Reilly Newman | Responsibility is our ability to respond rather than react. For your business to be able to respond effectively, it needs brand.
Many don’t know this, but the root of the word “responsibility” is the Latin verb ‘respondere’, meaning ‘to respond.’ This is vitally important because of the amount of weight we as a society give to being a responsible person and living a responsible life in all that we do (including business).
The value of responsibility is evident in all that we do in society. We are rewarded for responsible behavior in our careers, finances, relationships, and biology. This responsibility, as we know, takes discipline. Through hard work and persistence, this discipline can breed endless amounts of responsible behavior.
In business, true discipline is synonymous with brand. Brand is the business version of discipline. Yes, you can have discipline in your budgeting, hiring, operations, etc. within the business, however these are innate to ultimately having a healthy business (if any at all). Similar to your lungs inflating, heart beating, and blood flowing — these keep you alive and take no responsibility since they are innate.
Brand is that auxiliary element that, much like discipline in our lives, helps us to be able to be responsible. It empowers us through the hard work and persistence. Like discipline, brand works as a guide and brings clarity to the actions we take.
Discipline tells you to wake up and exercise in response to your morning alarm whereas a reaction might be to hit the snooze. Brand gives your business guidance on where to invest – or focus – in response to market conditions. Brand can even direct your business on how to respond to a competitor or a poor review left online. Unlike a reaction that would be more of a knee-jerk to perhaps copy your competition or return inappropriately to your lovely reviewer.
Your brand will empower your business to be responsible and see the opportunity in these types of moments. Since your completion did one thing maybe a proper response would be to do the opposite or nothing at all. Maybe that reviewer had a poor experience due to variables you can’t control and you see the opportunity to respond kindly with a token of gratitude for them coming by and taking the time to leave feedback. Heck, maybe their next meal is on the house or you give them a discount.
The brand allows the business to be responsible in moments like these. To not be on the defense, but rather respond and make the most of the interactions. Similar to some fighting styles where you use the momentum and energy of your opponent to counteract. This is not a simple block or defensive move to stop their energy, but more of an offensive tactic to use what they are throwing at you. To not just react with a block or dodge, but respond with a deliberate action.
As mentioned before, this does take practice. In both life and business, it is hard to be responsible. This is precisely why discipline and brand are available to us to help ourselves and our businesses be responsible. To breathe and respond with accuracy, intention, and grace.
