After a certain leader’s
tax returns
were shared this week,
there has been
quite a bit of judgment
shared
from non-business people
about them
(and there SHOULD be
– they’re indications of
legal charges
and security breeches
that will likely happen).
One of the common
pieces of ‘insight’
I’ve been hearing
over and over
is
“He’s losing money.
He’s a loser,
a terrible businessman.”
He IS a terrible businessman.
He doesn’t listen to experts.
He takes action
without weighing the consequences
or considering other options.
He doesn’t compensate or value
his partners.
I could write a 200 page post
on how ill suited
he is for building businesses
or for running…anything.
But he is NOT a loser
merely because he lost money.
EVERY business loses money
in the beginning.
When I was part
of the
new business development team
for one of the world’s largest
beverage companies,
we strived to merely break even
with a new brand
at the ten year mark.
We strived to break even
with a new line extension
at the three year mark.
The first year
was always rough.
It was almost always
a loss.
(The products didn’t lose money
for fifteen years, however.)
And I would equate
a pandemic year
with a first year
because almost everything
is new,
almost everything
has changed.
It is almost like
we’re ALL starting over
this year.
If you’re losing money
on your business this year,
you’re not a loser.
You’re a normal business builder
struggling with abnormal times.