Harvard Business Review
Anthony Tjan
Lead with Optimism
I have been fortunate to have some incredible mentors, and very lucky that one of them was the advertising genius, Jay Chiat (founder of Chiat Day). Jay died 70 years too young in April, 2002. The day after Jay passed, I remember seeing a full-page tribute by Apple in the New York Times: a picture of a smiling Jay with the slogan, "Think Different."
Jay was undoubtedly a different type of thinker. When Converse had secured the official sponsorship for the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, Jay painted the town, literally, with giant Nike (his client) murals on the sides of buildings, pioneering this new large form factor for advertising. In the process, everyone thought Nike, rather than Converse, was the official sponsor.
Jay imparted two lessons to me that I endeavor to live by today:
1. Embrace constraints as a source of creativity. The very definition of entrepreneurship is doing the most with limited resources. Great entrepreneurs rarely complain about what they don't have, but instead focus on what they do have and what they can do with it. Under pressure or seeming defeat, a leader should make a call to action — rather than pouting, or, even worse, indifference.
2. Focus on the positive before the negative. One of the successful entrepreneurs who was backed by Jay once said to me: the great thing about this guy is that he always sees the good in an idea before the bad. As a venture capitalist and long-time consultant, I know how easy it is to focus on problems before one even fully appreciates the idea. Mavericks and entrepreneurs are positive before they are negative.
It is an oversimplification to say that both of these are the traits of a romantic idealist. Jay, like other successful creative forces, was as much a critic as an optimist. The subtle and key difference is the sequence of thoughts. You have to turn on the optimist before you turn on the pessimist.
Try this the next time someone pitches you an idea: Pause on the negative criticism and the "I know another company that...fill in the blank, e.g. 'already does this'." Before your mind leaps to all the reasons it might fail, focus on all the reasons this idea might — just might — be a really, really big idea. "Out-of-the-box" thinkers, mavericks, and creative entrepreneurs are externally super-optimists and internally super-critics. The lesson for us all: lead with optimism.
Access Content Source: http://blogs.hbr.org/tjan/2010/05/lead-with-optimism.html?cm_mmc=npv-_-DAILY_ALERT-_-AWEBER-_-DATE
Anthony Tjan is CEO, Managing Partner and Founder of the venture capital firm Cue Ball. An entrepreneur, investor, and senior advisor, Tjan has become a recognized business builder.
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http://dreamlearndobecome.blogspot.com This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
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