What i did not realize however was that the business was not a living thing

Business Lessons from Humpty Dumpty

Let's revisit this old nursery rhyme. If I remember it right, it goes like this:

"Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall. Humpty Dumpty had a great fall. All the king's horses and all the king's men couldn't put Humpty Dumpty back together again."

The Humpty Dumpty effect or syndrome happens when we try to fix an unfixable situation and end up breaking more than what was broken in the first place. In business, this is nothing new. We businessmen often fall "too deeply in love" with their businesses. This isn't exactly a "bad thing;" however sometimes, when our businesses starts to fail, many of us go to unreasonable lengths to try to save a lost cause. This actually happened to me back in 2003…

"Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall"

In May of 2001, I was convinced, by a friend's passionate plea, to put up an I.T. Hardware business with him. We got off to a rocky start; but eventually we were ale to close several deals and make a lot of money. Needless to say, I became passionate about this business as well.I started to love the business like it was a member of my own family. I spent endless hours thinking of ways to grow the business and bring it to its full potential. I would talk to friends about my business like a proud father talking about a favorite son or daughter. What I did not realize, however, was that the business was not a living thing.

"Humpty Dumpty had a great fall"

During the second quarter of 2002, I entered into what I thought was the "deal of the century!" If the deal had pushed through, my company would have earned more than 20 million pesos; but that was not to be. Instead of earning, I had lost 9 million pesos because that deal was actually some sort of scam.My company's net worth, at that time, could have covered our losses if we had decided to fold up early. My partner tried to convince me to cut our losses and close the company. I would have none of it. Instead, I tried to revive the business by getting loans to finance my losses. It was a bad move. I had now slipped into the Humpty Dumpty syndrome.

"I couldn't put Humpty Dumpty back together again"

My partner eventually left the company; and as he left, I called things that can't be printed in this article. I justified my actions by saying that I was doing this for the employees. The truth was, however, that I was doing this only for myself… out of pride.

On the 23rd of February 2003, I had no choice but to close the business. I had racked up a staggering debt of over 8 million pesos; I lost my house and other assets; and my children were forced to stop schooling. All my former employees were able to find jobs within a week of the company's closure and my creditors were breathing down my neck.

"I had to leave Humpty Dumpty behind"

The period from 2002 to 2005 would probably be the worst four years of my life; but they also taught me many invaluable lessons about life… and about business. Eventually, I would recover and get my life back on track; but before that happened, I had to change my attitude about business and my reasons for doing it.

The Humpty Dumpty syndrome is all about "pride;" the wrong kind. Sometimes, having too much pride can blind you from your true goals as entrepreneurs. Once we fall into this trap, we focus on the wrong things, like securing loans instead of trying to sell, paying those loans instead of improving your product or service, and dodging creditors instead of servicing the client.

Here are some things we have to keep in mind to avoid the Humpty Dumpty effect:

• Our businesses are established to help us and others; not the other way around. If the business ends up hurting us and others, then it hasn't served its purpose.
• Our business isn't a living thing. Don't fall in love with it. Learn to cut it loose when you have to.
• We also have to remember that money is only a tool in achieving our goals. Regaining "lost money" should never be our motivation for doing anything. It's like losing a screwdriver down a cliff. You wouldn't risk your life trying to retrieve that fallen screwdriver, would you?
• People are more important than any business. Don't lose your friends over a business.