Purpose of Business

One of the most interesting articles that I read this week was Microlending: Toward a Poverty-Free World by Muhammad Yunus. He explained how the way we think about economics has influenced the way we view people, classifying some people as entrepreneurs, while categorizing others as fit for only labor. He says, "Today we would live in a different kind of world if economics had started out with the premise that all human beings are potential entrepreneurs, which they are. All that an individual needs is an opportunity." I've seen this firsthand in the lives of my daughters. If I give them the supplies, they will use their creativity to make something unique. As I'm typing this, my 5-year-old is gathering all the jingle bells in the house and comparing the tones they make with the bells that are attached to our Christmas stockings. That may not seem like something important to most people, but I know that she is developing an ear for music, and comparing tones like that will help her to sing better and closer to the tunes she hears. I think that as humans, we tend to look for opportunities for growth and creativity all around us. Yunus' article demonstrated his faith in people as he created a lending institution that gave small loans to the poor, those who couldn't qualify under the normal credit qualifications. He gave opportunities to people to help them get started on their financial journey. Sometimes, all we need is a little encouragement and opportunity.
He continued his article with his belief that we could create a poverty-free world, if we want to. We went to the moon! The only reason we don't have a poverty-free world is because people haven't come together in order to solve the problem.

Thoughts on the article What's a Business For?

Virtue and integrity are so vital to the economy because everything tends to fall apart when lying and deceit are brought to light. When the public finds out about a scandal, something like embezzling, stock prices drop and spending comes to a screeching halt. When business leaders short-change their company in the short-term, it affects many people for many years.

The real justification for the existence of businesses is not just to make a profit. It is to make a profit so that the business can then go on to do something more, or something better. That something can be any number of things, from giving back in some way, bettering the lives of it's customers, or even creating a company culture in which people enjoy working.

I agreed with the idea of creating a shorter work week. I've seen many businesses that have meetings  simply to have meetings. Nothing productive is discussed or decided on, but a meeting was scheduled, so they have the meeting. If the work week was less hours, those hours would likely be more productive, because people would be happier for having more time with their families, or spending time on hobbies that they enjoy. If you knew you only had 6 hours at work each day, you would probably be more motivated to accomplish the necessary tasks, rather than filling extra hours with fluff, or just counting time.

Another idea from the article that I could see working well is having a good portion of the seats on the supervisory board of a business reserved for the employees, rather than only management positions. This would help to bridge the gap between what the company wants to have done, and what is actually being done by those who accomplish the work. Needs could be explained, and a better consensus could be reached by knowing the entire picture.