Sep
29
I Resign…Crap…That Didn’t Work
Filed Under Entrepreneurism, Leadership, Management
I haven’t posted on this blog for over a year. Lots of reasons why; but it starts with my life was “messy.” Someday I’ll have the guts to put it all out here, but for now, I don’t. Let’s let it suffice to say that I have had some major life changes and been through many humbling life learning experiences. Those that are applicable to business or personal development, I promise to someday share. In the interim, I have decided to start re-posting on this blog, and to re-focus the intent of my postings. So first, let’s assess WHY I am posting and to WHOM I am focusing my message. These messages are not for the nameless sea of faces we call the “internet,” but for the people I refer to as friends, employees (current, past, and future), and family. I want them to learn from my experiences and my viewpoints. Right or wrong, I hope they can benefit from the learning opportunities I have had, resulting from the decisions I made and actions I took when difficult problems presented themselves in my business at Pop Labs.
That said; let’s start at the end. About six months ago, I decided it was time to evolve my business. I had seen many entrepreneurs who had grown their business to the stage that they were able to “retire” to a beautiful yacht or a new philanthropic venture, or even their own foibles and personal addictions… and I wanted the same. Not to pull out, but to pull UP… to evolve my role from 60-70-80 hr a week entrepreneur, business development, operations, finance, and sales guy – to that of an owner with a successful business, equally successful executives and peers, and new more worldly-focused efforts. Maybe I was bored. Maybe I was tired. Maybe I was stupid. Who knows. Nonetheless, I sat down with my key executive team after getting a series of conflicting emails that said: help, be here more, don’t be here so much, we need you, we don’t need you, and even more angst ridden emails and calls for something they needed or wanted from me: more freedom, more executive authority, more clear direction, transparency, more, more, more.
So I decided to try and pull my daily operational decision-making back a few steps, give the management team more authority, and evolve my business and my personal life… functionally separating a little bit from the business; or at least trying to fly above the trees (which for a small business owner often resemble the trees in the Wizard of Oz: apples in hand, snarls on faces). I told them that my goal was to eventually resign from day-to-day operations, and that they needed to step up and run the business in full. I gave them parameters for their authority, and told them that this was their chance to evolve their careers from managers to executives. I will fast forward to the outcome (because the middle portion is irrelevant), and I will say quite simply… my retirement / resignation of my day-to-day decision-making duties didn’t work. Apparently, I had failed to convey the necessary information and skills to the folks to whom I was gifting much of my authority. That’s my failure; plain and simple. The leader is responsible to lead, to train, to inspect, and to pass on the appropriate skills. Any failure in the organization; in process, people, or adopted technology, is a failure of the leader.
Recently, I have embraced the need to re-engage as the CEO. The lesson herein is an entrepreneurial lesson, that I was not only forced to learn, but compelled to take actions to resolve, for the betterment of the company and the supported employees, vendors, shareholders, and customers.
The lesson learned was simple. Entrepreneurs work themselves to death because they LOVE their business (or what they perceive they are receiving from their business). This love of business; of the game, the fight, the constant learning opportunity, compels them to hold back on giving people the necessary freedoms, and education, and opportunities to grow professionally. Many entrepreneurs hold this information, this wisdom, inside…waiting for someone with a stronger force of will to come along and TAKE it from them. Or maybe they are simply perfectionists with an unwillingness to give the freedom of failure (i.e. the freedom to take risks) to their staff. Regardless, the lesson I learned was simple… I had failed my management staff. Rather than preparing them for success; I had simply given them a problem they were not capable, or empowered, or maybe even hungry enough to resolve. They had fears. They had goals. They had personal lives. They even had stated ambitions. What they did not have was the intellectual or emotional empowerment to succeed at the role I was forcing onto them.
And I made the mistake of assuming that I could dictate the timing and intensity of their own leadership evolution. I wanted it on my time frame, and then I let them live or die based upon their own strengths. Which was ultimately a selfish decision on my end. Now, maybe this was Freudian (i.e. maybe I internally desired this outcome)? Who knows. The net effect though was this: six months later, it was apparent I had to step back into a clear leadership and operating role. Not because things were “failing,” but because the insidious disease of mediocrity had set into the work place and was rapidly and like a virus, infecting the entire staff, our work product, and our bottom-line. Ultimately, the staff and management team interpreted my absence as not caring…and they simply followed suit. Showing up physically; but in many cases, not mentally and emotionally.
So… today, with this post, I announce my posthumous retirement.
Crap. That didn’t last long.
OK. I am back. STEP ONE, I have decided, is leadership development within my staff, because I still secretly desire to tell my boss to Take This Job and Shove It! These blog posts being the first of many efforts I am under-taking for everyone’s long-term benefit. I intend to post them approximately weekly, until I run out of steam on this particular subject or at least until something really shiny shows up in my peripheral vision.
My intent is to contribute to the knowledge that every single employee has here at Pop Labs, on how to be a better, more successful employee, manager, leader, maybe even a future entrepreneur. Helping them develop and evolve… and maybe helping them avoid some of my “messy” mistakes.
Why? Because beyond “fiduciary responsibility,” beyond ego, beyond desires and even mutual dependence…. I care about the outcome. To them. To my investors. To my friends, my family, and my employees (past, present, and future).
And for me….. because I want to get back to that idea of “retirement” someday, or at least evolve myself into a new role. You know, write a book, slow down, adopt fifteen kids from Zimbabwe, whatever 
So… here’s to Zimbabwe… and you… and me !
Rock and Roll !
Buckle Up.
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4 Responses to “I Resign…Crap…That Didn’t Work”
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[...] looking forward to having a personal hand in the future and success of our company! Gene’s latest post on his blog pretty much sums up what’s happening in The Labs. Go check it out and stay tuned for all [...]
Gene -
First, congrats on having the balls to try something like this in the first place. In the doctrine of “fail fast, fail often,” I think this has clearly been an incredible learning experience for you. Whenever I had the “take this job and shove it” mentality, it ended up with selling the business outright, rather than attempt something so bold. Granted, I always wanted to convey upon all to step up and work on the business rather than in it – a major strategic paradigm shift that makes executive leadership what it is. Unlike you, I chickened out since I couldn’t see how it could happen and still achieve the goals *I* had for the outcome. Perhaps that’s the problem. Perhaps it is hypocritical of us to expect anyone else to achieve *our* goals. Such is the conundrum of entrepreneurship. Is it something that can be taught? Or is it, like you say, something that only the true entrepreneur will come and *take* from you? I look forward to reading more on your experience.
Sean
Gene: You are my brother, or my brother is you. I’m printing your post and gifting it to him. It may come flying back in my face, but he needs to read your thoughts. He’s living this right now. thanks for your courage – b
Gene
I see what you mean. But people just have to learn sometimes you make a mistake. But that also how you learn to work smarter and harder to not make that mistake the next time.Times are tough if you want it bad enough you will do whatever it take to achieve you plan and your goals! Take for example me, I had been trying to talk with you for the entire summer about joining your team. I called your office sometimes 2 or 3 times a week to get you on the phone for an interview. my persitance finally paid off. this just goes to show it you really want it bad enough you don’t stop till you get it!!
Jeremy Atkinson