Growth is not always good. Trust is the essential component for creating good growth. But trust takes time to build, and it can be easily destroyed. And money can destroy trust in devastating ways. Our goal should not just be to grow, but to grow the good.
Businesses exist between the tension of value and trust. Money represents value, and value is what we need.
As people, we need to be valued, and we find that value in how we show ourselves to the world, and by who accepts us as one of them. We need to know that we have discovered what is unique about us and that we have put it to good use.
But we are flawed. We know there are things about us that would undermine someone’s trust if they saw us in the wrong light, or caught us in an unguarded moment.
So, we limit how much of ourselves we reveal, and we content ourselves with less of a relationship than we could have. It’s safer there since most of us will only find one or two people in our lives with whom we can truly be vulnerable.
Since money represents value, it becomes a stand-in for trust. We understand the value of money. And the ability we have to freely exchange money places us in relationships. (Read more at RedemptiveLeader.com)
This utility of money can reveal the worst of humankind, but it can also reveal the best. And while there are many harmful and destructive things we can do to people and with money, building a business is one of the best.
Businesses have the opportunity to grow the good like few other entities. A healthy business is self-sustaining as it grows. And it has the capacity to contribute much to the lives of many.
But what drives the people that lead these businesses? What matters most to them?
At MLA, we know that most business owners are not financial people, but finances place a unique burden on a business owner that only they can carry.
Finances are often the limiting factor in the growth of a company, but not because of a lack of funds. Rather many business owners lack confidence about what is actually happening with their finances. That keeps from solving problems or moving into new opportunities.