Humility: An Undervalued But Crucial Business Asset
When does confidence cross
over into arrogance? Consider these three tips to avoid sabotaging your
success.
Back
in 1890, Rhode Island gave birth to something that almost died
of a tragic ailment in 2005.
Narragansett Beer owned a 65 percent share of the New England beer market from
1919 to 1967 and was scooped up at its peak by Falstaff Brewing Corp. in 1965.
By the early 1980s, the brand was in a downward spiral. Falstaff closed
breweries and what was once a warm and friendly regional mainstay ("Hey
neighbor--have a 'Gansett!") became a ghost of its former self.
Enter Mark Hellendrung,
former CEO of Nantucket Nectars, and a group of Rhode Island
investors who in 2005 saw potential in the dying 6,000 case-per-year brew. Six
years later, Narragansett serves up more than 600,000 cases annually.
Last
year, Narragansett's 120th anniversary weighed heavily on the guy who grew the
iconic brand's distribution hundredfold in a mere six years.
"Don't
screw this up," Hellendrung recalls thinking. "It's too good and too
right to put it in the hands of someone who might screw it up."
But then he realized that
screwing up the revitalized brand was the least of his worries for one simple
reason: "It's not my brand or even our brand--it's a public trust,"
he says. "Our customers let us know what they want and we listen to them every day. If we get arrogant,
we're going to hear about it--and fast."
Hellendrung had the guts to take on a brand left for dead.
But whether you're a startup or a brand in need of a makeover, how do you avoid
the land mine of arrogance that's so common?
So
far this year, I've seen more than 75 startups pitch their goods to prospective
investors. In every instance, I was able to say, "Yes. They have
something." And they did. So what was it that resonated?
Humility.
And while it takes confidence to push an idea into the marketplace, it's
humility that prevents it from turning into arrogance, the idiot cousin of the
confident businessperson.
"The
difference between arrogance and confidence is self-awareness," says Jason
Mendelson, founder and managing director of the Foundry Group. "The
confident leader is self-aware of their customer's needs, their company's
culture and the rapid changes that occur in their industry."
How
do we avoid becoming the idiot cousin? We stay humble. Here are some thoughts
to ponder as you bring your business down the road toward success:
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