Build Your Company, Grow Your People
We shape our buildings; thereafter they shape us.
- Winston Churchill
In one of the final raids of London during World War II, the House of Commons was badly damaged, eventually leading to a discussion of whether or not to rebuild just as it had been, or to modify the design as some Members wanted. They argued that the number of Members the House needed to accommodate had grown since the original building was designed, and so here was an opportunity to add enough seating for everyone. The building as it was, had opposing seating on two sides that when full, (as when important issues were on the docket), led to often contentious debates exacerbated by the uncomfortable seating situation.
Churchill, having served in the House for decades, understood the importance of that contentious debate in matters of extreme importance, along with how the building's design helped to amplify certain behavior. He argued for keeping the building as it was, “restored in all essentials to its old form, convenience, and dignity.”
It was rebuilt to its original form.
How often have you heard a founder or entrepreneur describe what they are doing as “building a company?” Built systems are an extremely helpful shorthand when describing our companies. They start with digging into an existing problem or need and understanding it on a deep level. From that understanding rises a vision that addresses the problem or need, and plans of how to accomplish it emerge. Parts and pieces need to come together. An office space, computers, an engineering team. Then, with a nod to Winston, as our companies take shape, they also begin to shape us. The company culture appears as a result of how the pieces are arranged.
There’s a benefit in imaging our companies in this way. It allows a certain measure of control. If we aren’t moving closer to our vision, it’s because we’ve got the wrong pieces, the wrong arrangement, or some combination of the two. We can tweak and adjust and notice how things change in the hope of moving closer to what we want.
The built systems metaphor is useful at certain scales, (especially when dealing with quantities, ie. how many hires will we need to make if we double next year) and up until a point. Normally it’s when the pieces start behaving differently than what we had planned for. There’s nothing more frustrating than coming up with a plan, arranging the pieces ever so carefully, and finding that one of the pieces isn’t following the plan at all.
This is because certain pieces of a company aren’t pieces at all, they’re people. And people aren’t built, they grow.
I wouldn’t coax the plant if I were you.
Such watchful nursing may do it harm.
Let the soil rest from so much digging
And wait until it’s dry before you water it.
The leaf’s inclined to find its own direction;
Give it a chance to seek the sunlight for itself.
Much growth is stunted by too careful prodding,
Too eager tenderness.
The things we love we have to learn to leave alone.-Naomi Long Madgett
Naomi touches on a more useful metaphor in describing people, not as pieces and parts but as living systems. Ones that require certain conditions around them in order to grow successfully. Feedback, space to try and to learn, encouragement, etc. are the conditions to be monitored and adjusted. It’s not the responsibility of the one creating the conditions to physically move the person along, only the person can choose that for themselves.
Shifting to a living system framework requires a certain amount of letting go of the control that the built system provides. However, under the right conditions, with the right amount of water and sunlight, people will flourish on their own.
At Reboot, we create the conditions for people to grow as leaders and as humans and work through the challenges of building a company.
