The End of Normal: How Entrepreneurs Can Eradicate the Status Quo

“I hate a Roman named Status Quo!”

So declares writer and social outcast Granger to Montag, the former firefighter (read: firestarter) who has just set everything he once believed in aflame, in Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451.

The novel, first published in 1953, is one of those eerie tales that makes a reader worry that, when they wake up tomorrow, they will find the near-future that Bradbury describes has become the present right before their eyes. It’s a near-future in which the status quo has enslaved so completely, corrupted so wholly, that it is no longer seen as a negative, but as a positive. The key to humanity’s happiness. Yet it is also the key to its ignorance. And too its doom.

Fortunately, that is not the reality that we yet face, but we are on the threshold. We are all being driven towards an uncertain future by the vehicle of progress, and it just shifted into top gear.

A new normal is our destination. A new normal that may mark the beginning of the end for a global society that is able and willing to question, challenge, disagree, and be different, or a new waypoint on the path to the pinnacle of humanity and all it can achieve.

To make sure it is the latter we reach at the end of our journey, changes must be made in our homes, in our offices, in our communities, and in our own hearts. Here is how we can make those changes happen.

Collaborate

There’s a catch-22 when it comes to entrepreneurial mindset. We know we’re different, that we’re rebels. So like most rebels, we detach ourselves from society to make our own way through unexplored territory.

Big mistake.

“The status quo is not a friend of commercial collaboration”, says LBDGroup founder and author Janine Garner in her book From Me to We. Demolishing the status quo starts with asking questions, and realising that we can’t uncover all the answers ourselves. Try, and discover just how quickly you find yourself locked in the same old intellectual hierarchy that artificially ranks the value of ideas based on an individual’s place in the system.

Our power to innovate and disrupt on a major scale comes from understanding the perspective of others; from those that disagree with you completely (my motto is“be open, then be outraged”), to those on your side with experience, knowledge, or viewpoint you lack.

Speaking of the latter…

Hold People Able & Accountable

There is a reason we choose to surround ourselves with the people in our lives, be they employees, colleagues, friends, whoever. It’s because they contribute something to our lives. A fresh approach. Some new insight. The opportunity to grow.

So when the time comes to put our faith in them and set them off on a certain task, why do we find it so difficult? All too likely, it’s because entrepreneurs so often start out by themselves, or in small groups. At that stage, it’s important, even necessary, to be across everything. When our operations expand, however, and it is time to delegate responsibility in the pursuit of betterment, we must be willing to let go of that control.

See the capacity for excellence in those around you. See what they can bring to the table. See what they see, but you have failed to notice. Then trust in them, and let them go to work. That’s why you’ve devoted so many resources to make them part of your life, after all.

If they fail, hold them accountable, not yourself. Take none of the guilt. Instead, look to ways of overcoming this drawback and keeping on track. It may be disappointing, but we all learn from these mistakes.

Take Every Opportunity

“Being first and good is better than being last and best” – Mohamed Zairi and Richard Duggan, Best Practice: Process Innovation Management.

Do what you hate now, so you can do something you love in the future. It’s a sentiment dating back to the Industrial Revolution, one that has dragged teenagers into law school when all they ever wanted to be was a writer, and chained untold amounts of adults to office desks for most of their lives as they await retirement and freedom.

From Branson to Barberich, Wang to Westergren, the names that matter belong to those who denied this belief, threw caution to the wind, and charged headfirst into opportunity.

Win or lose, every entrepreneur must be willing to do the same. Create. Explore. Challenge. Don’t over-think, but remain clearheaded and objective.

Learn to Prioritise

Earlier this year, the co-authors of Rebels at Work: A Handbook for Leading Change from Within, Lois Kelly and Carmen Medina ran a poll to chart the strengths entrepreneurs believe they possess.

Creativity and curiosity topped the survey. No surprise there. Nor is it surprising that prudence was on the lower end of the scale, and self-regulation at the very bottom.

That’s the thing about being creative: it’s easy to come up with ideas, but how do you know which are the best ones, and which totally suck? Beyond that, how do you know which ideas are going to best benefit you and your business?

The key is to prioritise, and stay focused. Not everything is going to work out first time around. Take small, incremental steps to measure and reflect on the success of your ideas. The brilliant concept that threatens to distract today may not seem as important tomorrow and besides, you’re not going to change the world overnight.

Not that you should disregard the idea, of course. Studies show that incubation works when it comes to honing ideas. Use that to your advantage. Allow it space to breathe, and time to grow of its own accord.

As you finish projects, you will find yourself renewed with energy and motivation. That is the time when you should let yourself get carried away with a fresh idea.

Do the Work.

Do the work. It’s something you’ll hear us repeat again and again.

Whether you’ve quit your job to focus on creating your business, or are doing it in your off-hours, it’s critical that you find the rhythm that allows you to do your best work, set your schedule around it, and hunker down.

You can do all of the above, but unless you are committed to the work, what does it matter?

Currently, 80% of new businesses are failing. That’s a fact. To be part of the 20% that succeed, to break the status quo, you need to understand what you’re doing wrong, and change it. Otherwise, you’re just like the rest.