The Personal Growth Business

What if the deepest purpose of a business is to change the lives of the people who work there, starting with yours?

I don't mean the only purpose, and perhaps not even the primary, but the deepest. In other words, what if the path to solving the most pressing problem your team or business faces today lies not in trying to solve those problems directly — through plans and spreadsheets and initiatives — but through development conversations that lead to growth?

Most of us have good reason to mistrust authority. These experiences shape how we view our own authority and often affect our ability to use authority in ways that cultivate accountability.

Here's an example: I once worked with Mike, the owner of a small technology company. His business had been stuck in neutral for the better part of a decade. He couldn't get people to take personal ownership of their work.

One day, I asked him, "Mike, what's your greatest fear when it comes to being an authority?"

He pondered and answered, "What I'm thinking about is my father. My whole childhood all I heard about was how the higher-ups were screwing people."

"How do you think that informs the way you lead your team now?"

"Everything I do is aimed at not being that kind of authority."

In order to avoid being his father's boss, Mike took on the role of "Friend" to his team. But you can't be both friend and effective boss.

Mike had to let go of the picture of authority he had unintentionally borrowed from his father and step into a new kind of authority — his own.

He started showing up with more firmness, stopped being available at all hours, and had tough conversations with each person on the team about what personal responsibility looks like in practice.

The key is to remember that when someone discovers they're not at the right place, and there's a culture of accountability in place, they will almost always move on, and it ends up being a win for everyone.