« Welcome to this stop of the Business Blog Book Tour | BBBT: Business Planning »
July 15, 2004
BBBT: Self-assessment
Question: You begin your book with the importance of conducting a self-assessment before beginning a business. How can entrepreneurs avoid losing sight of the insights they gain from this self-discovery as their businesses grow?
Answer: Ideally, the insights become embedded in their actions. That is, realizing what you care about and are good at should get you started on the entrepreneurial path. Given that success is invariably an iterative process, based on where you are rather than where you aspire to be, the ability to accurately assess your potential venture will situate you in the most fecund ground. (Pardon the flowery jargon here…) I guess what I’m saying is that the self-assessment should include a realistic stock-taking of what you know (i.e. the copper pipe market or the legal profession) as a way of spotting opportunity. It also includes what you care about, who you know, what you’re good at—but not for the sake of achieving enlightenment (which is not a bad thing of course) but as a way of forming an entrepreneurial vehicle with a realistic chance of health and success.
So get the insights right from the start. As you proceed down the path, remaining open to what you learn, you will continue to expand what you know, and continue to becoming truer to the insights. AND if you business begins to falter, it could be that you don’t have enough cash or customers (generally a bad thing.) But it could also be a function of straying from your source of value (i.e. what you know, care about, are good at, and control)—or never realized what that source of value was. So take the time to reassess.
Posted July 15, 2004 12:08 PM
Comments
It seems that the main problem in any self- assessment is being realistic. When looking at ourselves, we often skew our judgement toward the positive aspects, leaving the less desirable (but often most problematic) areas unvisited. Over reliance on self-assessment may create too much optimism in one area or may create sort of a tunnel vision- causing one to ignore constructive criticism or helpful advice. Your comment that if you "get the insights right from the start...remain OPEN to what you learn...(you will) continue to expand what you know, and continue to become truer to the insights" is the perfect solution to the problem.
Posted by: Hunter Yeager at July 15, 2004 02:28 PM
Thanks for the thoughtful add, Hunter. One more thought on this topic. It's a good thing to ask someone else to help you with this--while this sounds oxymoronic (having others help with your self-assessment,) I'm basically recommending having a trusted person do a reality check for you. And being forced to have or cultivate someone you can trust with this role is good for your company-building skills!
Posted by: Tom Ehrenfeld at July 15, 2004 03:17 PM
I absolutely support the idea of conducting a self-assessment before beginning any large or highly involved venture. I am particularly interested in your last comment--about "re"-assessing. Undoubtedly there will be significant internal conflicts and tests which the entrepreneur will face throughout the lifetime of their business. Therefore, I think it would also be beneficial to conduct some kind of re-assessment at different points during the growth and/or death of the business (not just at the beginning). By doing so, the entrepreneur can see how their knowledge, views, and values have changed over time, and may be able to associate certain values and beliefs with periods of decline or stability in their business. Of course, as Hunter mentioned, this would only be effective if the individual was being realistic in their assessment.
Posted by: Kati Baumgartner at July 15, 2004 04:14 PM
at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee. He consults with a variety of businesses on start-up and growth related issues, and with larger corporations on re-establishing entrepreneurial cultures within their organizations. Dr. Cornwall's current research interests include entrepreneurial finance and entrepreneurial ethics. He has authored or co-authored four books.
