Zig & The Golden Rule

Posted on Apr 23, 2010 | 0 comments

Today I had the opportunity to meet one of the most influential business minds and motivational masters of all time – Zig Ziglar. At 83 years old, Zig is still the epitome of The Golden Rule and engages with whom he speaks in a laser focus fashion. Just minutes previously, he had made one of many statements on-stage that I immediately typed into my Blackberry. Zig said, “If I can’t teach it to someone else than I don’t read it” referring to his habit of reading 3 hours each day yet NEVER having read a novel in his life.

I walked away from my conversation with him thinking about the wisdom that he expressed in that single statement. In what I consider to be an extension of The Golden Rule, Zig’s view on his reading habits should apply universally to business. From a business perspective, if actions don’t result in the sharing of value or in the satisfaction of the people in whom we interact (customers and team members), should we be doing it?

I’m sure that you know the answer. Unfortunately, far too many companies build their systems and perform actions that are focused on selfish profit generation and less concerned about how those actions affect their customers or staff.