Sometimes You Gotta Do It Yourself

I've been working in a small company for the past two years, serving in various roles. During my experience, I have learned numerous lessons of running and operating a small business. One of these is applicable in small business, enterprise companies, and life itself.

The majority of people in the world are followers. I think the 80/20 rule applies here. All of us have been followers in one area of our lives at some point. I am a follower of a specific religion. I follow fashion, to a point. I follow sports teams. I follow a couple hundred people on twitter. All these people and things I follow are telling me something. Some tell me how to dress. Some try to tell me how to think. Others tell me who to start in my fantasy football league. We all need people to tell us what to do at some point or another.

There's another part of life this leader and follower model fits as well; the workplace. Small businesses are a great way to get to know people. You learn who are the talkers, the walkers, and everyone in between. You meet people's kids, you know what they're doing on the weekend, and you learn about their eating habits. Some of this is unnecessary, while some is very revealing.

A number of years ago, while I was still in school, I worked as a sales rep for Apple Computer, Inc. I pretty much got the job because my older brother already worked there. While there he told me to pay attention to an observation he made when moved into management. He said most people have to be told what to do on a daily basis. Explaining further he described how most employees needed specific direction on how to perform specific tasks, how to get to work, when to arrive and leave, what their goals should be, and endless other instructions on how to do their job. He then described another group, which is much different.

The second group is composed of the leaders, the doers. They need very little instruction. In fact, if they are given too much instruction they feel smothered and their production is hampered. This is the small business owner and successful manager, in a small, mid, or enterprise size company alike.

I've progressed during my last two years, and have found that progression to come only as a result of the effort I put forward, which nobody else asked of me. I initiated it. I planned it. I executed it. I may have had a great idea but in the end it is likely to fall by the wayside unless I execute it. Sometimes you just gotta do it yourself.