Why We're in Business

by
April 2002

A few times recently, I've had to remind a few people (including myself!) just why we're in business.

I started O'Reilly because I wanted more control of my life than I could get in a "normal" job. I wanted work to fit in, not to dominate; to support, not to lead the pattern of my life.

And when I first started hiring people, I only hired people with similar goals. What a collection of misfits we were! People who wouldn't or hadn't or couldn't survive a 9 to 5 job.

Of course, the reality and the dream were far apart. In the early years, I felt that I was the only one who didn't have the freedom that I'd started the company for, since I was the glue that held everything together, the one indispensable person who was always on duty.

As we've grown large and successful, all that has changed. Now there are a whole lot of people who feel indispensable and always on duty! I've had to remind several of these people recently that the wind will still blow and the sun still shine if they let down for a bit. At the other end of the spectrum, I fear there are a few people who are watching the clock, waiting for their work day to end so they can get back to their "real" life.

So I thought it was time for a reminder of our beginnings: the company is a means, not an end. The end is a better life for those of us who work, for our customers, and (as far as we can stretch it), for everyone we touch.

If you start dreading coming to work, something is wrong. If work so consumes you that it's all you think about, something is wrong.

This is not to say that we shouldn't stretch ourselves, or ever undergo stress for the sake of the job. Having the forethought to endure short-term pain for long-term gain is the keystone of maturity. But it is only the keystone; an arch (and a life) must be well balanced to stand.

Aristotle pointed out that the pursuit of happiness was the highest end we could seek. And while modern culture too often confuses the pursuit of happiness with the pursuit of pleasure, thinking people have always realized that happiness comes from doing the _right_ things, and doing them in moderation. There were two inscriptions on the walls of the temple at Delphi where the oracle of Apollo held sway: "Know thyself" and "Nothing too much."*

Happiness comes from stretching to reach ideals and from resting after the stretch, from winning but also from losing, if the contest brought out the best in you. Challenging, interesting work is probably one of the most powerful aids to happiness there is, yet in our culture work is most often served up as either drudgery or obsession. I want it to be neither; I want it to be something that gives satisfaction through the day and at the end of the day.

The idea that the people who make up the company _are_ the company, and that the company exists for our individual and collective good, is the root of many principles that have guided me through the years. It is the reason why:

  • I will always give a job opportunity first to someone within the company, rather than hiring outside, even when we might thereby find someone with more appropriate experience and expertise. As long as the individual has a reasonable chance of success, and as long as the company is doing well enough to carry on during the person's learning curve, this seems to me the only course, since the opportunity for growth and new challenges is one of the most important benefits I can offer to every employee.

  • We have an oddball flextime salary system, which allows people to work when they want, within the bounds of what is permitted by labor laws, and baseline requirements of getting the job done.

  • The company is governed not so much by rules as by exceptions. It's an illusion promulgated by those afraid of life that a company, a country, or any assembly of humans can be so perfectly managed that everything will always stay the same. Life's beauty is its variety, its ability to surprise us. An organization that expects to succeed must always be flexible.

  • I want everyone to participate fully in the company, with a sense that we are all empowered to make it the place of our dreams, to fix things that are broken, to speak up when something is wrong, and to think, every day, how to make it work better. Responsibility = Response-ability.

  • I've always allowed people to use company resources for personal or community projects, and further, have always encouraged people to consider whether their personal interests could be turned into company projects. I consider the essence of entrepreneurial capitalism (ORA-style, at least) to be finding ways to make our interests pay for themselves!

I think perhaps I'm straying too far from the point. Here it is, brought back to earth: as long as you work at ORA, I expect you to enjoy your job. If you don't--either because the challenges are too great, or because they are too small--let's work together to find the dynamic balance that enables us to do great things together.

* Really, there were three, but the third one: an E standing alone, has everyone baffled. Maybe it was an unfinished inscription, or a symbol with a meaning long lost, but I like to think of it as a reminder of the unknown, a zen koan if you will. There's a humorous but profound Tarot deck called "Morgan's Tarot" with thoughtful cartoons. My favorite says "Always Remember This" below a blank box. Like the E at Delphi, it makes me think: what am I forgetting? what is it that I don't know? how do I get back to the secret core and wellspring of my life?