Here are some ideas on how to develop a massively more rewarding and successful business, by adjusting the way we think about our business and our work.
I was inspired to write this post, after learning that today is national poetry day, here in the UK. For some reason, on hearing this I recalled a 3 word phrase from WordPress founder, Matt Mullenweg.
Code is poetry
Matt uses that phrase regularly in WordPress documentation and it makes a really valuable point: For those who care about the code they write, code IS poetry. It’s elegant. It’s smart. It makes a difference. And for some coders I know, when they see beautifully crafted code, it takes their breath away.
So, what has this talk of poetry and code got to do with people like you and me?
How can it help us build a more rewarding and successful business?
An interesting mindset
It got me thinking about the mindset, where someone cares and connects so deeply with their work, that it feels like poetry. I wonder how differently our work would feel to others and ourselves, if we too saw it as our poetry. No, I’m not talking about the words we write. It includes that, but it’s much more than that. I’m thinking about working from a core belief that the work we produce is our craft – our art.
Work that matters
One of the major differences between the most successful business owners and their less effective counterparts, is that they do work that matters, instead of doing work that pays.
Here are a few ways this manifests itself:
- They apply their craft, rather than push a project out the door.
- They build relationships, rather than build lists.
- They practice integrity, rather than proclaim it.
- They steal like an artist, rather than copy other people’s work.
- They invest in their business, rather than complain about their results.
- They use their past as a school, rather than use it as an excuse.
- They embrace their freak, rather than conform.
I believe with all my heart that there is poetry or art in ALL of us and that we can apply it to anything and everything we choose.
First though – we need to choose!