One sure sign that you're on the path of an entrepreneur is the common dynamic that by solving one emergent problem you often create two others; for example, you solve for expediency in one way by creating higher costs and more risk in another way. Of course, the mark of the entrepreneur is both to know that you've created those problems and also knowing that they'll have to wait to be addressed until the customer experience is improved.
If you come home at the end of the day with a bunch of extra problems, it's a sign you're on the creative journey. I'm not saying it feels great every day, but consider the other side--to expect fewer and fewer organizational problems over time is also to suggest that the business model is decaying at a predictable pace (call it a kind of organizational half-life).
Here's where I'm going with this--as we walk along this journey, it's OK to have a sense of humor and optimism about the process itself. Without it, the creative process can be overwhelming in a time of national trauma on so many other topics. Laughter remains the best medicine as you go about building something and sometimes, when you think you've failed, you might very well be working your way through the process. Congratulations.
Clark Twiddy, President of Twiddy & Company, is the author of our Leadership Corner, published on our blog the third Tuesday of each month. He can be reached at ctwiddy@twiddy.com.
