Call Me Old Fashioned
The classic cocktail called “The Old Fashioned” has come back in fashion these days, according to my friendly neighborhood barkeep. I wonder, then: should it be renamed “The New Fashioned”?
I’m delighted that many of you have commented on my recent guest spot on the Mission Matters podcast and social media posts. It's been rewarding to know that my thoughts have resonated with you. I am pleased to hear that many of you have reflected on your own work life and business. Having had the help of a social media professional, I was surprised at how many digital inquiries I have received from other small businesses who want to sell their services. In some cases, my only connection was electronic, while others were total unknowns. I wondered: “What ever happened to relationship marketing and sales”? Of course, I recognize that there must be a first step in any business relationship. Perhaps digital networking is that first step: throwing the bread upon the grass and seeing if birds will bite.
Small businesses are growing by leaps and bounds. The fastest growing demographic? Small businesses owned by women, minorities and immigrants. According to Freshbooks, there are roughly 600,000 small business start-ups each year in the US. Many don’t last beyond 5 years. The most common reasons small businesses fail include a lack of capital or funding, retaining an inadequate management team, a faulty infrastructure or business model, and unsuccessful marketing initiatives.
Like you, I hope that we are on the back end of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has brought about a global, seismic shift in the work-life experience. Two million women have left the workplace because they had to oversee their children's welfare and home school learning. New York City, and cities like it, have a glut of empty commercial space. Many employees are hesitant to return to the office, preferring working from home. Meanwhile, residential rents in the borough of Manhattan have reached all time highs of $5,000 for a one bedroom apartment. Something is out of whack. How did we get here?
I recently read this article in the New York Times magazine section introducing Herman Daly, a progressive steady state economist who for many years has been touting an important theory of economic well being. The concept of “Economic Theories” may cause your eyes to glaze over, but I was transfixed by Daly’s thoughts here: “The question is, does growth, as currently practiced and measured, really increase wealth? Is it making us richer in any aggregate sense, or might it be increasing costs faster than benefits and making us poorer? Mainstream economists don’t have any answer to that. The reason they don’t have any answer to that is that they don’t measure costs. They only measure benefits. …..”
That quote hooked me! I've now begun to listen to interviews with Herman Daly. Decades ago I decided to become an expert in Dr. Elliott Jaques’ Requisite Organization. Deep in my bones, I knew his analysis of large work systems had uncovered something very important about the nature of work and the importance that structure has on human behavior in the workplace.
Herman Daly, who builds on the work of his college professor, is of the same mind. The macro economic systems currently embraced by corporations and other institutions neglect to recognize a vital component of society: the human beings! These people–your neighbors, the person sitting next to you on the subway–work to support their families. They want to ensure their children a good education and livelihood, allowing them to become good citizens.
Is it old fashioned of me to want to bring the human side back to business? Or is it new fashioned?
Like a good Irish barkeep, I'm ready with a listening ear and a good story to tell. Pull up a barstool, and let's chat about these new “Old Fashioned” ideas. And please: make mine a double!