Being an entrepreneur doesn’t mean you have to act like an asshole too
On March 7th, “Men with Pens” ran this article suggesting that entrepreneurs are basically control freaks with a bad case of ego hyper-inflation. It describes entrepreneurs as “the most difficult and frustrating people to deal with,” accusing them of talking over people, steamrolling anyone or anything in their way, and treating others pretty much as servants.
It makes for a fun read and the attached image is certain to catch people’s attention! But it isn’t true. What the writer is describing isn’t an entrepreneur, it’s a bona fide, pure bred Hamburger Manager in full cry.
Looked at in that way, the article is a wake-up call for all of us to stop putting up with these assholes, let alone praising and rewarding them for their anti-social, unpleasant behavior.
Here’s the description of an entrepreneur from the article. I couldn’t have done a better job of describing the typical product of a Hamburger Management outlook:
Me, me, me. I want, I want, I want. That’s all you hear from the entrepreneur’s mouth. They know everything (or think they do). They hate to be corrected, and they don’t like people arguing with them. The rest of us lesser mortals feel we can never reach the standards an entrepreneur sets.
Vision? What vision?
Because the writer is confusing entrepreneurs with Hamburger Managers, he gives them the benefit of at least coming up with “some kick-ass ideas.” Now that’s often true of genuine entrepreneurs — though the dictionary definition of an entrepreneur is “a person who organizes, operates, and assumes the risk for a business venture” (American Heritage Dictionary), or “a person who sets up a business or businesses” (Oxford English Dictionary).
The entrepreneur is the one who establishes a new business to turn an idea into a going concern, taking the (financial) risk. He or she doesn’t need to have the idea itself. Most entrepreneurs aren’t especially creative in that way. The skill of the entrepreneur is that of organizing and raising money, things most creative people aren’t very interested in.
So what?
None of this would matter much — at least not to anyone who isn’t pedantic about the use of the English language — if it was only a question of the correct use of words.
It isn’t.
We need entrepreneurs; we need them badly. They create new wealth and jobs. They revitalize the business community when it gets too weighed down with “play-safe” managers and corporate types, as it is at present. They build new markets and find fresh ways to exploit old ones, instead of listening to the bean counters and trying to make money by doing what everyone else does — only with the work outsourced to some country on the other side of the world to save money and cut corners.
What we don’t need is more Hamburger Managers. We have more than enough of them, and their self-aggrandizement and self-centeredness are ruining our economy and business environment.
What to do
Any asshole can become a Hamburger Manager — and a great many do. All it takes is a lust for self-promotion, a huge ego, blatant cheek, a complete lack of concern for anyone else, and the native decency of a sewer rat.
What the rest of us need to do is stop giving these weasels a free ride.
Too many people have lost the willingness to take a longer-term viewpoint on the business world. So long as we throw money at every short-term profit trick that comes along, Hamburger Managers will prosper. It’s their natural habitat. They don’t care for anything except getting what they want — which is usually money, recognition, power, a stage to strut on, and an entourage of toadies, more or less in that order.
If he or she can’t get things by rushing at them like a bull at a gate, the Hamburger Manager is just about lost. He or she is all action and nothing else. Don’t expect concern for other people. Don’t expect subtlety. Don’t expect patience. Above all, don’t expect any willingness to deal with the true complexity of the world. The Hamburger Manager sees every issue in black or white, with no shades of gray anywhere.
One of the unexpectedly negative consequences of today’s obsession with getting things done is that it plays right into the hands of every macho, grab-and-go, Hamburger type. They can certainly get things done, big time. Sadly, as in the whole credit/mortgage crisis, it is often all the wrong things. But, hell, they got them done, didn’t they?
Learning our lesson
If anything useful is going to emerge from our current economic mess, it ought to be the unmasking of Hamburger Managers who have been allowed to weasel their way into leadership positions. What has happened is the direct result of their mismanagement and incompetence. While ruthlessly making money (mostly for themselves) in the short-term, they stored up a “perfect storm” of consequences the rest of us are going to have to live with for some time ahead.
So don’t let’s confuse them with entrepreneurs and assume we have to put up with their unpleasant, worthless presence in executive suites. They have done nothing for anyone but themselves. The true lesson of the credit crisis is that there’s no fool like a greedy fool with a big ego and no scruples.
It’s high time we got back to using real entrepreneurs and their creative partners to run our businesses.
[ratings]
Technorati Tags: Hamburger Management, being an entrepreneur, why we need entrepreneurs, what ruining our economy and business environment, the willingness to take a longer-term viewpoint, today’s obsession with getting things done, the unmasking of Hamburger Managers, reasons for executive mismanagement and incompetence, egotistic leaders,
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March 10th, 2008 at 7:58 am
While your description is accurate, it does come across extra harsh in this article. I think your writing and impact are stronger when when you are more balanced in your approach.
Desertcat
March 10th, 2008 at 8:56 am
Thanks for your comment, Desertcat.
I understand what you say, but sometimes you just have to go with what you feel; and I feel that this is, in truth, rather a restrained description of the chaos and misery these people have inflicted on everyone else.
What makes it still worse is that they did what they did almost entirely for their own, personal benefit. I can easily forgive well-intentioned mistakes; not so deliberate self-enrichment without ethical scruples.
Sadly, I think that only legislation or government action can restrain those who would support their own greed at the public expense. I see no sign of either, at least in the short term.
