The Secrets of Building Your CapEQ

The engine of American capitalism has been proven to be a wealth generator, but it is also a disparity generator. Despite all the inequities that capitalism creates, there is great potential to work within the capitalist system and achieve the promise of the American ideals of freedom, mobility and opportunity for all. It’s just hard to do — as almost 250 years of disparity and inequity has taught us.

Which is why CapEQ™ works with companies to help them do well BY doing good, and create a better society for everyone in the process. CapEQ™ isn’t just the name of our company, it’s also a concept to help you and your company increase your capacity to develop social and financial returns. Essentially, CapEQ™ measures you and your company’s willingness to rebuild capitalism, as well as be driven by the values and culture of emotional intelligence and equity. (You can read more about what CapEQ™ is all about at this post.)

One obvious question you may have now (we get it a lot) — is: ok, how do I build my CapEQ™? Well, first and foremost, you must understand the fundamental reasons for wanting to do well BY doing good. If you don’t understand that need, you’ve got to educate yourself for a bit. A good place to start is the other two posts in this series.

Once you feel comfortable with the fundamentals, there are three different approaches you can take to implementing strategies, practices and processes to build your CapEQ™. And, you’ll see that these three recommendations not only apply to companies, but our society as well.

Each of these three recommendations is about a mindset shift to help you and your company or organization rethink how you do business and create value. If we can focus on these three fundamental shifts, we can do well BY doing good, and make better communities for everyone.

Moving from scarcity to abundance:

The first shift to help you build your CapEQ™ is to move from a place of scarcity to a place of abundance. You often hear phrases like “dog eat dog” or “zero-sum game” with respect to the business ecosystem, which makes it seem like an over-competitive, I-win-you-lose atmosphere. That’s because, for the most part, we operate in a society that is zero-sum and relies on a framework of scarcity.

But it doesn’t have to be that way. Approaching things from a scarcity mindset — whether that’s thinking about your quarterly sales, your supply chain, or something as large-scale as the global economic market — will only limit you in what you want to achieve. Shifting to abundance can help you realize the many resources you have at your disposal to create the impact you want to see.

At the project management software company Basecamp, for example, employees work no more than 40 hours a week. Its CEO isn’t impressed by staff who work overtime, and celebrates that his employees have abundant, full lives. Yet they are still able to maintain thousands of customers. How?

Instead of thinking of their time as a scare resource, they prioritize treating their employees right. And by limiting work hours to allow staff to invest in other parts of their life, the company is able to prioritize the things that matter. They have shifted their mindset around what it means to work hard and have found that there are enough resources for employees to both be successful at work and live a full life.

Working with CapEQ™ can help you understand your true strengths and the strengths of your network, and how you can nurture your network while also growing your company. There may be customers you never considered before, or a talent pool you never tapped into, because you were focused too much on limits and not enough on potential.

Moving from heroic individuals to interconnected communities:

We all know the story — the exceptional founder starting a company in his (it’s almost always a “he’’) basement, work at it for years, and turn that company into a multi-billion enterprise. This heroic story doesn’t only apply to businesses, either. We remember presidents or other public figures as great men who turned the tide of history, and forget the social movements that led to and supported the changes ushered in by these individuals.

But we also know that heroic story isn’t the full story. That individual founder had a team behind him, and presidents have their cabinets, their supporters, and grassroots volunteers. No one ever really does anything alone.

Companies are beginning to understand the power of community in their consumer base. Many are nurturing “brand ambassadors” — customers who love their products and want to support the mission of the company. Athleta, the fitnesswear company (and one of CapEQ™’s clients), has developed a network of Athleta Ambassadors to spread the word about their products and live its mission of empowering women. Relying heavily on social media, these Ambassadors form a community to expand Athleta’s customers base beyond what the company could do on its own.

CapEQ can help you understand and authentically connect with your community to identify your unique value proposition. By figuring out what your customers wants from you, you can begin to invest in and grow an interconnected community that thrives together. You will be surprised what you’ll find when you look beyond the individual and see the community support that exists for those that need it.

Moving from competition to collaboration:

Thinking in abundance and building a community requires a collaborative mindset, different from the competitive approach most businesses take. I’m not saying that you should drop all elements of competition — that’s what allows capitalism to thrive, after all. But a collaborative approach can help you see where your strengths complement other company’s weaknesses, and how you could both grow together in a sustainable way. This is why we refer to our clients as partners, because we are building a collaborative network of companies and organizations committed to doing well BY doing good.

One of the first thing I ask my clients when working with them is: “Who is your competitor?” Is it another company with a similar business model? Or is it some systemic issue that you want to eliminate from the market that will help everyone?

Take the example of Griffin Hospital, an acute care hospital in Connecticut. In the 1980s, they were known as a hospital to avoid. Today, they are an award-winning, patient-centered hospital with great results. How’d they make this shift? Well, when the CEO decided they needed to make a change, instead of focusing on growth that took clients away from another hospital, the competitor was something bigger: It was the entire way of doing business in health care. They focused on building community with staff, patients and volunteers, and developed a culture that helped them thrive.

When you set your sights on solving a problem that is bigger than industry or market, you can collaborate with others effectively. And CapEQ has the tools and resources to help you determine what exactly you can solve, and what partners you need to collaboratively create value that does well BY doing good.

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If you want to become one of our partners, or just learn more about what it takes to build your CapEQ™, you can take our free, quick and easy diagnostic quiz. We’ll then reach out to talk more with you about what you can do to increase your impact, and what we can do together.