When it comes to honesty and business ethics, these should be the guiding principles that guide our business through the rough waters we will face. the world will provide plenty of opportunities to be dishonest in some way or another and we have to be sure that not only will we as individuals not stand for it but also ensure that the businesses that we operate won’t stand for it either.
I liked how Frank Levinson put that a business that treats people right no matter who they are will attract good people. You may not get where you want to be as quickly as others who lie and cheat their way to the front but by doing what’s right people will take notice and gravitate to you. This makes me think of the idea that by just helping people with their problems they will eventually be willing to pay you for your time if it proves valuable enough. By taking care of not just the customers but also the employees you can better retain the people that you have but also attract even more talented people.
I also liked how Levinson described how having too little money when starting a business forces innovation. I have witnessed this firsthand in our startup. Could it have gone far more smoothly if we had $100,000 to throw at it to get going? Maybe. Would it be half as creative and as hand-put-together as it will be at launch? Probably not. I would much rather make more money now and reinvest back into the business as we see fit than throw a bunch of money at the idea and not know if it will work. Having so little to get started has allowed us to find good deals that we might not have otherwise been looking for and make choices that probably could have been more easily solved with money.