PitBulls and Entrepreneurs, a Comparison

Pit Bulls and Entrepreneurs


I know, I know! Many of you will be a bit taken aback by the comparison and then there will be some who will say, “Oh, yeah!” The chances are those that will be taken aback may be the ones who do not know your dogs and do not know your entrepreneurs. Then there may be some who will go into a state of shock at the mention of the word_pit bull. Well, for those of you who do get taken aback or, worse, go into a state of shock, you have my apologies and my compassion. You also have my invitation to come and stroll through these stories and allow me to help you discover a world of clarity, creativity, conscientiousness and a raging passion towards achievement, self-fulfilment and self-designed excellence. You will see and learn how many of the wonderful traits that make one species ferocious and wonderful make the other rugged and ragingly successful.

Between the pit bull and the entrepreneur there are certain nuances that similar and different. Placing these two species together highlights the strengths of each and the possible areas of study and synergy for growth, for learning and becoming ferociously effective and brilliantly tenacious as an entrepreneur.

For those of you who went “Oh, yeah!” You know and love your dogs plus hold the pit-bull in reverence then this comparative study will make you smile and revalidate the beliefs you might have had about the secrets behind entrepreneurial success and excellence.

There are several kinds of pit bulls and most all of them are a cross between the English Bull Dog and any one forms of the Terrier. The bull dog’s lineage goes back to the ancient, huge and ferocious Mollosian of the Greek era which, like a bull, was a working dog. Over the years, this crossbreed between the bull dog and the terrier travelled to America in the 1800s and were carefully, further, cross bred to increase their speed, their playfulness and, thus, their intelligence. Today’s pit bull, and the one referred to in this book, could be any one of the several breeds of the American Staffordshire Pit Bull or the American Pit Bull Terrier.

One of the most popular pit bulls was “Pete” from the movie and the series of “Little Rascals.” Other popular pit bulls were owned and loved by famous people like inventor Thomas Alba Edison, President Theodore Roosevelt of the USA and Helen Keller. Unfortunately and sadly, the pit bull has mistakenly acquired a notoriety that runs up chills and hysteria in many people. On the contrary, owners and lovers of pit bulls swear by the intelligence and gentleness of a pit bull. Statistically, they claim, the French Poodle is more vicious, vindictive and prone to attack human beings than a pit bull. The negative media hype has been created based on the looks of a pit bull alone. The strong, aloof and the independent look of the pit bull misleads and gives no clue to its intelligence, loyalty and loving nature.

The pit bull stands apart from most other breeds because of its keen sense of self-identity and self-pride. It rarely bothers to be moved or influenced by the presence of other smaller animals around him. Merlin, my friend Tiny Defensor’s, nine year old, 140 pound pit bull has never bitten anyone its lifetime and it allows Tiny’s pet pussycats to swarm all over him all the time. “He cares a cat’s foot for the pussies!” exclaims Tiny. Brownie, my friend Pinky Sandoval’s, six-year old, 120 pound pit bull constantly lets himself be bullied and barked at her half a dozen pomerians and chihuahuas. The pit bull’s normal reaction to frenzy and nastiness around him is to stand tall, stand apart, walk its walk and completely ignore the riff-raff that surrounds and nags it. It’s like he’s saying to them, “I know exactly who I am and I am totally at peace with who I am.”

Besides having a high sense of self image and self identity, the pit bull of all the known 140 known breeds of dogs in the world also has the rare ability to duplicate the human gesture knows as the “smile.” All other dogs express their joy and satisfaction by barking, jumping or waging their tail excitedly. The pit bull seems to have evolved and stepped ahead of the curve. The pit bull, to express its joy and satisfaction, will raise up and wrinkle its muzzle, display a toothy grin and make his eyes twinkle. This in his imagination is a smile, an expression of approval and happiness. To those that love their pit bulls and know their dogs this is amazing and to those who do not know their dogs this eerie and terrifying. Yes, you can say pit bulls have imagination. This is a rare ability among a few, rare, individual_people who can imagine, duplicate and morph existing facts with new ideas and other non-tangibles. It is for entrepreneurs a rare ability to connect facts from the past with the unseen, unheard and the un-experienced things from the present and create a picture of the future. A future that is possible and filled with productivity, progress and profits for all.


