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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