ShipShape To A Friendly Shore
Mother earth’s surface is made up mostly of water and that water carries all kinds of ships. We too are made up mostly of water. So what are the ships we carry? Let’s explore this question in the context of business and life.
Companionship, Partnership, Ownership, and Entrepreneurship
Generally speaking, in life we seek companionship. It feels both comforting and reassuring to be part of a crew. Meanwhile, leagues deeper than companionship is partnership. Think of your current first mate, if you are fortunate to have one, and how it felt when you both realized you wanted to haul up your anchors simultaneously and set sail together. What a feeling! We all need partnerships for those big challenges that captivate us. Those partnerships go beyond the formal business ones as they include all the relationships that allow us to chart exciting courses while exhibiting sportsmanship. Beluga-sized games in life take partnerships to succeed. And while those partnerships may often feel fugacious, when all hands on deck work with a sense of ownership, a successful voyage is just beyond the horizon.
All our ships embark on long seafaring journeys into the unknown. Entrepreneurship sets sail into a future replete with a sense of not knowing what is to come. On that particular ship, again we may long for something fathoms beyond companionship. We need partnerships with others, whether they be clients, service providers, co-workers, interns or family members. Business can be a lonely experience, especially when laden with hardships due to troubled waters. So why not embrace shipmates to ride out the storms?
Stewardship, Mentorship, and Leadership
Today’s college students are resourceful, confident, empowered, and savvy. At their fingertips, more is available than ever before. Communication is instantaneous, information is ubiquitous, and opportunities are endless. The gulf between their experience and yours when you were in college is extraordinary.
In five short weeks, Agile Rainmakers’ Summer Riptide - our powerful internship program - begins with college students becoming interim shipmates on the Agile Rainmakers’ cruise. This is the fulfillment of a many months-long bi-directional courtship whereby Agile Rainmakers offered a compelling opportunity that was equally matched or exceeded by the students’ craftsmanship. While the focus is on the stewardship of each client, success will depend on each student fully owning their internship. Though they seek mentorship, they really don’t want to be told what to do. Who does? Students today wish for freedom and abundance. So, designing autonomy is essential.
In creating an apprenticeship, keeping all of this in mind leads to a highly productive partnership with the students. Championship level performance is often felt and achieved here. Leadership designs the internship program so there is integrity in the execution of the philosophy - freedom and abundance - for this two-month summer adventure. The danger of not doing this preparatory design work is the experience can become boring and discouraging. In that scenario, there could be lots of gamesmanship and brinksmanship as a mutiny unfolded. This could force leadership into a dictatorship as the cruise ends up shipwrecked. To avoid all this, plan ahead from a context of stewardship and leadership. This will not only lead to success but also long-term friendships and quite possibly future sponsorships.
On A Friendly Shore
As you can probably surmise from this showmanship of some of the vessels we found that traverse on our waters, as captain you have a choice as to whether your ships are going to be warships or love boats. Even today, some view business and life as a war and miss out on life’s sweetest reward. When your ships are embracing others with love and you let them float, they will indeed float back to you. However, don’t expect the process to be linear. Non-linearity is actually the norm in life - linearity is a mirage. If you can embrace this view, you can set yourself up for positively skewed adventures that dock on many friendly shores.
The interns will be outstanding shipmates to each other and they will leave client projects in ship-shape condition. For leadership, it will take salesmanship to bring in great projects so all shipmates can showcase their craftsmanship.
Will you please examine all the ships in your life and find a way to enjoy them to the fullest? This includes those of you who may be dealing with receivership.
In the meantime, I invite you to contemplate my digital penmanship. Has it positively impacted viewership?
Ahoy, time to jump ship. Bon voyage!
Here's to you and your awesome future.
Until then, keep your feet on the board and keep riding your wave!
Robert J. Khoury
CEO Agile Rainmakers