At the same time, the owner is the only person in the company who is responsible for establishing goals for the entire group. He is the only one whose function it is to establish these goals, and then direct the group’s attention to them. That is where the catch is. The owner can confuse his or her personal goals and dreams with the business’s goals and purposes.
Interacting with many business owners, I occasionally meet people who say, “The goal of my company is to make money, increase assets and the company’s market value.” These people have no idea that they are not talking about the company’s goals, but about their personal ones. The owner has a goal of increasing the company’s value and wants his or her “baby” to continually grow. This point of view could be compared to that of a father who wants his child’s only goal to be to serve his parent. This is a completely unnatural point of view. Of course, a child should bring his parents joy, but it should be the joy of his own successes, achievements, and victories on the way to his individual goals. When the owner of a company says that the company’s goal is “to increase the company’s value,” he really means, “My goal is to become rich.” He is not talking about the group’s goal, but about his personal one. A group’s goal cannot be someone's dream of becoming happy and rich.
Once, during a workshop, the owner of a roofing materials manufacturing and retailing business approached me. His company employed around fifty people. They manufactured copper shingles, gutters, and other parts for copper roofing. Our conversation went as follows.
“Our company manufactures a good product and our customers are happy. It is certainly not a cheap product, but the customers who know us usually thank us for our services. But there’s one issue I still can’t understand. When I start my workday, I’m full of energy. I meet with the customers and manage my employees. The window of my office faces the sales department, and since I usually arrive at the office earlier than everybody else, I get to observe my employees as they come in. You know, we try to take care of our employees. Their salaries are high and the working conditions are good, but when they get to work, they look like they have been working hard all night long and can’t wait to finally get some rest. They barely move. And unless they get enough coffee, they cannot even start working. Why is it this way? I am full of energy and desire to work, but why aren’t they?”
“What is the main goal of your business?” I asked him.
“What goal? It is to make money for me, of course!”
“Imagine you just joined a good company as a salesperson. During the orientation period, you are told, ‘The goal of our company is to make another million dollars for the owner!’ Would that inspire you?”
“No. I get it,” he said after giving it some thought.
When the company owner confuses his personal goals with the goals of the company, he creates goals for the company that do not motivate his employees. Imagine a company where during corporate events it is announced, “Our goal is to make our owner rich!” It doesn't seem as if anyone would honestly want to put any effort into achieving this goal. Only when employees want to achieve the company’s goals will you see the spark in their eyes and will they be full of energy and creativity. This does not mean that when you establish goals for the entire group that you must renounce your personal goals. Giving up your own goals can lead to a complete lack of joy and pleasure for you. I personally think that a miserable person will not be able to be particularly useful to other people. Keep your goals. Just take care not to confuse them with the goals you establish for your company.
