Of course, it’s because they warm to your offer and enjoy dealing with you. But how do you achieve that? Well, by following the usual (and sensible) advice: Be yourself! It also has the advantage that the truth is the easiest thing to remember. If you try too hard to fit in, you end up coming across as unclear. On the other hand, if you maintain a clear line, it builds trust. That is the essential foundation for all business.

Here in Stockholm, there is a restaurant Knut that serves as a good and educational example. It is called Knut and is located at Regeringsgatan 77 (2016). The owner and founder is Martin Sjölander. He started his first restaurant on Upplandsgatan in 2013. This was fortunate, as it allowed him to establish himself and get the business up and running before the coronavirus pandemic struck.

The restaurant's focus:

Knut serves northern Swedish cuisine with one foot in the wilderness and the other in civilization. Both inspiration and ingredients come from his roots in northern Sweden.

Business is based on trust. That's why you need to know who you are as the founder of a business, because it leaves its mark. Unconsciously or consciously. If you send inconsistent signals, you become unpredictable, which does not create trust. That's why it's important to have a distinct understanding of your personality, because then you can consciously develop and nurture your brand. For example, take this into account when hiring, designing your website, and so on.

Such mistakes can cause big bad consequences, e.g.

– you lose money and time. Very often a lot!
– the best personnel quit
– competitors take advantage of your mistake
– etc

Why is this important? Well, good collaboration requires trust. In fact, a Harvard study identifies what characterises the most profitable companies. Long-term relationships. Long-term relationships with customers, employees, suppliers, and partners of various kinds.

In that study, it is stated that there are actually only two things you have to prioritise the most. What are they? Well, trust and commitment, i.e. showing with your commitment that you want to help others.

If you recruit wrong, it creates a stream of problems...

In the bestseller book Good to Great by Jim Collins are decribed eleven successful companies in the USA. The companies have passed the criterion from Jim's research, during five years, to be the best in their industry for at least fifteen years, ie not due to "luck". There are some common denominators in why they have succeeded. One is that they are very careful about their recruitment. They even recruit no one, when they feel an insecurity, but can't put their finger on why…

Steve Jobs is said to have said: The first ten people who are employed in a company determine whether it will be a successful company or not...

On the website, under the Free knowledge tab and the For Leaders link, you can download a summary of Jim Collins' four books...