Pit bulls are also known to be really high on love and loyalty for their masters. There are numerous stories about the bond between dogs and man but of all the breeds of dogs, the stories of the pit-bull stand out for strength, sturdiness and fierce integrity. Of all the stories about the pit bull’s image, identity, imagination and integrity the ones that are terrifying are about their fierce tenaciousness and persistence. They say that when a pit-bull, if deliberately abused and angered, gets mad and gets a hold of you then it’ll take an army to pry him apart. This is non-give-up-ness is a core trait of a pit-bull. This is a powerful characteristic ad the ultimate brand image of the pit bull. There is a lesson to be learned in this for entrepreneurs. This trait of a pit bull, from a positive perspective, is a shining lesson in tenaciousness, persistence and hardiness for entrepreneurs.

Now a little story about entrepreneurs before I start highlighting their traits;

Many years ago, I had failed at two attempts at starting and running my own business. The first time, I had failed at putting up a trading business with a partner from the Middle East. The second time I had failed at making success of a small retail business with my spouse as a partner. Sometime in the late 1980, I was in the middle of nurturing a third enterprise. For this third time, before I ventured into it, I spent years understanding and experiencing the trade. I spent years in knowing the supply side and the demand side in the industry. I spent years saving up money and building up other resources and connections in the industry. I’d also spent years in learning the rights skills and competencies to help me become a self-dependant, and a complete entrepreneur.

I remember one morning, six months and a year into it, I was in the middle of strapping some cartons for a shipment when an officer from the Department of Labor and Employment came knocking at my door. He was conducting a random, spot inspection for unfair and inhuman treatment of employees by small business owners.
“As an owner of this company, I wouldn’t mind answering a few questions would I?” he asked.

“Sure! Go ahead and be my guest.” I replied.
“How long has this business been operational and what is it that you do?”
“Well, it’s now been a year and half. We are in the business of trading soft goods like house decor, apparel, handicrafts and stuff. We buy them here, in the Philippines, and then we ship them to clients across the world.”
“Hmm, that must be quite lucrative and how many people do you have working here?”
“Two. A girl and there’s this bloke.”
“Can you please describe the job of the girl?”
“Well, she answers the phone, takes messages, files loose papers, types a letter a day, once in a while makes weak coffee and every fortnight runs to the bank to draw her salary.”
“Right, that sounds like she is the Office Assistant. Awful supporting aren’t they? Does she put in any extra effort for the business?
“Oh, yes, yes! She takes time to fix her hair, powder her nose, file her nails, and chat on the office telephone with her girlfriends on weekdays and her boy-friends on Fridays. Then there are also days when she doesn’t have a boyfriend, she spends her days crying and eating chocolates in the office. Poor little girl!”
“Oh, that’s quite sad. How many hours a week, would you say, does she suffer like this in here?”
“Oh, the poor thing, she comes in a bit after 10 in the morning to avoid the morning traffic and leaves just before 4 in the afternoon, to beat the evening traffic on weekdays. On Saturdays, she drops by for a quick brunch and then leaves to get her hair done.”
“Gosh! That’s over 30 hours a week and does she get a fair pay, social security, health insurance, all the prescribed holidays, annual vacation and sick leaves too?”
“Oh, yes she does get all that plus another three days every month.”
“That’s quite okay. Now about this bloke who works here what exactly does he do?”
“This “bloke” as you call him gets the orders, draws the contracts, does the purchasing, chases the mills for delivery, drives the truck, manages the inventory, packs the shipments, does the billing, cleans the car, answers the phone and makes coffee when Jane is not around.”
“Sounds like quite a handy man. What are his working hours around here?”
“He’s here before the break of dawn on Mondays and then stays till all the work is done for the rest of the week.”
“That’s amazing! Does that mean he also sleeps over here?”
“Yes, on that wooden bench over there by the dog-house.”
“That looks quite inviting and warm. Now, does he get a fair pay for his hours, social security, medical and health insurance, annual vacation and sick leaves?”
“Oh, yeah sure!" He gets two square meals a day, a daily cup of weak of coffee, a pack of cigarettes every month and he is also allowed to sneak off early on Christmas eve and come in a bit late on New Year’s Day.”
“That’s preposterous and inhuman! Sneaks off on Christmas Eve! I think you, Sir, you are an animal, a monster and a slave-driver! Please call that man, here, right now! I’d like to see the poor slob!”
“Sir,” I said quietly, “you are looking at him!”

Though that story, in its entirety, is not at all true, it does come close to putting across the point that an entrepreneur; a business owner has to work, eat and sleep like a dog. He has to put in atrociously obscene amounts of time, effort and dedication for the success of his business. It is all a lot of blood, sweat and tears.

