Accountability (No Compromise!)
Unlike AIG and the other investment banks that failed to be accountable and knowingly compromised their financial integrity, there is one absolute that we entrepreneurs live by; when we mess up, we're on our own and can lose everything. And unlike chief executives at major corporations that continue to receive million-dollar paychecks as their companies crumble beneath them, we entrepreneurs surrender our paychecks so our employees can get theirs. For entrepreneurs, when the well is dry - it's over. No bailouts. No Lone Ranger to the rescue.
Am I angry at the events of recent weeks? You bet I am. I'm angry because the leaders of our banking system, major corporations and especially our leaders in Washington, DC, don't get it. They don't get what accountability and no compromise is all about. They don't get that doing what's right is the tough stuff of leadership - that respect for people comes before profit. Moreover, the bailout doesn't fix the fundamental fact that compromise created this mess; it "forgives" it and enables compromising thinking and behavior to continue.
Roseanne Klementisz, one of our Certified Strategies Coaches, emailed me after last week's presidential debate. McCain's frequent use of the word "transparency" inspired her to write the following words:
"Given the current economic crisis, there is a renewed urgency for fierce, effective leadership at all levels of our financial lives. Leadership at the corporate and political levels can no longer preside with mediocrity and deceit.
The curtain is rising and employees, shareholders and citizens alike are demanding a revolutionary transparency. It's essential to restore the massive degree of lost trust.
Entrepreneurs can no longer avoid the challenges that their companies are facing and neither can the average Americans that are accountable for the financial well-being of their families.
Compromise at the leadership level equals failure at best and devastation at worst. Safety nets have deteriorated and the call for no compromise must be heeded to restore the strength of our country's economy."
Roseanne's words are a powerful call to action for everyone in business and government. In my new book, No-Compromise Leadership, I wrote, "When leaders compromise, or look the other way when compromise occurs, it's the equivalent of a captain drilling holes in the bottom of a ship. A business can sink just as quickly as a ship." Now is the time for all leaders to practice accountability and to live the no-compromise mantra.
Salons and spas touch and communicate with millions of people every day. Let's show America and the world what no-compromise leadership looks like. Let's spread the word that no compromise and accountability is a non-negotiable in business and government. By doing so, we can all emerge from this mess as strong and vibrant businesses.
Pass this email on to your business colleagues, managers and friends.
Neil Ducoff, Strategies founder & CEO
Greetings fellow entrepreneurs. Did you receive your government bailout check yet? I'm talking about the bailout check that will cover all those questionable and utterly bad business decisions you've made. All kidding aside, there are no bailout checks for entrepreneurs.Unlike AIG and the other investment banks that failed to be accountable and knowingly compromised their financial integrity, there is one absolute that we entrepreneurs live by: when we mess up, we're on our own and can lose everything. And unlike chief executives at major corporations that continue to receive million-dollar paychecks as their companies crumble beneath them, we entrepreneurs surrender our paychecks so our employees can get theirs. For entrepreneurs, when the well is dry - it's over. No bailouts. No Lone Ranger to the rescue.
Am I angry at the events of recent weeks? You bet I am. I'm angry because the leaders of our banking system, major corporations and especially our leaders in Washington, DC, don't get it. They don't get what accountability and no compromise is all about. They don't get that doing what's right is the tough stuff of leadership - that respect for people comes before profit. Moreover, the bailout doesn't fix the fundamental fact that compromise created this mess; it "forgives" it and enables compromising thinking and behavior to continue.
Roseanne Klementisz, one of our Certified Strategies Coaches, emailed me after last week's presidential debate. McCain's frequent use of the word "transparency" inspired her to write the following words:
"Given the current economic crisis, there is a renewed urgency for fierce, effective leadership at all levels of our financial lives. Leadership at the corporate and political levels can no longer preside with mediocrity and deceit.
"The curtain is rising and employees, shareholders and citizens alike are demanding a revolutionary transparency. It's essential to restore the massive degree of lost trust.
"Entrepreneurs can no longer avoid the challenges that their companies are facing and neither can the average Americans that are accountable for the financial well-being of their families.
Compromise at the leadership level equals failure at best and devastation at worst. Safety nets have deteriorated and the call for no compromise must be heeded to restore the strength of our country's economy."
Roseanne's words are a powerful call to action for everyone in business and government. In my new book, No-Compromise Leadership, I wrote, "When leaders compromise, or look the other way when compromise occurs, it's the equivalent of a captain drilling holes in the bottom of a ship. A business can sink just as quickly as a ship." Now is the time for all leaders to practice accountability and to live the no-compromise mantra.
Salons and spas touch and communicate with millions of people every day. Let's show America and the world what no-compromise leadership looks like. Let's spread the word that no compromise and accountability is a non-negotiable in business and government. By doing so, we can all emerge from this mess as strong and vibrant businesses.
Pass this email on to your business colleagues, managers and friends.
Neil Ducoff, Strategies founder & CEO and author of No-Compromise Leadership
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