On vacation recently, I listened to Shoe Dog, Nike Founder Phil Knight's memoir. Literally one of the best business/ entrepreneurship books I've listened to. What hit me like a ton of bricks was Phil's passion and conviction for running was a driving force behind Blue Ribbon/ Nike's launch, ability to persevere, and success. Having built and sold a successful EB2B innovation consultancy, I too was super passionate about the our mission and the problems we solved for our clients.
Entering the the search world, I've had more of an analytical approach to searching for businesses, SDE/EBITA range, industry, location, etc. along with looking for opportunities that can leverage my professional skillset. I haven't given much thought to what I have a Phil Knight-like passion for, even if it pushes me a bit or a lot out of my professional lane.
I'm curious from other searchers, investors, etc. - how much does personal passion for an idea or business truly matter for buying and successfully growing and exiting businesses? Passion has been a big driver of my success in the past and I'm starting to think I need to re-orient my search efforts with passion/ conviction in mind.
What do you think?
- Jason
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by a searcher
from Xavier University - Williams College of Business
in Cincinnati, OH, USA
in Cincinnati, OH, USA
3yrs ago
How much does passion/ conviction for a business really matter?
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by a searcher
2yrs ago
from London Business School in Montreal, QC, Canada
from London Business School in Montreal, QC, Canada
In the long term, more important that one would think because you can't just play the part, E.g. An ex-consultant acquiring an industrial cleaning business, think of the contrast in everything from the lingo to dress code so being end game metrics driven can only take you so far if you dislike what you do on a day-to-day.
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by an intermediary
2yrs ago
from New York University in Menlo Park, CA, USA
from New York University in Menlo Park, CA, USA
These are businesses, not securities. Being a business means they are made up of people who exist within a company and industry culture. You need to be motivated to speak and engage with these people daily. You will spend considerable time together and need to convince and motivate various people to go outside their comfort zone to accomplish important objectives. It helps if you have mutual respect.
At the scale of these companies, it is virtually impossible to hide behind a spreadsheet and be successful. Financials are important but the people aspect of running these companies shouldn't be dismissed or overlooked.
At the scale of these companies, it is virtually impossible to hide behind a spreadsheet and be successful. Financials are important but the people aspect of running these companies shouldn't be dismissed or overlooked.
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