Entrepreneurs do not get born, they are made. In my early teens, I was surrounded by a large, close and distant, family of entrepreneurs. Most all of them either owned a store, a trading business or a small manufacturing or service business. During our family get-togethers they would talk shop, compare notes and share tips on how to start something new or, improve and expand existing businesses. All of them considered owning a business was the most proper and decent way to live. “Working for others?” Well, it was “working for others” and it was looked upon with disdain and shame. There was, and is, pride, honor and freedom to earn and grow exactly as one wished for in a self-owned enterprise.

One of the many, very Indian, catch-phrases my grandfather used to nag me with was, “Apni ghott to mazaa aaye!” Literally translated, it meant, “The fun lies in brewing and grinding your own.” Metaphorically, it meant, “If you want to amount to something, if you want to make it big and be fulfilled then start and build something on your own.” This kind of subtle and consistent programming of our minds by our elders was our family’s culture. The young ones, in response, had no choice but to constantly think, explore, talk and dream business opportunities and ventures. This influence and programming by the elders of the family was quite intense. The long-term results of this culture building were resilience, tenacity and the ability to save, survive and build from scratch. These entrepreneurial habits got seeped into our neuropsychological systems for life.

A large percentage of my family members are still private business owners and continue to breed their offspring into the same atmosphere and culture. I, personally, moved in out of the corporate world and the world of the rugged, resilient and resourceful entrepreneurs. I regard both the breeds with respect and reverence for their skills but here, in this book; I pay homage to the maverick, the jack of all trades—the enigmatic entrepreneur!

Yes, you already know, I am also a deep-hearted lover of dogs. In my life-time, I have been scared by a lot, chased by many, bit by a few and have owned only five but, yes, I love them all. I find dogs to be the intelligent, imaginative, loyal and backed up by a burning desire to succeed and excel at whatever they wish to achieve. All the traits which are necessary for success and excellence in the field of entrepreneurship.

In the ensuing chapters, I will share several stories, secrets and strategies of several successful entrepreneurs I have known personally. I will compare and contrast their traits, their talents and their tales to those of a pit-bull. A dog which, in spite of all the negative media and hype about its character, in reality is a breed that stands slightly taller and slightly apart from the rest of the dogs in the world—just like successful entrepreneurs do amongst other ordinary people.

mandhyan on creative thinking

mandhyan on creative thinking

the power of desire, selflessness and true belief

So, last weekend, Boom San Agustin, my friend, was running a seminar on Entrepreneurship and he invited me to offer my books and audio books, The Heart of Public Speaking and The Heart of Humor, for sales in the back of the room. He also suggested that I talk for 12 minutes at the end of the workshop to plug my books. Now I am always happy to talk and I am always happy to support but...I am horribly, terrible at plugging myself and my work for money. A part of me shrivels up and dies inside of me whenever I have to talk about how wonderful my work is and then charge for it.

Anyway, at the end of Boom’s workshop there I was in the back of room waiting to be called. A few minutes before the afternoon coffee break he announced me to a class of 40 or so young entrepreneurs-to-be. As is usual of him he made me out to be a granddaddy of motivational speaking and success. I was still blushing from his compliments when I was handed the mike to speak. Well, I managed to mutter out a few ideas about how a tree is like a person and how a person is like an organization and how an organization should be nurtured like a tree and coaxed towards the sun. Of the given 12 minutes, I used 9 minutes. I must have said something good enough for the crowd cause’ they applauded and several of them rose to buy my stuff. I wasn’t too sure that I had added any value to the event in those 9 minutes. I ran straight for a glass of water for my mouth which was fast drying up.

An hour later, minutes before closing his workshop, Boom was back at complimenting me and he added how sometimes he “borrows” my ideas and models of discussion. At that very minute he was reviewing his 5D approach to Business Disciplines and comparing it to my 5I approach to Interactive Listening. Though I was blushing from his adulation, something inside of me rebelled against his self-deprecating attitude. I stood up, begged for the 3 of the 12 minutes I hadn't yet used earlier, to speak up.

Here’s the gist of what I think I said in the rush and the passion of the moment,

“Boom, ladies and gentlemen, is lying!

That 5D model on the screen is nothing compared to any of my work. It is totally his and, besides, what in heaven’s name is anybody’s original knowledge ever? Whatever I have put out into the world is not mine either because I, as I am doing here, am standing on the shoulders of thousands of thought leaders and giants before me. There is hardly such a thing as original knowledge! Boom applauds me often because in me he sees a reflection of his own self. But I tell you, he is a giant by his own rights and, someday, thousands will stand on his shoulders and reach higher. And...let me tell you what sets him apart, and what makes him a giant. It is represented in the last and the sixth “D” which he Boom forgot to add to his 5D model of Business Disciplines.”

