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Is Your Company the Real McCoy?
© 2004 By Michael Angier
One of my favorite Gary Larson cartoons is the one with the
cardboard cutouts of a hillbilly family on the lawn of their
mountain shack. The caption reads: The Fake McCoys.
The term "Real McCoy" most likely comes from a railway
invention
by Elijah McCoy that automatically dripped oil to critical
parts
of the train instead of having to stop and let the oilman do
it
manually.
Even though Elijah applied for and was granted a US Patent,
there were many imitators. But none of them were as good as
the
"Real McCoy".
How about you and your company? Are you the Real McCoy?
Or are you trying to be something you're not? Are you trying
to imitate your competition instead of being yourself?
I see far too many small companies trying to look like big
companies. I see big companies doing their best to come
across
as a small-town company. There are old enterprises
attempting to
look fresh and new, while brand new ones are trying to
appear
well established.
All of these efforts burn up time, energy and resources.
They
rarely work well--if they work at all.
People like to do business with people they like. And they
like
people who are like themselves. They don't really do
business
with a company--they do business with the people IN that
company.
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Buyers today are savvy. They have more choices than ever
before.
And they can tell--at least at some level--whether or not
the
company and the people in it are congruent. They seek out,
resonate with and tend to be loyal to companies that are
authentic.
It's not only a good thing to do, it's good business.
Your uniqueness and the things you're best at doing are all
part
of your differentiating position. It's who you are--your
identity. It's what people can relate to. If there's
anything
false, made up or covered over, your prospects will sense
it.
And they won't even be able to tell you why they didn't buy.
As Emerson said so eloquently, "Who you are speaks so
loudly, I
can't hear what you say."
The company that knows who they are, knows what they're
really
good at and communicates that effectively--without trying to
be
all things to all people--is usually way ahead of the pack.
Is it easy? No, I don't think so. But it IS easier than
trying
to be something you're not.
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This principle--authenticity--is the most challenging and
yet
perhaps the simplest of all the 10 Pillars. Much like your
core
values, your authentic self isn't something to create but
rather
something to discover.
Be who you are--no one else is better qualified.
Most people--and most organizations--have never really
thought
about this. It starts with realizing that this process is
worthy
of some introspection.
And it requires that we answer some tough questions.
Who are we? Who are we being? How do we come across? What do
we
stand for? What are our core values? This goes far beyond
our
mission and our vision. It may be based on mission/vision,
but
it's more about the culture of our organization and how that
culture is showing up in our business dealings.
And this process is never complete. It demands that we get
real.
If we don't, we should prepare to become real irrelevant.
If we're diligent to the task, and honest and true to
ourselves
and those we serve, we can have a company that everyone will
know as the Real McCoy.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Copyright Michael Angier. SuccessNet.org and
WorldClassBusiness.com help you and your business grow. Get
their frëë report, 10 Pillars of a World Class Business, by
sending an email to wcb@SuccessNet.org No-cost subscriptions,
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