Big Hairy Audacious Goals

I haven't blogged in this site for quite some time now that we have launched manilakid.com. At first I thought of moving my blog there since I'm the executive director of Manila Kid. But I realized that most of what I write is personal and can sometimes be detached to the vision of Manila Kid so I decided to keep Triple Espresso Shots.

Speaking of vision, I was reading the Go Negosyo book earlier where they feature the top businessmen of today. It's really inspiring to learn about their stories and how they started until they become very successful. One memorable quote I read towas from the founder of LJC Restaurant Group (Cafe Adriatico, Cafe Havana...) "The enterprise created is but a strategy to meet the personal vision of the entrepreneur." - Larry J. Cruz

Some business schools teach us to look for opportunities in the market and then start your business from there. How we came up with Manila Kid is another story. I personally wanted to get rid of the stinking image of Metro Manila where they always feature poverty, corruption and degradation of morals. It simply pissed me off because Manila is definitely more than that! So how do I do this? What do I love? Fashion. Let's make clothes then.

When you start a company or business, it is important to set the vision and core values. I wouldn't have thought of manilakid.com without articulating the core values for instance. Since Manila Kid is more than a clothing line - but a movement that promotes Manila's young and vibrant image, we formulated strategies in order to achieve this goal. And thus manilakid.com and partnering with a charity foundation was born.

Another way of calling Vision is Big Hairy Audacious Goals (BHAG). I learned this from my business teacher back in college who must have read this in a business book. It does sound funny because of the hairy part:))

Articulate your personal vision, then find a way to achieve it. Whether it's being a journalist, enrolling to law/medicine school or starting your own company. It's your North Star towards success and in a world full of darkness, we need those stars to lead the way.