptable person. Now I know how where I personally can add the best value to my business and what kind of people should surround myself with.
After finding out your talents and gifts, learn to live from love. I have learned that all emotions can be reduced to two basic ones: love and fear. Everything we think and do is based either on love or on fear. We can come closer to understanding our life purpose by becoming aware of the things that we do from love, as we experience fulfill- ment and flow. Last, but not least, find ways to make these gifts and talents available to others.
From this thought process I concluded that my life purpose is to connect others with new possibilities. I feel flow when I introduce two persons to each other and when I help people learn and realize new things. And based on that, I have structured my business and my life.
2. LEARN TO THINK AND ACT IN TIMEFRAMES
There is a before and an after for me from the day I understood the One Page Strategic Plan developed by Verne Harnish in his book Scaling Up and learned how to apply it in my own business and many other businesses.
Before getting acquainted with this invaluable tool, I always struggled to define a direction for my company, and therefore, I never established one and was never able to align my team around a vision and a strategy. It was always day-to-day operations without a clear path forward.
The main thing it taught me was to think and act in the following five timeframes:
- Long term: What is the big bold vision for your business in ten or more years? What do you want to have accomplished by then?
- Mid-term: What do you need to accomplish in the next three to five years to get closer to your big bold vision? What capabilities to you need to build?
- Short term: What are you going to do this year to get you closer to your mid-term targets?
- Immediate term: What are your priorities for this quarter? What is important to get your company moving in the right direction?
- Today: Are the things you are doing today aligned with the direction you defined for your business?
Besides of the timeframes, I also learned that your company must have a strong cultural foundation based on core values and core purpose.
Everything you decide and do must be aligned with your cultural foundation and your strategic plan. This will keep you focused and avoid distractions.
3. ALWAYS BE AWARE THAT NOTHING LASTS FOREVER
One of the most difficult things that I have learned to recognize is that nothing lasts forever. And I am not alone here; when things go well, it’s very easy to remain in your comfort zone, thinking that nothing is going to change.
The only constant in business and life is change. I once read a quote saying, “when you think that you are going to live forever, you do a lot of stupid things.” That happened to me when I was at the peak of my career in my technology business; I unconsciously chose not to see that changes were underway.
But in truth, everything wears off, goes out of style, dies, or changes over time, and it is in the period of transition that crises arise. In those periods of transition, there is indeed great risk. But it is also in those periods when there are the most opportunities – when we are leaving the old behind as we enter a new stage.
Always stay attentive of the trends in your industry, in other industries, in politics, in the economy, in society, in technology, in the environment, and in the legislation.
HOW DO YOU BECOME A STRATEGY-BASED LEADER?
A true entrepreneurial leader brings ideas to life, aligning the right people and resources and makes sure the idea stays alive. As a leader, you need to be humble enough to either step aside when your business has outgrown your skills or proactively invest in your professional and personal growth and, this way, stay current with the growing demands of your company. You may also need to bring in people with different skill sets. It’s all quite challenging.
From my own experience in business, from my ongoing interactions with many other business owners from different countries around the world, and from what I have learned in the business training and coaching profession, I have identified three core challenges that, as a business leader, you must master to reach greater heights:
- You must become and remain fully aware of yourself; understanding who you are as individual, why you do what we do, how you add value to others, and where you want to go.
- You must build and maintain a common vision of the direction your company is going.
- You must take consistent action to get great performance.
If you are growing a business, now is the time to buckle down and build your leadership skills before your company becomes too large for you to manage.
I wish you the best of luck in your entrepreneurial leadership journey!
