“How can it be a large career to tell other people’s children about the Rule of Three, and a small career to tell one’s own children about the universe? How can it be broad to be the same thing to everyone, and narrow to be everything to someone? No; a woman’s function is laborious, but because it is gigantic, not because it is minute. I will pity Mrs. Jones for the hugeness of her task; I will never pity her for its smallness.” – G.K. Chesterton, What’s Wrong with the World
Happy Mother’s Day! As Chesterton observed back in 1910, motherhood is not only hard work and rewarding work; it is also vastly important work. So, if we are looking for ways to make our businesses more successful, what better place to turn for inspiration than to our own mothers?
Here are a variety of lessons that come to mind when I think about my mom. What lessons can you add to this Mother’s Day list?
Talk the Talk. My mom loves the English language. She would never hesitate to correct my grammar, nag push me to read difficult books, and encourage me to write and study literature. Had she not done these things, I wouldn’t be writing this article now. I wouldn’t be doing the thing that I love, or perhaps even know that I loved it. Lesson: Communicate your knowledge and passion. They will be absorbed by everyone around you – and turned into gold for themselves, you and your business.
Walk the Talk. Mom read to me long before I could read, with a joy I could easily sense. In her quiet time, she would often be found reading a good book or writing a detailed letter to a friend. This is called leadership by example – and technique number one, talking the talk, hasn’t got a prayer of working unless accompanied by this.
Never Give Up. When my brother, sister or I did something wrong, Mom never said, you’re fired. When we faced adversity, she never said, quit. Nope: she always hung in there with us, and sooner or later things got better. Similarly, we have to recognize those aspects of our businesses that are as precious as our children, and fight to the end to preserve and nurture them.
Provide Breathing Room. Yes, Mom nagged me about this and that growing up, and of course I didn’t much like it. However, she did something else that was very wise. She gave me space: space to make mistakes, space to be away from her watchful eye, and space to "do my own thing" (as we liked to phrase it back in the 1970s). In business, if we smother our employees, we impose drastic limits on our collective creativity and growth. And whatever success we obtain, we won’t even enjoy.
One Thing Makes Everything Work. What good would a Mother’s Day post be without mentioning love? We all know that love makes the world go ‘round and love conquers all – but it is one thing to say it and another thing to live it. Love is the energy a mother runs on, the fuel that enables her to confront setbacks and headaches on a daily basis and yet never lose heart and never lose hope. Can a business owner run a business successfully without love? This is a question worth considering every day, and why every entrepreneur should have a picture of Mom on the desk.
Over to You: What have you learned about running a business from your mother?
