Why is pain the best way to grow? #BuildingTAY
Building The Apple Yard (#3)
We are a creative design boutique based in Derby and this month we are reflecting on:
Owning our mistakes and problems - prompted by work and ‘Extreme Ownership’ (Willink & Babin)
Setting people up well for success - based on growing our freelance team
How tendering for work is painful and productive - based on work we’ve tendered for
Recap
This is the next installment (click here for previous posts) in our self-reflective approach to business. If you’re new to this series, we write about our personal experiences of launching a small business, cataloguing our successes and failures.
1. Owning our mistakes & problems
Let me be clear - we don’t have everything sorted
However, I’ve come to realise that mistakes, failures and problems provide an effective way to accelerate; IF you are prepared to accept them
Over the last period, there have been times where:
I’ve been too quick to move things forward
Made assumptions and had to go back and make reparations
Allowed my emotions to get the better of me
The instinct, when failed with failure, is to apportion blame, as there’s one thing our ego hates, and that’s being taken down a peg or two
The trouble is that when the ego gets drawn into a situation (whether through defensiveness, anger or denial), it makes resolution and forward momentum much more difficult
This is a concept explored in the book ‘Extreme Ownership’ that I came across via The Tim Ferris Show (podcast) - Discipline Equals Freedom
Although it’s been developed through a military context and some of the Americanisms may be offputting, this is an extremely powerful learning and development mechanism
Most of the time people aren’t purposefully being obstructive or wilful, they just need a reminder of the wider aim or perhaps an explanation of why something is happening (Willink and Babin explore other aspects too)
I see myself as pretty driven and determined, but as the concept of owning my problems and failures has sunk in, I have realised that I can unlock a new dimension of effectiveness
Whether it is taking a step back in the care when someone has a road rage fit or making a point to review communications around a particular design step of a project, taking responsibility for the situation and turning it around to my advantage is hugely empowering
2. Setting people up well for success
A good business friend of ours said some time ago that capacity will quickly become the main constraint
I remember smiling to myself and wondering what all the fuss would be about
However, as we’ve moved forward I’ve realised that we definitely do need more capacity, particularly with the smaller jobs that allow us to draw people into our orbit of business and relationship
Our approach to this has been to draw together a wider community of creative freelancers, to whom we can delegate jobs, but also into whom we can invest, helping them develop too
This a good principle and worthy ideal, but my reflection has been that it is too easy to let people run without giving them sufficient information, context or direction
Good design only happens when the goal, parameters and audience are crystal clear; good design happens when a solid foundation is in place, allowing freedom for expression that is focussed on objectives
We have the advantage of flexibility and agility as a small business, without slow, crippling processes, but the need for excellent communication remains
My resolution is to find the balance between giving those we work with freedom to express creativity - delegating responsibility within a suitable decentralised structure - with the appropriate levels of briefing, input and accountability
That also means improving how we capture information and details from our clients, getting better at the tricky process of drawing out what is in someone’s mind into a helpful format for implementation
3. How tendering for work is painful and productive
Although we like to work very relationally with clients and people in our networks, sometimes it is hard not to avoid the requests for tender that drop in
I think going for tenders will always be one of those contentious opinion-splitting areas, particularly in terms of costs and risk versus reward
Anyway, as a business owner who is never content to let an opportunity go, I went for one recently that made me think a lot about the process and benefits
Although not ostensibly successful in the end, and without any immediate feedback, I reflected on the process and found some positives
What are the key things clients are asking for?
A Request for Tender might seem like a tickbox exercise, but I dug into the questions a bit more to get at the needs behind them
Fundamentally, what are the needs, desires and aspirations behind the formulaic questions?
Once you’ve got those there are a couple of things that you can do to help your business
Can you better answer those question and needs in your marketing content and copy, assuming that they are in line with the needs of your existing audience?
Can you incorporate them into rich, useful content such as a Frequently Asked Questions section?
How can you tighten up your processes?
Tenders are often to do with procedural matter and due diligence
This includes things like having data privacy or risk assessments in place
This can be a bit of a nuisance if you are a small business or entrepreneur, especially if you are balancing your precious time between vital sales, marketing and delivery
That is not to say that policies are irrelevant or not important
As such, when someone is asking you the awkward question, whether it is to do with a piece of paperwork or your design process, it’s a chance to review whether it is up to scratch
No one likes someone external rummaging with the more internal parts of their business, but the beauty of this process and the pain it inflicts on you is that it prompts you to change
By opening yourself up for external scrutiny, you are forcing yourself to confront the areas of your business or outfit that need improvement
It’s painful, but it’s a quick way to pull your socks up
We hope you've enjoyed this week's installment. If you've got a website, branding or video need, do get in touch - we'd love to chat and see how we can help you!
Previously in the series
Catch up on our previous posts with reflections on building a small creative design business
