Monday, March 11, 2013

Could you handle the Shark Tank?


Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power.  ~Abraham Lincoln

One of my favorite TV shows is Shark Tank.  Each time I watch it I discover that I'm thinking that it deserves to be the topic of a blog post on leadership.  If you've seen the show, you may not be thinking the same thing.  If you haven't seen the show, it's a fairly simple concept.  There are five millionaire/billionaire venture capitalists ready to invest in any worthy business idea.  The inventors or entrepreneurs have only a few minutes to present their idea and ask for an investment in exchange for a percentage of their business.  This is followed by a few minutes of Q&A from the five venture capitalists. 

Each attempt/transaction is completed in minutes.  I realize that TV involves a great deal of editing, but in this case, the "pitch" appears to happen with no breaks or editing and is completed in probably less than five minutes.  Each entrepreneur is given only 15 minutes (including commercials) for their pitch and Q&A.  There are many aspects of the show that intrigue me, but what continues to amaze me is how quickly the Sharks (venture capitalists) come to a conclusion about the entrepreneur's character.  On a number of occasions I've seen one of the Sharks say, "I think your idea is okay, but I really like you so I'm going to invest in you."  I've also seen just the opposite happen a number of times.  In this case the Shark might say, "I really like your idea but I don't want to have to work with you so I'll offer you X dollars to buy your entire company."  Or, I believe just last week several of the Sharks responded with, "I don't trust you.  I'm out."

This evaluation of their character happens in minutes, not hours, days, or even months.  Of course, they have to make a characterization this quickly because that's all the time they are given.  Do we come to conclusions about individual's character that quickly as well, even when we're not put under an incredible time constraint?  And are people coming to conclusions about our character just as quickly?  I think the answer is yes.

These entrepreneurs walk into the Shark Tank thinking they've been given a great deal of power.  After all, they are meeting with five high profile venture capitalists ready to invest.  But their character becomes quickly evident once they begin to sell their idea.  Are they being fully transparent?  Do they have integrity?  Are they authentic?  Are they competent?  Can they be trusted?  Do they have the passion it will take to make their idea a success?

Daymond John, one of the Sharks, has been described as: "He's not only successful, he's honest and he knows investing in a company means investing in a person."  Mark Cuban, another of the infamous Sharks, is characterized as: "A man of his stature and influence still considers character to be an essential requirement for investment."

My somewhat unorthodox example of character provides a metaphor all leaders should consider. If you were given power, would someone invest in your character?

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