The Mullet Theory of Business
The mullet is the ugliest haircut ever.
No matter what sort of a background you come from, chances are you’re disgusted by the mullet, because it’s an compromise haircut.
It tries to be both long and short at once. The mullet tries to appease both people who don’t respect long hair, and people who don’t respect businessmen. But in reality it appeases no one.
But there is a little mullet within each of us. It’s there whenever we try to please two different extremes at once, and ignore what we really are. It’s the middle ground compromise lie nobody likes.
You can’t please everyone all of the time. Find your personality, and stick with it. If you’re fundamentally a long hair, don’t pretend you aren’t. You’ll still be able to relate to the businessmen, but they’ll respect you more for your decision. If you’re fundamentally a businessman, I’m sorry. Relax a bit and letyour hair down. It’ll be better for everyone.
How does this apply to business?
Small businesses are especially prone to indecision. If you’re running a business by yourself, say so and embrace your smallness. Pretending to be big isn’t going to fool anyone. Feigning competence and experience isn’t going to either.
Take the time to design and plan out major business goals, no matter your company size. Write down in words a program to achieve your business goals, and how they’ll work. Make it idiot proof.
Don’t let anyone else change your plan mid-course. If you decide to make a change to your plan, incorporate it back into your written plans. Keep focused on forward movement despite the naysayers. If you don’t control your direction, other people and forces will. By taking a half-assed approach of “kinda having an idea” approach, you waste your own time, not knowing where your energy would be best served.
If your business is just beginning, a good way to jumpstart it is to give away your work. It lets you start the process of solving problems for other people and lets you know the quality you’re capable of. It’s then easier to set a fair price, and if you do a good job, companies will have no problem refering you.
This approach works regardless of the type of business you’re creating. Wally Amos (of Famous Amos Cookies) started by giving away cookies to clients, Google started by giving away better search results without ads or fluff. Give your clients something of value, make yourself indespensible. It’s the way small business gets leverage. Embracing its smallness.
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