Before anyone gets their hackles raised accusing the title of being a sexist statement – it’s not. Simmer down Alan Alda and Gloria Steinem, it is a glorious idiom which uses gonads as a stand-in for a behavior. Having balls implies a devil-be-damned risk taking that not all people are willing to execute. It derives from the alpha male behavior of mating. He may get shot down fifty times, but he takes the risk that the fifty-first will be successful. A beta male may only attempt a few times before slinking back to the corner.
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| "Mate? Nah, I'll wait." |
The converse idiom should be, “Use your ovaries.” This doesn’t
imply weakness, but a nurturing behavior to protect what is important above all
else. Using your ovaries can represent self-sacrificing bravery versus wild
abandonment of reason.
Consider Amelia Earhart, she had balls. She knew flight was
possible, but knew it was a risky proposition to attempt to circumnavigate the
planet – and she did it anyway. She only risked her life and that of her
navigator. Amelia had confidence she would succeed. She had balls.
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| "Fly non-stop to Paris? I'm gonna fly around the World, Limbergh. You punk-ass bitch." |
On the flip-side, Joan of Arc used her ovaries. She defended
France like a mother bear. When the King of France, Charles VII, did not
protect his country from the English – Joan stepped in to lead an army. She
refused to see her beloved France fall to an enemy invader. Joan had ovaries!
In business, entrepreneurs typically have balls, while CEO’s
use their ovaries. Neither behavior is a negative as both have an important
place in business. It takes balls to risk it all on a new venture, but it
requires using your ovaries to protect what you have built. Not mutually
exclusive traits, but not always shared either.
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| "Todd, before we finish the merger, tell me, how are you feeling?" |
There’s a big difference between taking a risk and making a
gamble. Carl Icahn was recently heralded for making a $100 million investment
in Lyft. He is quoted as saying the investment was a “bargain.” Icahn’s
investment accounts for 0.42% of his reported $23.5 billion net worth. Icahn’s
investment neither required having some balls or using his ovaries. This was
substantially less by percentage than the investment Lyft founder John Zimmer
made in starting the company. For Icahn, It was a strategic gamble of less than
one-half percent of his fortune. Having some balls is spending $1,000.00 on an
idea when you only have $500.00 left in the bank. It’s not calculated, it’s not
wise, but it takes balls.
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| "He's a poor boy. Empty as a pocket. Empty as a pocket with nothing to lose." - Paul Simon |
So what happens when the entrepreneur doesn’t use their
ovaries and the CEO doesn’t have some balls? Typically a slip in relevance and
market share. When Jeff Taylor founded Monster.com he stated the company had a
Noble Purpose. He was determined to help people find a better job – and he
surrounded himself with like-minded staff. In 2014, Monster.com’s CEO Sal
Iannuzzi resigned after shares had fallen 43% in one year. The balls shown by
Jeff Taylor were overwhelmed by the CEO’s ovaries. The desire to serve the
customer, job seekers, was overshadowed by focusing on the shareholder. A shift
in corporate mantra led to a loss of the talent that helped Monster.com become
the cutting-edge tool for employment search.
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| "I used to be scary. SCARY AWESOME!" |
What can a company do to maintain relevance in a fluid economy? Have some balls. A good CEO is a manager – but a great CEO is a leader who employs people with balls. Those who have a risk-taking mentality with an entrepreneurial spirit. They bring with them a “why not” attitude and are willing to take responsibility if their idea fails. They understand working with a shoestring budget and know how to get the most out of the dollar spent. They focus on the success and not the ROI. People with balls thrive on continued success while those who use their ovaries protect what they already have without taking the risk to improve.
When a CEO focuses more on budgeting than expansion, the company's middle management will take this attitude to the extreme. Too often bonus plans are based upon coming in under budget rather than growth and client acquisition.
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| "We don't need customers, I cut the budget!" |
I overheard a member of the management team for a slowly dying restaurant chain tell an employee,
“We’d make a lot of money if we didn’t have to serve all these customers.”This attitude was driven by the company’s president focusing on reducing costs and maintaining budget rather than invest in ways to improve guest count. The company failed to recognize the growing competition in casual family restaurants and believed their reputation was enough to keep guests coming in. The innovators were pushed out while sycophants were promoted. Existing management has learned to keep their heads down and simply wait for retirement.
It’s time for business to get some balls and stop using their ovaries.
If you have questions regarding your business marketing strategy, feel free to contact me at darren@darrensomsen.com.
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