Here’s a brain dump on how I think about C4E and who we are and what we do and where we want to be.
Disclaimers.
- This is a brain dump.
- This is how I think today. Now. 22 Mar. 19:51 PM.
- Could change / evolve with time.
- Not seen by anyone else yet.
So, among other things, I want to establish C4E as [1] a great business to [2] do great business with.
And a [3] collective of businesses, each with the same ethos, each a part of the cult, each tapping into the same resource pool. Each with an intent to be larger than C4E!
So three things.
- [1] Great business – C4E has the greatest people.
- [2] Do great business with – C4E does great work, if not the greatest.
- [3] A collective.
Lemme talk about each of these.
Wait.
Before I take up these things, have to repeat what Naval Ravikant says: “Play long-term games with long-term people.”
We MUST be long-term people for each other at C4E. And for our clients. And we MUST play long-term games.
Coming back…
[1] Great business – is one that is made of great PEOPLE.
Where people trust, value, and respect each other. Where each person is treated like a person. And not like an object / a thing / OHR ID. The #culture must speak for itself.
At C4E each person MUST chase their respective bliss. Each with an opportunity to do great work in a safe space. Each paid as much as they’d like to be. Or enough to afford the lifestyle of the top 1%. Each with the freedom to work how they want, when they want, on what they want.
Each is a part owner. Each with their skin in the game. Each with ability to live their life the way they want to. Or as we call this in our culture book, each with the ability to choose their own adventure.
At C4E, each person must tap-dance to “work” each day. Each person must “want” to work harder than anyone else. Not because they are expected to. But because they want to. And of course, work smart. More importantly, each has a lot of fun while they work.
So, people first. ALWAYS.
If people at C4E are engaged, they are in the zone, they are inspired to do great things, we as a business would do well. Even if the times are hard and projects are tough.
You know #c4eCult
[2] Do great business with.
This is simple. We at C4E HAVE to a great business to work with (if not the greatest). While this great / greatness is tough to measure, I believe that a good metric could be…
- repeat clients
- referrals
- number of heated conversations
While we may not be good / best / brilliant at what we do, HAVE to be the MOST relentless, resourceful, flexible, polite, honest, straightforward, hardworking, smart-working, jugaadu team.
PS: EACH word here has been used after a LOT of thought (which is unlike me).
And while we do all of the above, we HAVE to be the team that stands by clients through thick or thin. You know, like, friends in need. We want to be around our clients come hell or high water. Our clients often find us standing two steps behind. If not next to them.
We are your wartime consigliere. We are the ones that you can lean on. We will hold your flag high. We will give it all we have. In the words of Will Smith, we are not afraid to die on the treadmill. We will NOT be outworked. Especially when you need us.
PS: we are VERY VERY selective about whom we work with. Even though we are small and it’s tough to survive on a day-to-day basis, we are sure about not saying yes to anyone whom we dont get the right vibes from!
So that.
Happy people.
Better work.
It’s that simple.
[3] A collective.
I am VERY very sure about this. C4E may look like a marketing / communications agency right now, we are MUCH MUCH more than that. We are like a group of superheroes. A collective of people with the grandest brains, unbridled ambition and keeda to do more.
Always buzzing with energy, ideas and all that. Always willing to fire before we take aim. Always wanting to do more.
Each person at C4E HAS to be special. Each has to build a thriving business with C4E as its incubator. Each must use C4E as a sandbox. Each must take energy from each other and catapult each other higher than what each could individually do!
Right now, some of these that I can talk about are Purple Pencil Project, The Red Sparrow, The Podium, Decoding Draupadi, Titan CS, LHV and others. Right now, C4E is bigger than the sum of these. Some day, each of these HAS to be bigger than the whole of C4E. See this tweet by Elon Musk.
So that.
Recapping…
C4E has to be a great business to do great business with. And we are a group of tightly-knit, exceptional people, giving our best shot at solving tough problems. And while we do that, we are trying to chase our respective bliss!
If you think you want to be a part of this, come join us! We are really good people to work with!
Really.