You, Inc., or Reasons to Think of Yourself as a Company
Many businesses have a number of advantages over individuals: strong brands, an expectation they’ll invest, a marketing department, market power and more. You can tap some of those advantages by thinking of yourself as a company: there’s you, and then there’s You, Inc.
Why would you want to do this? I often find looking at familiar issues in a new way can throw up better ways of doing things. There are many advantages to this way of thinking, across many areas of life:
- Your employer is your customer, not your master: your employer is a consumer of the unique services offered by You, Inc. Rather than you being lucky to have a job and fearful of losing it, they are lucky to have you. So long as the company performs, the customer should keep coming back for more. If it helps, think of yourself as a consultant brought in for your expertise in your area. And if you lose your customer (your job), then you’ll just have to find another customer, or perhaps more than one to give you greater resilience.
- Invest in You, Inc.: if you pump investment into your company, it should grow and generate better returns for you the shareholder. You might finally get around to doing some professional training or qualifications. Or consider diversifying your company by exploring a new area of interest or employment. Perhaps develop your financial, computer or language skills.
- Don’t take things personally: if you’re sensitive to criticism, imagining your own company creates a buffer layer between you and the negative comments. Any criticism is only of your company. While you may not like your company being criticised, it’s less personal than direct criticism of you. This slight detachment may also give you the space to respond appropriately and constructively rather than following your normal automatic response, which might be to lash out or to retreat.
- Better decision making: all companies have a mission statement. Developing a mission statement for You, Inc. will give you some guiding principles to refer to when faced with a difficult decision. Framing the decision in terms of which option is most in line with your company’s values and ambitions can make the way ahead appear clearer.
- Develop a marketing strategy: You, Inc. is never going to thrive in the marketplace if you don’t attract customers. Build your brand by getting yourself known in your field, both professional and personal, as demonstrating positive qualities you think are important. Socially you might want to be approachable, confident, friendly or helpful. Professionally you want the market to know that You, Inc. can be relied upon to do an efficient, high quality, punctual job.
- Regular dividends: If you think of yourself as a shareholder in You, Inc., you’ll be sure to pay yourself a regular dividend. If your salary is You, Inc.’s profit, you can ensure you save regularly by automatically paying yourself a dividend in the form of savings. Remember, according to the law a company’s foremost responsibility is to its shareholders.
There’s nothing to lose in trying this out as an experiment. Feel free to chalk up your successes in the comments.
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