BOOK SUMMARY 430
Simply Brilliant
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Summary written by: Peter Taylor
“The problem with most organizations today is
not that they are broken, it’s that they are boring. And boring organizations
don’t lend themselves to runaway success.”
- Simply Brilliant, page 5
Simply Brilliant challenges
the current business owner with empowering examples of companies that have done
extraordinary things in ordinary fields. Author William Taylor travelled
thousands of miles to research brilliant companies and the secrets behind their
success. If you are at all interested in business success this book will
challenge your values and open your mind to unlimited promise and break through
success.
The Big Idea
Eight Questions
"Far and away the best prize that life offers, is
the chance to work hard at work worth doing."- Simply Brilliant, page 221
The above quote from Theodore Roosevelt remains relevant
today: work worth doing means increasing the level of impact and enriching our
levels of achievement. Taylor intends to motivate us with this in mind and as
he suggests the stories are only useful if they contribute to your success. His
core messages can be collated with the following eight questions, the answers
to which may give current struggling business owners collective brilliance.
1: Can you develop a definition of success that allows
you to stand apart from the competition and inspires others to stand with you?
What struck a consistent chord among “Brilliant”
businesses was the single minded purpose that they believed to be uniquely
theirs, and equally are uniquely important. They have a highly developed sense
of perspective on how they see the world, they offer an intense projection of
everything they do, they are highly intrusive and built on rock; a lighthouse.
Some companies describe themselves as operating at the lunatic fringe, and that
is why these companies are noticed. They operate as missionaries as opposed to
mercenaries, striving not just for profit but also significance.
2: Can you explain, clearly and compellingly, why what
you do matters and how you expect to win?
Brilliant leaders move beyond simple leadership rhetoric
and boring acronyms to a unique conversational mode of precision, provocation
and passion. They communicate that what they do is unique and compelling to the
outside world.
3: Are you prepared to rethink the conventions of success
in your field and the logic of success as a leader?
The analogy, “It is difficult to see the forest because
of the trees,” makes change difficult for people who have been in the same
field for a long time. Taylor describes the practice of “provocative
competence” as a common thread of “Brilliant” leaders. Simply stated, it is the
ability to challenge your assumptions of your career, think about the future,
and recognize that your current mindset may be holding you back. How do
you make sure that what you know doesn’t limit your imagination.
4: Are you as determined to stay interested as to be
interesting?
The most influential and leaders have figured out how to
remain interested, in the serendipity of life, in the enduring purpose of their
enterprise and new ways of bringing that mission to life. They have a unique
quality to also instill this quality in their people. Their organizations are
viewed as leadership and learning laboratories for business. “Ancora Imparo”;
forever learning.
5: Do you pay as much attention to psychology and emotion
as you do technology and efficiency?
What really stands out in successful business are the
small gestures of kindness that make us feel empathy and compassion. As Mother
Teresa said, “Not all of us can do great things but we can do small things with
love.”
6: Do the values that define how your organization works
reflect the values proposition around which it competes?
You can’t be exceptional in your marketplace creating
something special and distinctive without programming your culture. Be
provocative enough to change what people do everyday.
7: Are you as humble as you are hungry?
Simply stated, your job as a leader/manager is to set the
stage, not to perform on it. Be humble enough to allow cross pollination of
ideas within your within organization and outside it.
8: Are you prepared to share the rewards of success with
all those who had a hand in achieving it?
The winner takes all approach is a non sustainable way of
conducting business. The businesses that allow members a seat at the table and
a share of the pie are able to generate a deep sense of loyalty and engagement
with their employees.
Insight #1
Allies are Ubiquitous
"In businesses (and social movements built on
ideas), responsibility for generating and evaluating ideas has to become
everybody's business."- Simply Brilliant, page 178
A Canadian gold miner by the name of Rob McEwen was in
financial distress: he had acquired a property which left him with a dilemma.
Where should they set up the mine and where should they dig, based on
geological data? Undertaking their own expensive exploration and information
analysis could bankrupt the company. The solution? With the current ethos of
open source software, he invited the whole world to advise him on where to
drill after posting geological data online and requesting help. For a fraction
of the possibly prohibitive costs, the subsequent analysis generated were way
ahead of anything his team could generate and the information turned the mining
company’s fortunes around completely. McEwen was humble enough to admit that
his team did not have the smarts to generate the ideas based on the information
they had. He recruited an army of willing and motivated engineers and
scientists by creating a stage for them to perform.
How could you generate help in your industry?
Insight #2
Kindness Matters
"What is it about business that makes it so hard to
be kind? What kind of leaders have we become when small acts of connection feel
so uncommon?"- Simply Brilliant, page 138
A young man was visiting his terminally ill grandmother
in hospital about to undergo another bout of treatment. She was desperate for a
bowl of clam chowder from Panera bread. The trouble was that they only sell
clam chowder on Fridays. The young man explained the situation to the on duty
manager—not only did they get the soup but also a box of cookies and a get well
card. With the current younger generation, Facebook of course became involved
and Panera Bread received an unbelievable amount of free publicity, resulting
in 81000 likes and more than 35000 comments. A simple act of kindness brought
more positive publicity than any advertising could have generated.
A similar company, Pret A Manger, allows their employees
to give away free food for repeat customers (within limits of course), as well
as only employing friendly and lively employees and extensive training, which
creates loyal and bonded clients.
Act on any opportunities for acts of kindness within your
industry—you may be surprised at the response.
Simply Brilliant gives
struggling business owners no excuses for not moving away from conventional
wisdom, they must open themselves up to new ideas and try new approaches: stop
being boring, and start being brilliant.
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