Breaking All the Rules

In How To Succeed In Business By Breaking All The Rules it states that to succeed in business one must be able to use an unorthodox style which allows that person to break free from ancient ways of thinking and be able to use new ideas in developing entrepreneurial and business skills. One way this will be proven is to look at how positive thinking and motivation hamper people in making tough business decisions. Secondly, this will be proven by examining the education system, and showing that one does not always need a university education to perform in a business environment.
Thirdly, this will be proven by looking at the behavioral aspects of an entrepreneur, and how an entrepreneur’s thinking pattern is quite unique compared to the average person. Finally, this will be proven by looking at the illusions of management and how managers have to adapt if they want to see results. “Forget just about everything you were told about positive thinking and motivation. ” Positive thinking and motivation can encumber persons in business if not executed properly. People assume that by being positive they are in turn motivating people to work hard and complete tasks without impeding their space.
This is not entirely true. There is a joke that many motivational speakers tell, as an illustration of positive thinking: “A guy has tripped and fallen off the roof of a thirty-story building. He is falling toward certain death. Some one yells out the fifteenth-story window, ‘how are you doing? ‘ And the falling fellow hollers back, ‘Okay so far! ‘” This joke is not an accurate representation of positive thinking. It illustrates stupidity. This joke has taken positive thinking way out of proportion.

It is okay to be positive when approaching tough situations, but a constant bombarding of motivational thoughts may in turn impede the situation overall. People are taught from the start that there are no bad ideas, and in-turn people who criticize these bad ideas are looked upon as “negative thinkers” . Cynicism can actually be a healthy practice. By seeking out and eliminating bad ideas right from the get-go, the business or corporation is able appropriately deal with the problem and in a sense “nip it in the bud”. A person can think positive all that they want, but they are still going to spill coffee on their new tie.
By over-motivating a person, the same effect can happen. A person has to want to be motivated for it to work properly. “The Old Testament” of motivation states that any person can do any thing as long as they are motivated to do so. This is not entirely true. In order for a person to be motivated they must believe the idea. Sounds like an oxy-moron, but a person needs to be inspired before motivation can take place. For instance, a person needs to want a post secondary education before they can be motivated to do so. A person does not necessarily need a university education to succeed in business.
There is not really anything wrong with a university education as long as the person attending understands what it is and what it is not. For some careers a university education is essential. For instance, people do not look kindly to a self-taught brain surgeon. The problem is that a university education only offers you theoretical situations instead of practical life situations that can only be achieved through experiencing life. People tend to worry that without at least a degree in a particular field, they are unable to start their own lucrative business, and have the consumers take them seriously.
Often people believe that without the proper credentials, it is impossible for their business to ever get off the ground. This is not true. There are many examples of companies that were started by supposedly “uneducated” people, who have turned their respective businesses into multi-million dollar corporations. For instance, Dave Thomas, founder and owner of the Wendy’s Corporation. With nothing better than a grade 10 education Thomas took his first Wendy’s that opened in 1969, and turned it into over 4000 locations across North America.
Thomas was credited with hard work and life skills that helped him in his venture. From working as a busboy in a small town diner, to cooking for thousands as a chief in the army, Thomas learned the skills needed to create a lucrative business without any formal education. There are thousands of examples of entrepreneurs with no formal education that have made it in the business world. The most important thing to understand is that a business can only go as far as the people are willing to take them.
Meaning that if you want to be successful you can encourage your self to take it to the next level without formal education. If you have a formal education, by all means make the most of it. But never use lack of formal education as an excuse and never let yourself feel inferior to those with better formal educations. There is abundant proof that you can reach just about any heights in business without college or even high school education if you will do the things necessary to otherwise obtain the information and master the skills specifically relevant to your objectives.
Entrepreneurs are not always the best educated, but share a thinking pattern unlike those of regular people and are able to take any business with a solid foundation and turn it in to a productive money-making machine. In order to be a successful entrepreneur, one must be able to go against the grain of normal business practice and be able to perform at a pace where they leave the competition in the dust with no remorse. The old saying: “there are no rules when it comes to love and war” also applies to entrepreneurs in business.
An entrepreneur must be able show no compassion towards anybody in order to get the job done. It sounds cruel, but some of the most successful people in business today have no remorse for their competition. For example, Mark McCormack the creator of International Management Group (an athlete management corporation) started off with little more than a $1000 and a hand shake, but developed his business into a multi-million dollar corporation by leaving his competition way behind. McCormack was able to do something that had never been attempted before.
Many companies fail to place a premium on the real dollar worth of their expertise, or what it would cost an outsider to learn what they already know. McCormack was able to market his knowledge to companies that were unaware of what they really had inside. By showing them what they already new, but by changing the way that they marketed the product McCormack was able to, almost over night, turn a small company distributing out of a barn, into a power house in today’s sports entertainment industry. McCormack did not accomplish such a feat by caring about the little guy.
In most cases, entrepreneurs are able to set aside their morals and values and go in for the kill. Successful entrepreneurs have a different way of approaching tough business decisions than the average person. They do not look at the situation or problem as how it affects the other guy, but how it affects them. When making tough business decisions, an entrepreneur must ask if solution best suits him, or if it best suits morality? In order for the entrepreneur to succeed, the solution must best suit his needs and not the needs of the other guy.
Unsuccessful entrepreneurs often find themselves debating on whether or not to charge customers most money the can for their product or service. They feel that by undercutting prices they are in-turn helping themselves to sleep better at night, but you cannot sleep if you cannot afford a place to sleep. In order to be self-sufficient, entrepreneurs must give up morales and values and be able to do what best suits them. The same is true for management in that if the want results from their workers then they must be able to adapt their style to best fit the interests at hand.
There is a fairy tale about managers in business, especially big business: “that corporate leaders are conservative, rational, deliberate people who arrive at important decisions only after carefully weighing a wealth of data and information. ” In most cases managers and corporate leaders rely on their staff to provide them with the information needed to make these tough business decisions. Mangers then are faced with the consequences if the result is less than “kosher. ” As the old saying goes: “if you want something done right you have to do it yourself” applies when it comes to managing a top firm.
In order for a manager to succeed, they must adapt their staff into a well-oiled machine that works for the most common goal. Managers have to set goals and limitations and make sure that their staff follow the guidelines appropriately for maximum production. Managers cannot baby their staff, as they cannot afford to lend the time in a high-speed industry or business. “If you can’t take the heat, get out of the kitchen. ” It is the managers responsibility to weed out those that are not able to perform with the rest of the unit, and in-turn hire people with the skills that best fit their own goals and ambitions.
Managers also must be able to go on their own instincts and not always follow facts and figures alone. A good manager is able to assess the situation and then make a decision based on their gut reaction. With these tools a manger is able to “succeed in business by breaking all the rules. ” Managers must use an unorthodox style which allows them to break free from ancient ways of thinking to develop new skills that will help them perform better in their respective businesses.
By understanding that positive thinking and motivation can be taken out of context, one can be inspired to change the way that they approach tough business decisions. By also understanding that one does not necessarily need a university education to succeed in business, but by utilizing life experience they can relate business problems to real life situations, and can then solve the problem with their best interests in mind. Finally mangers and entrepreneurs must think of themselves first, and then, and only then, will they be able to successfully attack tough business decisions.