Come Back to Earth

Here are the statements from the two business advisors “from different planets” that got us thinking:

Advisor #1: “Everything is about the person. Their hopes, their fears, their families, their cars, their divorce. I focus on them, on what they need to do. I have their trust so I end up helping them with everything. I’m not an expert on financing, but I end up advising about financing. I’m not an expert on M&A, but I end up advising on deals…”.

Advisor #2: “In M&A situations, there is a momentum to deals. As it moves forward, people lose their perspective and may not analyze things as much as they should. They get emotionally invested in the deal. It may sound like psychoanalytical babble, but it’s OK to turn a deal down.”

The first advisor was willing to solve any problem with psychology and focus on the human factor. The second advisor was so focused on hard business logic that he felt he had to apologize for reminding people that emotions do get involved in business. These two statements highlight the differences between many business people and advisors we know. Both of these people are successful. They play to their individual strengths. But each has staked out a lop-sided business focus. While their comments make colorful sound bites, they are lacking balance–clearly, neither is the best way to advise a company.

Business success is not all about emotions and people, but neither is it all about cold, hard analytics. You probably have your own bias. You may feel more comfortable with people than with numbers—or visa versa. But neither is a good excuse to focus on one approach exclusively. To be effective with our clients and within our own organizations, we all need to find balance.

Make the effort to recognize your weaknesses; work hard to strengthen them; and make sure you round out your team to include people with different strengths. Here on Earth, balance is a good thing.

- Mary Adams and Michael Oleksak    2005