I'm going to take this a little way back to the first day of IA this year. About three weeks ago, I found myself looking through the book "Good to Great", searching for some traits that could help our class culture for iWeek. I didn't know back then just how important one of these passages would become to me in the next two weeks. The book stated the importance of "first getting the right people on the bus". In other words, starting not with "where" but with "who". It said that great companies start by getting the right people on the bus and in the right seats rather than focusing on where the bus is going first.
Personally I loved the idea, but I was also a little confused on how to apply it. How would we start with the "who" first if we were all simply choosing our favorite business ideas after they were pitched? We were all going after the "what" primarily when making groups, since the business was already predetermined.
Then it happened. For some reason (maybe it was just a coincidence, or perhaps it was meant to be) but Allegra, Claudia, and I couldn't decide on a specific business to join. It was from a simple conversation that we encountered a business idea and with just a few minutes of talking about it we couldn't handle the excitement anymore. You could tell the excitement wasn't as much for the business idea than it was about the realization that we could be working with each other. What I didn't realize back then was that Claudia, Allegra and I all boarded the bus together not only for the "what" in mind but most of all the "who". That's also why when the bus changed direction, and Corey didn't approve of our first business idea, we kept searching for something else restlessly until we found another one that we loved just as much: creating our own tea blends business. We were doing exactly what "Good to Great" recommended for a group of entrepreneurs to do without even being aware of it. Changing the direction of the bus didn't matter as much to us because we had the right people in it. Our roles fell into place nicely as well, with Allegra taking the Leadership role, Claudia for Finance and Human Resources, and me with Marketing and Logistics. Each of us was interested in something different or willing to try something new, so choosing seats was not a problem. Even during this entire week, where Allegra has been away, I feel like having a strong team has helped us. We had to work long-distance through what is supposed to be one of the most crucial moments for a company (it's birth). No one said this would be easy, yet so far it's gone pretty smoothly overall and it was really fulfilling too. Visiting providers, making lots of tea, calculating our finances, brainstorming for new names and coming up with new ideas while texting and calling for feedback and thoughts. If there is something I learned throughout these past two weeks it's going after what you want. Two weeks ago, our business name wasn't up on one of those whiteboards for what businesses to choose from. It's about creating your own opportunities and getting together with people that not only care about an idea, but also care about each other. Getting the right people on the bus.
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