This\nis supposed to be a blog for small business owners and operators, right? So normally, we steer clear of political\ntopics, but we believe some current political events have parallels in the\nbusiness world. Be patient, stay tuned,\nand we\u2019ll eventually get to the business point of this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Unless\nyou\u2019ve been in a coma for the last few weeks, you\u2019ve probably seen all the news\ncoverage of the spat between President Trump and four congresswomen of color. The spat, in general, is over the left-of-center\nviews espoused by these four women, and in particular, over Trump\u2019s use of ICE\nand Homeland Security. Trump has\ndeclared these women \u201cunpatriotic\u201d and has suggested that they should go back\nwhere they came from (even though they\u2019re all American citizens).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Unpatriotic? Go back where you came from? It\u2019s reminiscent of the Vietnam War years\nwhen \u201cAmerica: Love It or Leave It\u201d was everywhere on bumper stickers and tee\nshirts. Why is honest dissent or\ndisagreement suddenly \u201cunpatriotic?\u201d \nDoes that mean to be a patriot, you have to agree with whoever happens\nto be in power at the time? In the 1995\nmovie, \u201cThe American President,\u201d President Andrew Shepherd (played by actor\nMichael Douglas) gave a speech that is instructive here. In it he said, \u201cAmerica isn\u2019t easy. America is advanced citizenship. You\u2019ve got to want it bad, because it\u2019s going\nto put up a fight. It\u2019s going to say,\n\u2018You want free speech? Let\u2019s see you\nacknowledge a man whose words make your blood boil and who is standing center\nstage and advocating at the top of his lungs that which you would spend a\nlifetime opposing at the top of yours.\u2019\u201d \nSo free speech is enshrined in our Constitution, and yet those who dare\nto use it to express an opposing view are labeled \u201cunpatriotic.\u201d Go figure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But\nwe promised a business connection to all of this. To learn the nature of that connection,\nplease continue reading below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Unpatriotic? Go back where you came from? Huh?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Of course, American businesses are not democracies.\u00a0 Business owners and leaders are not required to put every decision to a vote.\u00a0 Yet there is probably trouble ahead for business owners and leaders who cling to a hierarchical organizational structure wherein the BOSS makes all the important decisions and tells others in the organization, \u201cIf you don\u2019t like the way I\u2019m running things, maybe you should go someplace else.\u201d\u00a0 Business owners will frequently defend their right to make unilateral decisions about the business citing the financial risks they have taken to get the business started.\u00a0 And it\u2019s true.\u00a0 Business owners often have to take extraordinary financial risks to get where they are.\u00a0 Yet they forget that their employees have also taken significant financial risks . . . i.e., they have tied their future to that of the company, and have entrusted the company to provide financial security for themselves and their families.\u00a0 So shouldn\u2019t they have a voice in decisions that could impact that financial security . . . not a vote, but a voice?\u00a0 We believe they should, and here\u2019s why.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Unfortunately,\nsome owners are mired in the past and enamored of their ability to throw down\nlightening bolts. These owners, like\ntheir political counterparts, are likely to say, \u201cIf people don\u2019t like working\nhere, they should go someplace else.\u201d \nBut here\u2019s the downside to that point of view.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nidea of \u201clet \u2018em go someplace else\u201d is a stupid way to handle dissent, either\nin the political realm or in the business world. And again, we\u2019re not talking about\ndemocratizing business. Final decisions\nwill still be made by upper management . . . but only after others have had a\nchance to be heard. Yes, when we invite\na larger pool of people into our decision-making process, decisions take more\ntime, and the process can get more complicated, even messy. But that\u2019s a small downside when compared to\nthe upside of a more inclusive corporate culture.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" This is supposed to be a blog for small business owners and operators, right? So normally, we steer clear of political topics, but we believe some current political events have parallels in the business world. Be patient, stay tuned, and we\u2019ll eventually get to the business point of this. Unless you\u2019ve been in a coma<\/p>\n