How many times have you heard the phrase "It's not personal, it's just business"? Do you remember who said it and how it made you feel?
Reflecting on these few words -- often uttered casually, as if self-evident, justifying or rationalizing a certain style of enterprise -- one has to wonder how much they are part of a stale ethic, a kernel of an ideology that ought to be examined more closely and challenged.
How can your business not be personal? How can it not be a reflection of who you are, what you represent and believe? When -- at what point exactly please -- is the enterprise created and shaped by your personal initiative and vision, nurtured by family financial resources and sustained by individual drive, separate from "you"? How could it be any different for your customers, clients and competitors?
Imagine if a separation between what is enterprise and what is personal were simply an illusion. And what if by 'enterprise' we also include professions, careers and vocations regardless of ownership or corporate structure? Has our thinking been poisoned by a piece of cultural mythology? Is it wrong to think that part of who we are is tied to what we do and, more importantly, how we do it?
As some form of economic recovery unfolds, let's be conscious of the personal nature of enterprise. How we interact with our clients and colleagues may mean more than the immediate success of a particular transaction. Let's be aware of our impact on individuals and families through the services we offer. It's time to engage a new ethic.
