Service As A Strategy

Ever heard the saying, “Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country?”

That line was first delivered by John F. Kennedy during his 1961 inaugural address in Washington, D.C..

This statement, in the context of that time, the Cold War, social change, rising global tension, was meant to inspire patriotism. It was supposed to get people to be more selfless and have a sense of duty to serve their country.  It was intended to shift people from a sense of entitlement to a sense of responsibility and duty. Move people from What do I get? to What do I give?

Fast forward to today, I’m beginning to understand and believe that these very same principles apply directly to business. Now, I don’t claim to be a business expert. But in my short time navigating adulthood and business dealings, I’ve noticed a common thread behind most of my wins and the wins of people around me.

Most of those successes have occurred when people are in a service role.  When they’re fixing a problem, tackling an issue, lending a helping hand, and in some cases literally lending money i.e. angel investing in someone else’s idea.

Being of service is the common denominator.

So when you’re brainstorming your next venture, building something new, or refining what you already have, approach it from this standpoint:

Even if it isn’t the flashiest part of your idea, it should be at the core of it.

In business language, they call this value creation, which is something we touched on recently in our newsletters on Value Creation and Value Delivery. Strip down all those big words and business jargon, it’s simple:

Just figure out how to be genuinely useful. Do it consistently. Keep it front and center at all times. Build around it.

When you do that, money, success, recognition, and everything else you want to achieve, they all seem to follow right behind it.

With that said ask yourself not: what can I get from this?

Instead ask: how can I be of service through this?