Penguins are my favorite animals. Anytime I have the opportunity to visit them at a zoo I will ALWAYS take it to watch them frolic around and flap their little wings splashing around in the water and waddle around on land.  It always makes me laugh and puts a smile on my face. I’ve even been fortunate enough to watch the famous little “ferry penguins” do their little dance in Southern Australia as they come in from the sea at night!

Starting a business is a lot like how the Emperor Penguin brings its baby into this world.  They take a trek out to a remote place in the Antarctic where the female will lays a single egg, which is incubated by the male while the female returns to the sea to eat.  The parents will then take turns going out to sea to feed and caring for their chick in the colony.

I like this analogy for starting a business. You decide to take a journey. You (and maybe a partner, or partners) create your baby –i.e.: the egg.  You then sit on that egg and endure freezing cold weather, hunger, and possible death to ensure that safety, warmth, and hatching of your egg. Just like in business, you do everything necessary to make sure that your new company hatches.  Even after your baby hatches, it takes a year before the baby down goes away and the adult water resistant feathers grow in and during that year you are very vulnerable to be eaten by a fox, or die from cold or even worse, hunger. Just like in business the first year or years are the hardest, and when you are most vulnerable. It is the creator’s job and duty to ensure that you grow up all safe and sound for you to be able to fend for yourself.

Penguins have been doing this year after year as have entrepreneurs and there is a lesson to be learned from these happy little flightless birds!

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This past weekend I spent some time in the Northwood’s of Wisconsin.  As I was kayaking across a serene lake in the Sylvania national forest I was instantly brought a bit of business inspiration.

Trees in the forest start out as a tiny little seed.  White Pines, Ash, Poplar, Maple, Oak, etc. When they start out they fight for light from the competition, much like businesses when they are quite young. They have to struggle to grow from a fragile little sapling, when the deer and animals want to munch on their fresh little leaves, or even get trampled by a hiker or a bear.  But as they continue to grow, much like business as they seek for the light and fight their way to the top. The strongest, and best grow until someday hundreds of years later a logger wants to come and cut down that tree because of its beauty, and size and cash in from the sale. Much like businesses, they grow from a small little company fighting there way until they grow up to be strong substantial companies with shareholders, board members, and maybe even a potential sale.

A tree starts as a seed, and so does a business.  Growing that business from seed to fully-grown tree takes many years, nurturing, and patience.

Remember that each tree had to fight its way to be, and so will you with your business.

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