Here I took a longer pause and raised my voice to add, “The sixth D, ladies and gentlemen is the D for...”

At this moment, a delicate, female voice from the audience shouted out, “the D for Desire — deep, burning desire!”

“Yeah!” I went on, “Right! The power of raw, authentic, burning desire also known as intention, dreams, wants or vision. It doesn’t matter what you call it. It is the driving force behind everything you want and everything you will ever succeed at! Boom stands apart because through his talks, through all his work and all his efforts, it is his deep, burning desire that becomes an example, a benchmark and source of inspiration to the world around him!"

"Boom reminds me of a man, from a poem I’d read when I was a kid. In the poem the man is sitting by a river, on a moonlit night, telling his dreams to his own reflection, in the water. When from the skies, quietly but loudly, the moon speaks up. “Man,” he says, “you are crazy to be sitting by the water and dreaming of things you will never realize. Your dreams are cheap. They are nothing but air trapped in fickle water. Weak bubbles and mist is what they are. Blah!”"

"The man by the lake stands up and speaks up. With a tightened chin raised towards the moon he claims, “My dreams, my friend, may be like soft, water bubbles now but believe me you, Mr. Moon, one day they will explode through the water and fly. They will soar through fire and storm to forge into balls of steel and, those balls of steel, my friend, will reach and conquer even you Mr. Moon!”"

"Now, of course, we all know that back in 1969, a man’s dreams did turn into balls of steel, flew and conquered the moon. That ladies and gentlemen is the power of dreams! The power of the last “D” of desire -deep burning desire, which rages in the heart of my friend, Mr. Boom San Agustin! That deep, burning and raging desire will win him his dreams!”

Now you folks probably want to know, “Raju, what the heck is your point. Those are good stories but you haven’t told us anything we didn’t already know? C’mon Dude, tell us something we don’t know!”

Well, folks, let me spell out three things for you while you read my lips.

The number one thing is that before anything else, before doing anything in life and before having all that you want to have... you must want to have it! You must ragingly desire and lust for it so that all the red seas of challenges will rip themselves apart to let you pass. That’s one!

The second thing is when Boom compliments and applauds me he becomes that man sitting by the lake and talking to his own reflection. In the water, Boom sees my face and wants to be like me but what Boom forgets, is that what he sees is a reflection of his own endearing and appealing self. That face in the water he sees is his very own! I am and will always be as fickle as the water in the lake. I will move on and he will remain. He will stand up, reach out and conquer the moons of his dream. The truth is that all the strengths which we seek, admire and adore, usually, lay inside of us. Our heroes are always a reflection of ourselves. Our desires and dreams are, always, the manifestations of the heroes we are!

Now, there is a third thing, a hidden lesson, in this story. I’ll spell it out for you, even as I am sure being the heroes you are, you may have figured it out for yourself.

Remember the two times that I stood up and spoke in Boom’s seminar? The first time my performance, therefore the quality of my success, wasn’t up to par for myself even though I took 9 minutes. The second time, inspite of the fact that I just had 3 minutes, I roared, raged and drove a beautiful message right into the hearts of my listeners. The difference was that during the first attempt I was promoting myself and, trying to sell my books. The second time around my purpose was higher. It was to acknowledge and lift the spirits of another human being. This time my focus was outwards and towards helping another giant of a human being. And that, ladies and gentleman, is the essential difference between success and excellence, between good and great!

Many people, including me, know about these things but it is the walk, not the talk, which counts. When we, gracefully, combine the power of desire, the power of selflessness with a true belief in our own capacities, then all our efforts catapult us straight, beyond the moon, into the foothills of our own heavens!

Raju Mandhyan
www.mandhyan.com
A World of Clear, Creative and Conscientious Thinkers!

Appreciative Leadership

Appreciative Inquiry 4.wmv

Build on the Positive

BY RICARDO SALUDO



Listen in on Filipinos talking about the Philippines and you’re likely to hear one or both of two things: joking and laughter at ourselves and our situation, or a litany of complaints about our country and putdowns of ourselves as a people. Yet we score high on happiness surveys, even more than some of our far more prosperous neighbors, even though we are always quick to point out what’s wrong. The media’s tendency to focus our failings and foibles amplifies our negativism. At the end of this month, a two-day conference at the EDSA Shangri-La may be something our nation can use. The First Asian Appreciative Inquiry (AI) Summit on November 29 to 30 will bring together thought leaders in the art of seeing and building on the positive in organizations and society, focusing on what’s working, not what’s broken.

Among featured speakers are Local Government Secretary and multi-awarded mayor Jesse Robredo and veteran journalist Marites Vitug. Visiting from Ohio’s Case Western Reserve University is the keynote speaker, Dr. David Cooperrider, the originator and leading guru of appreciative inquiry.

