You know when you have one of the moments where you feel very inspired and uplifted and you have to share your intense feelings with the world immediately- well that’s how I feel right now, as I am writing this post.
Each year the college I attend, Drexel University, has a distinguished speaker come and give a lecture to students of the Design and Merchandising program. I just came from this year’s presentation which was an insightful lecture given by the Chief Executive Officer of Burberry, Angela Ahrendts. Everything about this woman- her diction, her intelligence, her heartfelt and contagious passion, and overall sophistication was stirring. In her presentation, she gave an overview of the company, as well as the direction that Burberry is moving. But she also gave insight into how she runs the company and her business philosophies. And you may be wondering, why would her insight in particular be significant? Well did you know that Burberry is ranked #4 in the top fastest growing companies globally; just after companies such as Apple, Google, and Amazon. Personally I was astounded by this detail.
One of the concepts that she spoke about that I appreciated the greatest, and would like to pass on to readers of Fashion Matterns is the importance of looking back. When she took over as the CEO of Burberry, she established Christopher Bailey as chief creative officer. As a two-person team, they reflected on how Burberry came to be and what makes them worthy or significant as a company. It was from this thoughtful reflection that they established the company’s values and were able to decide what direction the company should take. With this new vision for the company, they were able to transform Burberry into the 13th most innovative company in the world, as well as mentioned before the 4th fastest growing company. So if it worked for them, it can work for you!
If you are like me, and are looking for ways to grow and improve, model your own life in a strategic way similar to what Burberry has done. Look back on your experiences, decide what has and has not worked for you. Look back at where you came from and how you came to be who you are. Reflect on what values are important to you and what direction you want to move in. Set goals for yourself and create a mission. Essentially, reflect, establish, and move forward.
It may seem silly, but try thinking about the concepts mentioned above and create a set of values you want to live by and a mission statement for yourself. Every established and well thought-out company or organization has one, so why shouldn’t you as an individual enterprise have one as well?
You can expect a set of values and mission statement from Fashion Matterns soon! Let me know how yours goes as well.
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