Sometimes business reality trumps anything we can make up. About 10 years ago, Jesse Jackson, Jr published (with is father) a financial guide for how people should manage their money. The basic message of the book is to be frugal and don’t live beyond your means. Jackson told his readers not to waste their money on fancy things they don’t really need. The book says that “‘Living above your means is financial sin.” This makes a lot of sense especially today in a post recession world for most small business owners.
Unfortunately, this is the same US Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr. that just pleaded guilty in Chicago for stealing $750,000 from his political campaign to buy such important things as a rolex watch, mink capes and two elk heads. This is post is not to knock the mistakes that US Congressman Jackson made. It is to act as a reminder for all of us.
In today’s social media connected world, being authentic is more important than ever. There is no real separation for the behavior exhibited in your personal vs your business life. You also need to practice what you preach because someone will always find out the truth. Over 10 years ago when I wrote my first book to give people advice on starting and running their own business, I realized I had to “come clean” on some of the ways I ran my business that I was not particularly proud of…I had to talk about places where I thought that the ends justified the means. I had to talk about the places where I wasn’t always authentic.
Are you being authentic in your business? Does what you say publicly always match what you practice in private?