Cooperrider has written 14 books and countless articles on the theory and practice of AI, which has adherents in many countries. He advises leading global corporations and is founding chairman of that Center for Business as an Agent of World Benefit, at Case Western. In 2004, he designed and facilitated a UN summit on global corporate citizenship for then-Secretary General Kofi Anan and 500 business leaders.

Leading the summit organizers is AI’s top proponent in the Philippines, Antipolo-based Southeast Asia Interdisciplinary Development Institute (SAIDI) School of OD, which confers M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in organizational development. Headed by Dr. Rosalina Fuentes, SAIDI offers specializations in change leadership, microfinance, local development, social entrepeneurship, human capital management, enterprise leadership, transformative spirituality, and life coaching.

Most management theories and schools of thought concentrate on solving problems and filling gaps. AI asks and expounds upon the strengths of an organization as the starting point and foundation for its journey toward a better future. “All the studies in the world of negative states will tell us nothing about the positive preferred state,” argued Cooperrider in a February 2009 interview. His solution: look at the bright side, the qualities that shine and activities that work.

The AI guru explained that the dominant problem-oriented thinking in management sprang out of the mechanistic view of society and enterprises, which looks for what needs fixing in the machine at hand, which can be an enterprise, a community or a country. Lost in the obsession with problems are the strengths that have in fact propelled progress and growth.

Indeed, Cooperrider said, if you survey people with the question, “Does your company know your strengths and put your strengths into play everyday?” you get just 20 percent saying yes. That means four out of every five employees believe that their capabilities are not fully harnessed. Even if you cut that ratio by half, that still amounts to a sizable 40 percent of corporate brain and brawn wanting to do more.

AI’s core methodology is its four-D’s cycle: discovery, dream, design and destiny. Discovery involves appreciating what gives life and growth, the good things we have now, our sources of strength. Next, we dream, asking what might be, and envisioning the impact of our imaginings. Then we design with others the programs and structures to realize the vision in our dream. Finally, there is destiny, the drive to achieve and empower, learning and adjusting along the way toward the ultimate goal.

In keeping with his positive 4-Ds perspective, Cooperrider likens the process to the wonder and excitement of a child. “Why is uninhibited wonder something we generally restrict to children?” he asks in his OD Practictioner journal article, “The Child as Agent of Inquiry.” In one instructive story recounted in the piece, a 13-year-old student asks his school principal questions like what good things he did in his life and what he is most proud about.

Unlike his usual conversations with students on learning and discipline, the talk with the teenager animated the principal. “I really felt I was on the pulpit,” he recounted. “I was literally looking into the face of the future, exploring the elements of a good society. That night, I could not sleep. I kept replaying the conversation. I got back in touch with a lot of things important to me.”

Put another way, AI highlights the good and how an organization achieves it, which is what we, in our heart of hearts, really care about the most. Or as one writer put it, “you don’t see monuments to critics.” But there are countless statues of the poets, composers, painters and sculptors. Plainly, it is the poetry, music and art that inspire people, not the flaws that critics make it their business to point out.

Just like the principal interviewed by the student, the Cleveland Clinic in 1985 also felt the spark of inspiration from questions focusing on their strengths.

It was that transformative experience that led Cooperrider and his associates to develop the principles and practices of appreciative inquiry, eventually leading to his 1987 doctoral dissertation on AI.

Besides organizational development, the positive approach to addressing issues may even help in political and social conflicts. In his article on how AI could help bring peoce to the Middle East, Cooperrider writes: “Imagine hundreds or thousands of people coming together to generate new images of the world, and then leveraging those revelations for greater progress.” Considering that much conflict is fed by ugly memories of ills and injustices, one can see how the discord can begin to ebb through a 4-Ds shift of mind and discourse toward the good that contending peoples share now and what they could build together.

Perhaps one essential feature of appreciative inquiry that lends itself to both organizational development and peacemaking is its non-dual, consensus-building approach. In seeking the good that we all see and appreciate, AI helps diminish the rivalry between people’s individual perceptions and interests. The “democratization of mind” was how Cooperrider and two co-authors put it in their article on social construction and AI.

Given our eternally fractious, even violent politics, appreciative inquiry may well be just what the Philippines needs.

Ricardo Saludo heads the Center for Strategy, Enterprise & Intelligence ( ric.saludo@censeisolutions.com This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ). CenSEI includes expert associates in organizational change management and executive coaching.

Building on the Positive by Ric Saludo

Building on the positive