Business principles: The idealism trap

It is easy for soloists, particularly new ones, to be aggressively attached to their beliefs and business principles. But what if those beliefs are too limiting?

This characterises the Idealism Trap, along with a dogged pursuit of lofty ideals, while dismissing the positives of reality and others’ beliefs.

This inevitably results in lost opportunities. Socially, this is known as possessing “limiting beliefs”.

Many new solopreneurs have come from the corporate world where values and beliefs were not quite aligned with those of our former employers. We are determined to make things work for us our own way and prove to the suits that there is an alternative approach to business principles.

Proving a moral point in business is absolutely impressive and necessary. And who better to do it than solopreneurs? Many have endeavoured to correct the moral shortcomings of their former employers and have done an amazing job.

However, over time, it can be far too easy for us to get totally consumed with our own ideals while ignoring the positives and wisdom of other less “acceptable” beliefs or business principles. As a result, we fall short of making our point in the desired manner.

This comes as a consequence of falling into the idealism trap. And this can result in us not being as fulfilled or as happy with our careers as we would like.

As an example, a solopreneur client of ours we were recently working with was keen to spread the word about her exciting new venture. We suggested that she consider an email newsletter because she had vast amounts of intellectual property that would be of significant value to any reader in her industry. She passionately declined to even consider the option. Curious, we probed. She responded by telling us a story about her former employer who used to dump volumes of promotional material via email to people who hadn’t even requested it. She went on to tell us about the eruption of complaints that flooded the company as a result. The experience tarnished her faith in online marketing. She vowed never to adopt the practice in her business. While sympathetic, we were still perplexed.

After a long conversation, we started to enlighten her about the sheer power and potential of online marketing and, when used honorably, how it could work wonders for her business. It took a little while, but once we explored the technique blow-by-blow and how we could make it work with her business and her morals, she was delighted and couldn’t believe she nearly lost one of the most vital channels to gain the type of exposure that would have taken her decades to achieve otherwise.

She can now let people know how to use online marketing in a more responsible and proiftable manner thus making people more likely to respect and adopt her ideals and practices. This is obviously much more significant than doing nothing at all.

It is absolutely imperative to continually keep in-check with reality (or what is widely accepted as being “real”). Here are some business principles to make sure you’re not drifting too far into the land of lofty ideals:

Look at the people or other organisations who are doing the things you dissaprove. List three wise things about the technique and their belief. List precisely how those three things could work well for your business.
Adopt advisors (paid or unpaid) who like to keep things “real” and have them make suggestions on ways you can improve your business. It’s great if they understand your beliefs but more important for them to have their own. They must be generally optimsistic.
List the things you could potentially lose if you were to stick to your guns with all your beliefs. Are they really worth it? Really?
Ask yourself: Would you do better to creatively combine your beliefs with something you would normally dissaprove of? Would this help you make your point sooner and on a larger scale?

Dreams and ideals are wonderful things to have especially when we want to make a difference, and be fulfilled. But they can work against us in many ways if we are blinded by them. We, and the rest of the world, have more to gain if we sometimes combine our ideals with things we dismsiss as being “wrong”.

Paul J. Morris is an information systems strategist. This incredible title means that he helps businesses become more efficient at what they do while keeping them on track with their goals.

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Limiting beliefs must be checked in on regularly...Left unchecked they can pose a huge blockage in moving forward. A particularly good time to review them is when making that transition from corporate to soloist...The worst thing we can do is bring across to our solo worksplace those limiting beliefs that were developed throughout our suited life. And from my experience there are many. So, here's an idea to rid ourselves of them...Write them on individual sheets of paper, place them in a jar of water put the cap on, place them on your desk and watch them slowly dissolve over time. Alternatively, set fire to the buggers! Cheers...Tim. Tim Reid from Australia | Read my articles
I watch for the times where I feel myself judge a person, situation or organisation. When I feel myself judging (creating a limiting belief!) I stop and ask "what can I learn from this person? how can I integrate what they do well with my own belief or skills?".
Holding on too tightly to my own beliefs is stifling ... much better to explore what others have to offer. Linda Linda Anderson from Sydney, Australia | Read my articles
Being able to rise above being totally consumed with our own ideals can take a degree of emotional intelligence and self awareness. This doesn't always come easily but can definitely be worked on and improved.
By perceiving, expressing, understanding and managing our own emotions about our values and beliefs, we can then make the first step towards appreciating the richness in the beliefs of others. I've found that if I pause and quiet the voices in my head and truely reflect and understand another's point of view first, rather than pushing my own agenda instantly, that often my perspective and response is different. Cheers Heidi Alexandra Pollard, Leading Value Heidi Alexandra Pollard from Newcastle, Australia
It's a difficult balance - not allowing ourselves to become myopic Vs being true to our own standards - at the end of the day, though, if you're not true to your own standards, then you're no better than the corporate monster you've escaped. Grant Hyman from Sydney | Read my articles
You have to be guided by your values and ideals. Having standards means there are some things you won't do. Your values help you make true judgements.
That's what makes you different. Otherwise you are just a reactive person doing everything and anything you can to get the something you want. I don't think this is healthy. Carmen from Sydney
As a business owner I now have a greater appreciation and respect for some of my old bosses. I now understand why they would not give me an extra 48 hours to perfect something, or why they pressured me into 6 client visits in a day, when I felt I could only manage 4. It is now my decision to give 110% or not. Heather Smith from Brisbane

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