Jamie Barrett shares his reflections on our first 10 years
I would like to thank everyone who took the time to congratulate me or message me on the first 10 years of Evolution5.
The messages I received got me thinking. Not only “Where have the last 10 years gone?” But also ” What have I learned?”
As I am sure many of you already know running a business is not easy. You experience highs and lows, wins and losses. One day you are up and the next you are falling; the difference is often very marginal.
Here are a few the things that I think about on a daily basis when it comes to my business
- Keep perspective – appreciate what you are good at and what you are not, understand that your industry is full of companies like you offering similar products and services, know some companies soar, others develop slowly and some flounder. And recognise that one day you could be at the top and the next at the bottom. The point being, set your expectations true and remain focused. Don’t stop doing what made you great in the first place.
- Keep it real – when things are going well it is easy to get carried away. Colleagues, friends, associates will all tell you how well you are doing. The problem is you can start to believe it yourself and if you are not careful it can get the better of you. The same can be said when things are not going well, which I know only too well. The challenge is to not let issues get on top of you. They will quickly manifest into one big uncontrollable issue.
- Don’t believe your own BS – I have met many people with big ideas, strategic thinkers and those who like using words such as the “helicopter view”. The problem is they seem to outweigh those who actually know what they are doing and can make things happen. It’s essential to have a vision and it’s great to have big ideas, but unless you have any concept on how to construct these visions and ideas, then they are useless. Avoid exaggerating and overegging the truth, keep it simple, be honest and promise what you can deliver. In essence talk the talk when you can walk the walk.
- Understand the positivity AND the detriment of determination – someone very close to me once said “your determination is your greatest asset and your worst enemy” and he is right. Use your perseverance and tenacity as strength to get you through tough situations or to drive you to succeed. Don’t let your determination keep you chasing a lost cause and go down with the ship. Learn to know when it is time to walk away. Take note of what worked and what didn’t, think about what you would do differently next time and most importantly, accept that failure is part of succeeding. The real tragedy is to learn nothing from our mistakes.
- Work hard – there are lots of views and opinions out there about ‘working smart not hard’. In my opinion trying to working smart is no substitute for working hard. You can work hard smartly, but you can’t work smart without working hard to be smart. You see, those people considered ‘working smartly’ had to work incredibly hard to know how to work smartly, through training, application and experience, to become the best they can be. For me the key is to not overthink the matter. Work hard, keep learning, keep adapting and keep moving forward.
The difference between good and great is that extra bit of effort.
