30 Apr Top 5 Business Maxims that Have to Go

“You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.”― Richard Buckminster 

Many well-known companies still adhere to obsolete business maxims that have no place in today’s fast track commercial world. Obsolete business advice can be found in books, articles, and in the workplace. These maxims are not only wrong in principle, but they cause actual harm to the business and to the people who are a part of it. A recent survey revealed that about 23% of corporations worldwide still use at least one of these harmful and obsolete maxims in their business dealings.

There has been an exponential growth of innovative technologies in recent times, which has caused businesses to change their strategies and adopt new principles. On a more positive note, 40% of businesses feel like they should adopt new practices and get rid of obsolete ones within the next three years. Let us take a look at some of the obsolete business maxims that absolutely need to go.

The Customer is Always Right

“When you assume negative intent, you’re angry. If you take away that anger and assume positive intent, you will be amazed.”―Indra Nooyi

Let me share a story that illustrates why the customer is not always right for the business, and why more and more companies are letting go of this age-old maxim. There was a lady who was a frequent flyer for Southwest airlines. In spite of being a frequent flyer, she was never really satisfied with the services of the airlines. She was given the moniker “Pen Pal” because, after every flight, she would fill in a complaint form.

It seemed that this lady did not like any aspect of the services that Southwest airlines offered. She was not happy with the casual atmosphere, and the way the flight attendants dressed, the boarding procedure, or the fact that the seats weren’t assigned beforehand. She also wasn’t happy that the flight did not have a first-class section.

In her last letter, she wrote a long list of complaints that baffled the customer service department of Southwest airlines. The letter found its way to the CEO of the company, who, within a minute, wrote back to the lady stating that they would miss her. Ironically enough, the old maxim, “the customer is always right” often leads to bad customer service, because the employees feel the company cares more for an unreasonable customer than a loyal employee.

Great managers know that they can’t treat their employees like servants. You need to value their self-respect, and not entertain an unreasonable customer making unreasonable demands. When a business favours such a customer, it causes the employees to feel resentful, which brings down productivity and efficiency. Furthermore, this obsolete maxim sometimes empowers abusive customers, which doesn’t seem right to me.

A Business Always Needs to Grow

“And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.”― Anaïs Nin

A prevalent notion in many organizations is that if a business is not growing, it is as good as dead. However, this is not necessarily true. It is interesting how any kind of growth is considered to be positive. This idea is seldom challenged by business leaders and executives.

Of course, growth is important for any organization as it creates new opportunities and provides new challenges to overcome. But growth isn’t always a good thing. For some businesses, it is better to remain stable for a few years before thinking about growth again. Fast growth without thinking about the consequences might sometimes harm the business rather than benefiting it.

Never be Satisfied in Business

“There are two ways to get enough. One is to continue to accumulate more and more. The other is to desire less.”― G.K. Chesterton

One of the golden rules of business is that you should always remain hungry and yearn for more. This is based on the assumption that one stops acting after being satisfied. Many people think that satisfaction is followed by complacency which leads to bad performance and negligence. This is not entirely true.

When employees in an organization are always dissatisfied, they think they are not good enough, and the work they are doing has no purpose. This worsens the performance and leads to low morale in the team. In contrast, people who are satisfied with their work create a positive environment. In such an environment, people are motivated and eager to do work.

Business is Not for Nice Guys

“If nice guys finish last, then great guys come in right after them.”— Edward Dyer

There is still this prevailing idea in many organizations that nice guys are not cut out for business, and that being nice is harmful to your career and it hinders results. This maxim is increasingly losing importance as we enter a new decade. I believe it is entirely possible to be a nice person and succeed in business. Of course, it does not mean that you have to be nice to everyone all the time, but it helps.

I came across this story recently which shows how jerks are bad for business. The CEO of a renowned company was interviewing a person for an executive position. The person had the right set of skills, the perfect resume, and the right personality suited for that position. Although he said everything right, there was something about him that made the CEO feel uneasy.

To figure this person out, the CEO invited him for a game of softball, along with a few other people. His true colors were revealed during the game, as he was found to be overly competitive, hurling abuses and yelling all the time. He got frustrated, kicking the dirt, and behaving like an immature person. It goes without saying that he did not get the job.

I’m of the opinion that it is not worth hiring toxic and unpleasant people because they create a bad environment in the workplace. I believe managers should never entertain abusive employees and deal with them strictly, as entertaining these people may cause resentment among the employees who are nice and hard working.

You Need to Succeed, No Matter What

“It is better to fail in originality than to succeed in imitation.”― Herman Melville

This maxim is especially not true in today’s world of business, which values innovation and experimentation. In such a business environment, failure is always an option, and people are encouraged to learn from their mistakes. Closing your eyes to the fact that you might fail, makes failure more likely.

Some executives are of the opinion that an organization has no use for people who never make mistakes because that just means that they never try to do anything interesting. I think managers should admit that mistakes do happen and deal with them in a constructive manner that does not harm employee morale.

Failure often paves the way for new opportunities. Often the greatest of discoveries are a result of a series of failures. Rejecting the possibility of failure is bad for business, and this idea that one always needs to succeed has no place in today’s corporate world.

Traditions are often accepted without question, and they hold a position in people’s hearts, unchallenged and undisturbed. But with time, certain old notions need to be abandoned, and this is true for business as well.