The Secrets of Small Giants with Bo Burlingham

Jun 26, 2018

Just over 10 years ago, Bo Burlingham wrote Small Giants - a book about “companies that choose to be great, instead of big.” Now Small Giants is a movement, a community, and an annual Forbes list. Kevin talks to Bo about the rise of entrepreneurship, his personal journey, and the role of purpose in doing business differently, and succeeding.

• There was a time not that long ago when “entrepreneur” was an insult. Bruce tells his story, from becoming a magazine writer, to being one of the first journalists to focus on entrepreneurship before it was a respected business path.
• Small Giants was inspired by Zingerman’s, a company you may recognize from a previous episode. When Zingerman’s was a young up-and-comer, they had the opportunity to franchise, but found a new and different way to grow – by launching a series of totally unique and high-quality businesses.
• Bo began wondering if there were other companies that had made similar choices – to focus, not on becoming as big as possible as fast as possible, but on something more important. This was the question behind Small Giants, and Bo’s decades of research in small business journalism helped him discover some shining examples of just this kind of business.
• The first key feature of successful, purposeful business is creating a deep link to the community you’re in. Bo shares the other 5 qualities that he identified in entrepreneurial leaders who achieved real success while also pursuing goals beyond the profit margin.  
• Catch up with Bo through his website, or check out another movement inspired by a different book he wrote, The Great Game of Business.
• If you or someone you know is interested in bringing the benefits of Small Giants’ secrets to your enterprise, let us know! Email Kevin at [e-mail].

 

An Extraordinary Experiment

Thank-you for listening to this episode of the Higher Purpose Podcast. Remember, if you ever think that your work could be less ordinary, there’s not much between you and something extraordinary. Just 13 weeks, and a bold experiment. Find out more about the Extraordinary Experiment here!