The seven sins of business - 3. Sloth
Is laziness our hidden energy in business ?
Ok - so gotta admit - initially I can't relate to this ‘sin’ - the best definition I could find was “habitual disinclination to exertion”.
So laziness? Maybe - that's my dog Harvey in the picture - he's an English Mastiff and I picked him as they are the laziest dog breed. they are happy to laze around with their 'pack'.
When you are self employed as I am - laziness is not really an option - many of you know this - we live it day to day.
So I looked deeper - into how sloth could be related to business and my world that I share with you
Incidentally a Sloth is also an animal - here is what they look like - clink the link to see a really cute sloth ...
They seem to have very small heads for the length of their arms ! Lets also not forget those very sharp claws…They can take a month to digest 1 meal - such is their ability to retain energy.
So my first thoughts of sloth being laziness and a ‘sin’ - a negative - turned to the thought that perhaps sloth is a positive ability to retain energy.
How do you retain the energy in your business ?
- Do you look for the opportunities ? Can you see the new product everyone will want this year?
I was recently in Myer and buying a jar of Nutella and personalising your name is a BIG stocking filler (read sales opportunity) for MYER this festive season.
2. Do you see what others don’t see ? Can you look at your team and see the under achiever and their hidden talents. Great - how do you now bring that to the fore ? Can you harness the innate gifts they have.
3. Does you energy radiate from you ? Or do you prefer to absorb the rays from others. Find people in business that inspire you and jump on board - energy is infectious and contains laziness.
So I simply have to share with you the story of Jane Lu who founded Showpo
A brilliant student- top of her class who obtained her commerce degree and graduate job at KMPG ( A big 4 firm in the Accounting world) - she had fufilled the role of dutiful daughter and her dream job but her mind was always ticking…..
“I just got so sick of being stuck in that boring grey cubicle,” she says.
“There was this moment where I looked at my phone and I thought: Three hours have just passed, I’m literally three hours more dead than I was and all I’ve done is remove the circular referencing from this spreadsheet … how is this my life?
“So I quit.”
In the coming weeks, she lied to her family - put on her suit - went to the city and pretended all was ok - then after a chance meeting with a like minded soul she started her ‘pop up shop” - Show Po
Incidentally Show Po turned over $10 million US dollars last year.
“There is no prescribed way to achieving success,” she said. “Go against the grain and follow your gut. I’m a good example of ‘if I can do this anyone can.'”
Her social media handle is @thelazyceo
Go on - have a look - her entire mantra is about facing her laziness head on and using it to enhance her business. She also founded a business women's business group "Like minded bitches drinking wine" which says a lot about her community she has created around her.
So what can we learn from the Sloth - the inherent lazy part of our psyche -what can it teach us about our business and indeed ourselves? If we take inspiration from Jane Lu - we need to think and risk and when we achieve start to set up procedures that scale and grow - this may involve invoking laziness to delegate to others but no matter the form - our inherent laziness can inspire us to great heights.
