The character of enterprise
What is an enterprise? What is your enterprise? How do you align it to your purpose and realise it through your practice? What does it take to be enterprising?
Since February 2020, our public education program – the Game Changers Podcast series – has hosted conversations with educators, entrepreneurs and enterprise leaders all over the world dedicated to exploring what it takes to be a game changer – a bold pioneer who doesn’t ask for permission but, instead, charts a way forward in the new world environment.
So much of our human condition, the values that we bring to it, and the questions that we ask are enduring: who am I? Where do I fit in? How can I best serve others? Whose am I?
Yet we know that there is something about taking the big step forward and up in our own time that is different. Our world is moving fast and there are megatrends that are influencing how we relate, connect and achieve which make the game of life uniquely challenging.
Our conversations with over 250 guests, with nearly a million episode downloads in four and a half years, have tried to capture stories of adaptive expertise and self-efficacy, of the character, competency and wellness it takes to thrive and succeed, not by simply improving that which we already have, but by innovating – creating something new that allows us to become better versions of ourselves.
In doing so, we’ve learned much about enterprise – we know, in particular, that an enterprise doesn’t stand still. It’s constantly searching for an opportunity to be and become more.
In this way, an enterprise is more than just a particular type of entity. It’s about the quality and dynamism of initiative that is demonstrated by those within the entity. It’s about the character of the people who comprise the beating heart of a structure and convert potential into movement.
The character of those who drive an enterprise is most often observable as a combination of the willingness and capacity to take what we call “the big step forward and up”. It begins from a default position that both acknowledges and instinctively makes its way beyond the status quo. It shifts the focus from improvement to genuine innovation in purpose and practice.
The voice of the enterprising is always future facing. It is willing to speak to a prophetic vision for what must be and argues coherently about the changes that need to happen to make this real. It demonstrates the capacity to see what others don’t and find the right words to express a bold hope that together we might make our way forward to something better.
The agency of the enterprising is both inventive and resilient. It shows a willingness to seek out and adopt a practical wisdom that helps us to find the right pathway for now and for times to come. It reveals a capacity to bring people on board, form and unite a team, develop a plan, give it a go and make it happen.
The advocacy of the enterprising embraces those whose needs have not yet been met. There is a willingness to understand why new solutions are required that complements a capacity to create and deliver a benefit to others that defines the difference that must be made.
The minds of the enterprising are restless and their energy is palpable. This energy defines their leadership more than anything else and powers the entity in all dimensions. In this way, the character of the enterprise leader infuses the character of the enterprise.
We teach who we are and we lead from the core of our being. If we are equipped with the willingness and capacity to be enterprising, then those around us will follow our lead. After all, the impact of the best and most effective leadership can be witnessed in the energy transfer that flows throughout the enterprise.
Let’s go!
Phil