I note that, in the last three decades, increases in personal wealth have fallen disproportionately to the richest segment of society, especially in the US. It’s a case of “to those that hath, more shall be given,” which is what tends to happen under a series of laissez-faire approaches to economic policy.
March 11th, 2008 at 7:34 am
At the risk of a political aside: I don’t think the US economics system has been “laissez-faire” for some time….The wealthy and big corporations have molded or manipulated the laws to their benefit for decades. They may be more subtle than the Railroad Barons of the 1800’s, but they are no less iron-fisted.
Again, I agree with what you said….but what series of syllables will change hearts and minds?
Desertcat
March 11th, 2008 at 8:15 am
Carmine,
Thanks for the link - I think, lol.
As I mentioned in the comments on my post, this is just one extreme form of entrepreneurs. There are many shades of gray in between. While it’s true there are many managers that fit this description (and I’ve run into my fair share of them. That’s why I’m working for myself now and not someone else), I’ve also worked with many entrepreneurs who also have these tendencies.
What a lot of people don’t realize is this particular mini-series started when my business partner - James Chartrand - decided to look up the personality profile for an entrepreneur. What he found wasn’t flattering at all, and he also discovered that his own personality matched a lot of the profile.
Yes, he can be selfish and headstrong at times, but he also has some of the best ideas. He’s also got the drive and desire to make things happen.
A Hamburger Manager to me is a wannabe entrepreneur. They want the glory and none of the work that goes behind it.
I whole-heartedly agree that this has to change in the corporate world. It’s the same no matter what company you work for, and it seems like it’s getting worse everyday. Sometimes I wonder how some of these companies manage to stay in business.
I’m sure James will be along sooner or later to put his two cents (Canadian)in - that is if he doesn’t get annoyed with having to jump through registration hoops to comment (sorry, but that’s a pet peeve with us).
Anyway, thanks for stopping by MwP, we appreciate it
March 11th, 2008 at 9:14 am
Thanks for your comment, Harry.
I agree that some entrepreneurs are Hamburger Managers and many Hamburger Managers are wannabe entrepreneurs who fail because they’re lazy and only look to the sort term. What I’m not so sure about is that there’s a causal link between the two.
Still, like you, I’m quite certain this all has to change, or we’ll end up in a worse mess that we are now. Heaven knows, that’s bad enough!
I’ll look forward to James adding his thoughts.
Sorry about the registration: just a response to a rash of comment spam.
Keep reading (and writing), my friend.
March 11th, 2008 at 12:21 pm
@Carmine: I’ve subscribed, so I will keep reading.
I don’t know if it ever will change, there’s always going to be those who want to take short cuts and make their gains on the backs of those of us who work hard for what we have. But you’re right, we do need to recognize them for what they are and not feed into it.
March 11th, 2008 at 12:27 pm
Okay, I’ve just spent over 25 minutes trying to figure out how to leave a comment here. If you’re reading this, it’s because I’ve finally made it. This is very, very frustrating and unnecessary. Askimet handles all spam. You also have database issues showing up in your comments.
Now that I’ve ranted (my apologies, but that really was a frustrating waste of time), onto the post.
I feel you’ve taken our small series on the classic personality profile of an entrepreneur and unjustly portrayed the posts out of context.
The post you mentioned was the third part in a series of exploring a typical entrepreneur’s personality profile.
Do some research on the matter: entrepreneurs are really not very socially adept people and tend to cause some issues for others around them. We explored this in our post of the Dark Side of an Entrepreneur.
However, entrepreneurs have incredibly bright sides and open up many opportunities for people. They also create innovative technology and help employ many people. We explored the Bright Side of an Entrepreneur as well.
The third post you refer to was written from the perspective of a person who must deal with an entrepreneur’s often over-enthusiastic method of work and the common lack of social skills that fit a classic entrepreneur profile.
Entrepreneurs do have dominant, controlling tendencies and they do have high levels of self-confidence, self-esteem and ego. While you claim our statements aren’t true, I’m afraid that – typically – they are We did not misstate that – that is fact and part of human psychology. Feel free to browse research and studies of the classic entrepreneur personality profile.
You mention we confuse entrepreneurs with Hamburger Management (what does that mean?) There is no confusion. You used a dictionary definition of an entrepreneur, while we were exploring the psychological profile definition – similar, but distinct. What an entrepreneur is and how he behaves are two separate things.
As for giving entrepreneurs a free ride… yes, you should. Entrepreneurs make valuable contributions to business and to the world. While they may be jerks, they offer much that many people benefit from each day.
Thanks for the link.
@ Harry – thank you for the kind words
March 11th, 2008 at 2:09 pm
Thanks for your comment, James
I’m not going to get into an argument, because I think we’re on the same side.
Just two points:
You accused me of not reading your whole series of posts. I could say the same, since Hamburger Management is something I’ve written about (and defined) at length.
You also say we should give entrepreneurs a break, because they’re valuable people. That’s what I wrote. I complained about about being too kind to Hamburger Managers, who I do not see as the same people.
I’m sorry you found the sign-in frustrating. You’re the first to complain, but maybe some others are simply giving up and not leaving comments. It’s useful feedback and I shall think about it carefully. Sadly, in my experience, Akismet doesn’t catch all the spam.
I know about the code problems. If only I could find how to cure them, I would get rid of them right away. I’ve asked people to help me, but with no response.
I am sorry if your comment suggests anger with what I wrote. Like you guys, I’m just saying what I think is right.