Reilly Newman | We admire the strong, large trees and enjoy the soft grass beneath our feet, but we never stop to consider how much growth it took to become what they are today. Heck, they never even took a moment to tell us how much they are growing, either!
This is the problem with business today: many have a delusion that the growth of their business should be a loud process that everyone gathers around to watch and cheer. In reality, a healthy business is quite the opposite.
A healthy business grows quietly, much like the tall trees we admire. Slowly, they stretch upward, reaching for the limitless sky while their roots gradually sink deeper into the soil. At no point does this tree, whether a seed or a small stick, claim what it will do, but instead, it simply moves forward and acts. It’s not about talk but about action.
Now, this action isn’t about headline-grabbing leaps and bounds of growth; actually, quite the opposite. So much so that the phrase “watching the grass grow” is synonymous with boredom. My point here is that nature has intricate systems that are engineered for growth; yet we disregard these and mistakenly expect our businesses to abide by different laws.
We should aim to follow this natural progression of healthy growth. This means our business isn’t loud or flashy. It focuses on steady growth that can still reach for the sun, but at a pace that benefits the system. Even these “unicorns” that emerge from Silicon Valley like a bat out of hell aren’t truly experiencing sustainable growth. Most are burdened with debt supported only by hopeful investment dollars. This is the game for these types of companies, and they are bred for this environment. They might not even be profitable for many years (Netflix, Amazon, Tesla, etc.) — but, as I have said before, this is not the game for small businesses. If this is your game, you’ll know because it’s built into the business from the start.
I know what you’re thinking now and how this seems so less sexy though. I know you want the headlines and the attention. You want to be recognized for your business and praised for its success. However, many books have proved that the slow, less sexy path leads to not only healthier growth but an overall better environment for your health.
This relates to the quiet growth of nature that always happens around us without making a sound. We don’t notice this until months or years later, when we see the growth and the progress. If every day we make decisions that move our business forward and increase the value we provide, we are growing. Sorry, but there usually won’t be any fanfare. Actually, the opposite, people will think you’re boring.
The good news is that investors and businesses have proved that boring works. From Warren Buffett and JL Collins to Coke and JPMorgan Chase, these rather “boring” approaches to investing and overall business have experienced slow — but steady — growth. This growth and success have not only endured economic downturns but faced many new technologies and rivals a long the way. However, like a heathy oak becoming mightier day by day, these philosophies created growth that compounds.
The compounding is by the tandem effort of the roots driving deeper into the soil which empower the reaching of leaves and branches which then power furthering of the roots which allows for more reach. This compounding of energy and resource consumption creates stronger roots, trunks, and branches which increases its chances of survival and actually thriving as it blocks out the neighboring trees from sunlight and water.
My view of business and brand building is inspired by nature and the quiet progress it consistently makes every day. This should be our view of growth in our personal lives as well as business as we measure the small progress we make every day. In the quiet is where true growth happens.
