Every business has a soul that emits energy

Ever wonder, when you walk in any store, restaurant or a small shop, there is a vibe. Some kind of feel in the air which either might please you or upset you. The way employees greet you or not, service and everything then after is either perks you up or throws you off. No, it is not your instinct. It is the soul of the business that emits energy. 

There's an indispensable, indefinable feeling of an exuberance in every business. Company founders sense its presence. So do every employee and customers. It encourages people to put their best foot forward with talent, money, and enthusiasm. That vibe also defines the very basic purpose and motivation behind that business and hence becomes part of its soul. As long as, this basic purpose and soul keeps in place, businesses soar high and people rock the show. Businesses innovate and sell better, create brands and write success stories because they believe in the cause. 

In that quest of finding what entrepreneurs think the soul of their business is, I met a few and found the opinions are very similar though the articulation differed considerably. 

The first person I met is Aditya Shah, founder of Juno's Pizza. A pizza chain that started in Mumbai and was created on recipes of grandma. Literally. Aditya mentions that his grandma learned to make them in Italy and since then it was served to friends and family. He took it to next level as he firmly believes that the soul of Juno's pizza is the recipes and the family's fondness for pizzas. While tucking in a pizza named after him, “Boss's favourite”, Shah said that if it was not for the cause of making vegetarian pizza as versatile as non-veg ones, he would not be here. “Making a difference through veg pizzas, that is soul of my business,” Aditya says that rather firmly. 

Next interview was with Chiranjiv Patel, founder of “Re 1 Mentorship program”, where he nurtures young start-ups to take them to next level. Chiranjiv firmly believes that businesses not only have souls, the founders transfer their energy and enthusiasm to create that. “ You see, it's the intent of business that matters. Content of business may be very similar to many on the ground. It's about what you create and how do you offer? The belief behind that matters.” Patel says that giving employees the autonomy and freedom to come up with something new will always keep the spirits soaring. 

Does creating a different bond with customers matter? Researchers swear by that. 

Organizations have created iconic brand stories and created social awareness with customer's help. In 2009, Volkswagen caught people surprised and musically amused. The company turned a subway staircase in Stockholm, Sweden into a giant piano on a quiet night. The next day, each step produced the sound of a different piano key as people climbed up and down the stairs. The campaign was a part of "The Fun Theory," which suggests people are more likely to do something if it looks fun. I can't agree more. Though,

For Volkswagen, the message of 'Fun' here had a different purpose.

As the automotive industry started a focussed effort of big initiatives into environmentally friendly products, Volkswagen wanted to help make people's personal habits healthier to go along with. They made 66% people take stairs instead of escalators in that particular subway. In turn, the organization became a household name including future buyers. The video broke the internet then and was iconic place to visit in Stockholm for a long time to come. 

Companies need to create meaningful work to keep business intentions, customer focus and innovation going on to keep that spirit intact. In most cases, growth takes the priority, rightly but it also disconnects people. In 2018, hundreds of Google employees asked the company not to develop a search engine. Because that was to facilitate stifle dissent in China. They were disappointed that Google was keeping profit in mind beyond human values. 

High growth and dynamism can be continued and these three elements too walk hand in hand with little adjustment so we see soulful business houses. 

The writer is a strategic advisor and premium educator with Harvard Business Publishing