What makes an entrepreneur: Lessons in perspectives by Maa

My mother has a unique way to to look at things. I am a 48yo adult with 30 years of business experience, having founded, run, and consulted well over 2 dozen businesses in my career. But I am still shocked (pleasantly) by her take on things I thought were settled, at least in my mind.

This morning, we finished the last of the dozen mangoes she had purchased during the last visit of the fruit seller.

Now, readers need to know that she lives (in normal times) on an Alphonso orchard, which gives around 2,000 fruits every other season, enough for her to eat, preserve, sell, share (generously), and even let the birds (and the neighbour's children who come by to steal) have some. This year, because of a unique combination of quarantine, lack of labour, us stuck 30km away, and the water pump burning down, we not only have lost our crop, but we don't even know if we had one. Long story short, we had to buy most of the mangoes we ate for the first time in decades.

This particular dozen cost us Rs.600.

While speaking to her, she observed that two out of the dozen fruits were rotten, which she discovered after cutting them, and had to be discarded.

And then she produced a gem.

I was about to say, "That's Rs.100 worth of mangoes wasted." when she said, "That means each mango was worth Rs.60."

If you look at it, there is actually no difference between what she said and what I thought. But the difference is in the way she approached the same situation and the way I did, and hence consequently, the state of her mind at the end of the analysis was in a far better position than was mine.

I learned something new from her today. Perspective matters.

An entrepreneur will look at a situation and see what positives s/he can take away from it.

A manager will see it in terms of a bland P&L.

One is a hireable skill. One is not.

I am glad I have her genes.

Image: An old photo of my genetic extension (my daughter) giving no f***s about the cost of mangoes either way, as she polishes two off and holds on to two more possessively.

P.S: This is a light-hearted post. Please do not overanalyse. Thank you.