Here’s what I learned about business from counting corals and clams on the Great Barrier Reef.
It’s funny how things come about, how opportunities present themselves.
Are you the sort of person who jumps in and “just says yes” ?? or do you like to think about the pros and the cons before making a decision?
In business we need to be a bit of both, don’t we? Sometimes we absolutely need to analyse the pros and cons and sometimes we just “know” to say “Yes” and run with it.
A “Sliding Doors” moment
A few weeks ago a good friend sent me an invite to participate in a Citizen Science project at the Lizard Island Research Centre on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR).
Of course I’ve heard of Lizard Island as a super, duper luxurious destination resort. I hadn’t heard about the Research Centre (which is part of the Sydney Museum) nor had I heard of The Coral Sea Foundation.
The trip was part of the mid-year monitoring and documentation of this section of the reef and hosted by Dr Andy Lewis and Dr Cristiana Damiano. They have been monitoring this section of the Great Barrier Reef for more than 30 years – collecting data and analysing the stats.
It’s not just us in business who track and measure results.
Science is solidly based on empirical analysis and substantiation.
Lizard Island is known as Jiggurru to the Dingaal traditional owners and this unique area of the reef has felt the impact of multiple cyclones in recent years as well as a number bleaching events.
The trip would take place in June for 7 nights to and from Cairns (make own way to Cairns) with food, bed at the research centre, snorkelling gear and twice-daily outings on research vessels.
Making a quick decision
Sometimes in business – and in life – we just say “Yes”
This opportunity sounded amazing to me and truly, it took me about 2 seconds to decide “Yep, I’m in” – it took me a little longer to convince my partner it was a good idea for him to come as well.
I’ve snorkelled on some pretty fabulous reefs in a variety of locations over the years and thoroughly enjoyed watching fish, turtles and sharks, swimming with manta rays and looking at corals.
Why am I telling you about my Great Barrier Reef adventure in this money matters blog about business ?
First I want to share with you that the Great Barrier Reef is a truly magical ecosystem that sustains marine life and ocean health. If you want to see some of the amazing photos of our recent experience head to Coral Sea Foundation FB or IG pages.
Something happens when you measure and count and truly pay attention to what’s happening.
Does this sound familiar? In business we track and measure results and progress – and the same is true in science, in nature.
How would we know what’s really happening in an ecosystem like Great Barrier Reef if not for taking photos, if not for measuring and tracking over time.
It’s through looking at the data collected and the measured results over a period of time that we can monitor progress – whether in our business, or in the various reefs that make up the Great Barrier Reef
It was a busy time for us – snorkelling twice a day on different reefs to take photos, to count clams in sections of the reef marked out underwater with special marking measures and to photograph with cameras fixed with geo tracking functionality. We measured the size and shape of corals – all the “weeds” and the “good corals.”
The results?
Thousands of images have been uploaded to a global data base for analysis by scientists around the globe.
Parts of this section of the on the Great Barrier Reef have recovered alarmingly quickly – other sections have made no recovery.
The analysis now is to fathom out why the difference ?? Is it water temperature? rainfall? sunlight? is it where the coral and clam spores fell during spawning?
Sounds like business – doesn’t it? Why do some things work out the way they do and other initiatives not at all? Why does something work this week and not a year ago?
Competition is fierce
In one particular section of the reef that we went to – North Point – a remarkable recovery is taking place. It’s immediately apparent that the competition for growth is fierce as the clams and the different types of corals compete to “win” their space on the on the Great Barrier Reef.
Just like in business. The strong ones push out the smaller and weaker ones. How does the small one win out? – by morphing and adapting and changing to meet the new environment.
Niching vs Generalists
The scientists in the group had super niche speciality in their chosen marine biological field. They knew the scientific names of every fish, every coral, every clam, every turtle, ray, shark and more. Studying a niche aspect of marine science for 30+ years, gives an invaluable depth of knowledge and experience.
Sound familiar? Niche and focus in business also brings this same depth of knowledge and experience.
If you ever have the chance to participate in a project like this – and especially on the on the Great Barrier Reef I would highly recommend it.
This is me in the middle of the back row – one of 2 citizen scientists amongst a group of dedicated marine scientists.
Any questions about this project please let me know ingrid@healthynumbers.com.au
My guess is you are here because …..
My guess is that you are here because you are a business owner and what you really want – is to build and grow a successful business – whatever that means to you.
We know that business owners want to feel more confident when it comes to the money side of business.
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Having a successful business might mean making business decisions with reliable information – facts & data as well as your “gut feel.”
… ultimately you want to do what you do best AND have a successful business AND make a difference.
I’m here to help you.
Everything I do in my business, every decision I make is based on this question:
Will this make a difference? Will this help you, my listener – will this help you to build your business? will this help you to create your successful, viable and robust business so you can achieve Financial Independence?
This is why I do what I do
There are 2 ways you can access all my best material:
I regularly run webinars on a range of money related topics:
- Managing Cash Flow so you never run out of money
- Understanding where your money goes – getting those expenses sorted out
- Understanding the Profit First book
- Pricing – getting it right for your studio
- The things you need to know before signing a commercial lease
- How to make more money
- … and many other topics
If you’d like the replay of any of these recent webinars, please email me ingrid@healthynumbers.com.au and put “Replay” in the subject and let me know which one you’d like to watch. I’ll send you the link to the replay
AND
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The book is your step by step guide to building a business smarter and faster.
“So You Want to Start a Business”
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Happy reading!
What is your biggest question right now? – and feel free to ask me anything about my trip to the on the Great Barrier Reef
Let me know – click here.