The business of human endeavour…
For a long time now I have had real concerns about the focus of policy makers, and the projects that they spawn, on ‘enterprise’ and ‘entrepreneurship’ as being just too business oriented. It is as if the only fields of human endeavour that matter are commerce of some kind. Making money or fixing societies ills.
This is especially un-nerving when you see it played out in our primary schools as 6 year olds are encouraged to wear badges that proclaim them be a ‘Sales Director’, an ‘Operations Manager’ or a ‘Brand Executive’. Yuk!
What about all of those other great fields of human endeavour?
Climbing mountains, making art, having fun, playing sport, writing, cooking and so on.
What if we encouraged our 6 year olds to wear badges that proclaimed them to be ‘Footballer in Training’, ‘Ballet Dancer under Construction’, ‘Surgeon to Be’ or ‘The Next Michael McIntyre’? OK, so perhaps we don’t need another Michael McIntyre…. but you get my point?
Because what really matters is not exposing more people to the world of business and entrepreneurship. It is to get them imagining possible futures, and learning how best to navigate towards them. It is about developing people with a sense of agency and influence over their own futures. It is about building a generation with both power and compassion. And a generation who really understand how to use the tools of collaboration, association and cooperation in pursuit of mutual progress.
Does it really only matter if their chosen endeavour contributes to GVA? Or is there more to our humanity that we need to recognise and encourage through both our policy and practice?
And this is not just an issue in schools. It runs like a plague through our communities from cradle to grave.
I think this is important because we lose so many who are completely turned off by the thought of a world of commerce (and let’s face it we don’t all want to dive headlong into a world of Dragon’s Den and The Apprentice).
So what about if instead of focussing on enterprise and entrepreneurship we attempted to throw our net wider and to encourage and support people to build their power and compassion in whatever they choose to be their particular fields of human endeavour?
One Way to Raise your Profile…
Developing Enterprising Artists Using Open Space
Yesterday I was invited to help Axis and the ever wonderful Culture Vulture to run a ‘Cultural Conversation’ to help a group of around 60 artists, project managers, collectors and gallery managers to explore the role of social media in supporting their work. The group included some social media users and ‘experts’ (I use that word cautiously) and one or two technical types. Peopl trsavelled from all over the north of England to take part and the venue at Project Space Leeds was rammed!
Instead of using the default setting of finding some experts to explain it all to the numpties we went with an open space meeting. In this format groups of people meet to explore as peers the issues and topics they wish to explore. They set the agenda, in real time on the day, and learn by exchanging experiences, insights and challenges. They talk to each other, like human beings, in conversations.
In under four hours the group of 60 were each able to attend 4 conversations chosen from a schedule of 18 or so. The topics included:
- ‘What is Twitter and How Do I Use It’
- Social Media Dialogue as Artwork’
- I am Completely Overwhelmed! Where Do I Start?
- Using Social Media for Critique
and many more.
Despite the fact that there are no experts holding forth, no lectures and no exhibitions the feedback from those who attended was excellent. They enjoyed the process, they learned a lot, and most (perhaps all?) went away enthused about increasing or changing the way they use social media either to produce or attract and audience to their work.
This kind of open space conversation that builds relationships amongst participants and fosters enquiry and peer learning, rather than sitting passively while an expert holds forth, seem to me to be consistently effective ways to both build the social capital that forms the bedrock of an enterprising community and enable them to access the insights that they need to know, right now. Indeed as the afternoon wore on a few new conversations were added as people though ‘Right, know I need to find out about….’
60 people smiling, laughing, talking, challenging, enquiring and advocating. In short being human and exploring the implications of social media for something that they love.
A low cost, high value and extremely productive contribution to the enterprising ecosystem. At a time when we need to be creating more value for less cash I can’t help that the world of enterprise development needs to embrace this type of peer to peer learning event. We not be able to do much to improve the transport infrastructure in the city without a great big dollop of cash from government, but we can surely improve the enterprising infrastructure for next to nothing!
Some more thoughts were captured on the day in this audioboo – Why Open Space Works for Artists
Dock Street Market – and the role of the Leeds communities
I went to a very wonderful opening for Dock Street Market last Friday. It used to be a decent enough shop that had many fans and reportedly turned over a million a year. But still it could not survive.
Now the shop has been taken over by a number of local artisan producers and entrepreneurs, all of whom offer a phenomenal product. We have fish and chips reinvented by the wonderful Fish &, excellent north Italian coffee and more from Bottega Milanese, superb breads from the Riverside Sourdough Bakery and more. The people behind these businesses are phenomenally hard working and focussed on quality, service and value. They are doing their bit to make the collaborative project a success.
But my interest is in the role of the rest of us. The fine citizens of Leeds. Of the 700 000 plus people that live in the city, my guess is that the vast majority will not even know that the Dock St Market exists. They are ‘strangers’ to the market. Perhaps 10 ooo or so are aware of the market and certainly a couple of hundred rocked up at the opening last week. These constitute ‘prospects’. People who know the market exists and may become customers.
But customers so far, by definition, are a smaller group. Having only just opened not many of us have had the chance to spend our cash in Dock Street Market yet….
A large part of the success of the market will depend on the rate at which strangers are turned in to prospects, prospects are turned into customers, and customers are turned into loyal supporters of the brand.
Historically this process of marketing and sales would be down to the entrepreneurs. This is their job. But I am interested in the role of the rest of us. Those who are already prospects and customers, and our ability to help in the sales and marketing process. Our power to influence others to check out and support the development of the great independent traders in Dock Street Market.
Because the ability of a community to support great business is perhaps as important in developing an enterprise culture as the development of the entrepreneur.
Social media has amplified the voice of the prospect and the customer. It can help to reach the strangers. As can word of mouth strategies based on good quality referrals and introductions.
So of course let us keep giving the entrepreneurs the training and skills that they need. But let us also consider how we can equip the rest of us to properly support businesses in our community.
Good luck to all behind the Dock St Market venture. And let’s see just how much the rest of us can do to really support the kind of independent, artisan based businesses that many of us say we want to see thriving in Leeds.
You can find Dock St just south of the river. It is well worth checking out!
More on Dock Street Market. And More…from Bronchia
Crib Sheet for The Entrepreneur’s Workshop
A Crib Sheet
Workshops are fascinating and dangerous places. In the right hands they can produce things of great beauty and real lasting value. In the wrong hands they can do great damage and wreck lives.
The entrepreneur’s workshop is no different.
True enough; the tools in the entrepreneur’s workshop have no sharp edges, burning fires or high speed drills.
The entrepreneur’s tools are a set of ideas, principles, practices and habits that, applied with care and passion, can produce a wonderful lifestyle. Learn to use these tools properly and they will serve you well.
Misuse them and the consequences are likely to include debt, damaged relationships and misery.
10 of the most powerful tools in The Entrepreneur’s Workshop:
- The Truth Detector – How to decide what might work for you
- Want to or Have to…?
- The Double Edged Sword
- Getting Organised – doing what has to be done, and doing it well
- Entrepreneur Artisan or Artist?
- Have, Do, Become…
- Build a Team OR Do it All – the choice is yours
- The ‘investment ready’ Business Plan
- Situational Enterprise – the importance of technique and motivation
- Towards the Total Quality Enterprise – a tool to decide ‘What’s next?’
For more information contact Mike on 07788 747954
Twitter: @mikechitty
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