Howard Schultz is the founder and CEO of Starbucks. He’s been called “the public face for a global brand” because he spends so much time travelling around to promote their product with an authentic message that resonates across cultures everywhere, which has made him one of America’s wealthiest individuals as well!
In this article, we will be looking at the lessons learned from Schultz’s life. We are boldly going where no one has gone before… or rather re-examining things everyone takes for granted in everyday life! This includes Family Dynamics, The Business World & Personal Branding, and Leadership Skillsets such as Strategic Planning – but not just any planning either.
So, the following are life-changing lessons from Howard Schultz to make you successful in your own life.
1. It’s all in the beans.
Everyone has a platform – something that makes them different from everyone else in their field of work, be it a business or not – and this is what distinguishes you from every other person trying to achieve the same goal. In Howard Schultz’s case, he had spent his youth working with Italian coffee bars in Seattle, where he learned the importance of quality beans.
As Schultz states: “The quality of a cup of coffee … is dependent upon the quality of its water” and how you do not want that to contaminate your beans with impurities – specifically chlorine. This idea then led him to purchase Starbucks Coffee from its original owners in 1987 – which then grew from one store to over 16,000 worldwide!
He learned that he could avoid this problem if he sold just his coffee beans and brewed them himself. This means that you should put your stamp on existing products (or services) through your unique talents (and hopefully provide something better than what’s already out there).
2. If you can’t find your passion (and your calling), look for it in an unexpected place.
Ever wondered what led Schultz to become successful? His experience working at Xerox taught him the importance of presentation and how this would be pivotal in helping people connect. For instance, when he was working at the Xerox machine making copies, everyone wanted to use this machine’s output tray because it had clear plastic sides – which allowed you to see what was happening on the other side.
This led him to create his first P/L Ratio Analysis spreadsheet sheets at that time – which he would later use in his early days of developing Starbucks Coffee. He learned how to connect with people by using the same machine against him – which he would then sell his coffee beans to them after they had walked out of the store!
He realized that, just like Xerox, he needed to look for ways to provide value to his customers through presentation and by tying it into certain products they would be interested in.
3. Know when to hold onto something you have created and know when to let it go.
Schultz has been forced to deal with several times when the right time is to give up control of your creation (company) and when it should remain in your hands – which even led him towards the act of stepping down as CEO in 2000.
As Schultz states: “If you love something, set it free”, – meaning that sometimes you need to let your creations (e.g. your company) go for them to be successful. Sticking with this ideal is hard when they’re yours! This is where the importance of delegation comes into play.
Schultz had to learn this lesson the hard way after making the mistake of buying out Starbucks by himself (with no partners) back in 1987 – which he later realized was a poor decision because he didn’t know how to delegate, resulting in him trying to do everything on his own without any additional help.
4. The most important measure of success is not money.
This idea can be found all over Schultz’s book, “Onward: How Starbucks Fought for Its Life Without Losing Its Soul.” In it, he states that the most important measure of success is not money – but how you’re doing something meaningful and making a difference in society as well as your community: “Every day I see shareholders who care only about profits and CEOs obsessed with their stock price. And I worry about the dehumanizing impact it will have on our society when people think that all that matters is making money.”
As Schultz states: “We must recognize that we cannot become disconnected from society – because if we do, we run the risk of becoming irrelevant, or worse.” He states that Starbucks will continue to further fight against governments trying to restrict taxes on caffeinated beverages because it would do more harm than good.
5. Satisfy and provide value for your surroundings and your customers before taking care of yourself (and profits).
Another interesting idea mentioned in Schultz’s Onward is that profits do not come before people. He states: “It’s just as important for a business to find meaning and satisfaction in what it contributes to society.”
Schultz advocates also caring about those around you – including those who are still out there on the streets, those who don’t have any place of their own, veterans returning home, and the disenfranchised people who are just trying to earn a living.
To Schultz, companies must care about these people first before taking care of their own “bottom line” – which he believes allows our society to evolve in the best ways possible.
6. You must constantly be learning if you want to become successful.
Schultz believes that “success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.” One of the reasons he believes in this idea so much is that success does not happen overnight. Instead, you must constantly learn and look for ways to improve yourself to get ahead!
He emphasizes continually working on yourself and learning new things – which he states includes learning from his own mistakes and those of others.
7. If you want your company to grow, invest in it first through giving back to the community/world around you – or else it won’t be able to evolve.
Schultz has always believed that companies need to contribute to the community around them if they want success. But, he states, “If you want your company to grow – you must first create value for society.”
He believes that companies need to contribute by helping those in need and giving back through their actions, or it is difficult for them to grow. To Schultz, having a great product isn’t enough – but how it is done and the values involved in creating this product/service is just as important!
8. Your culture needs to be strong for you to succeed – every business decision should consider your company’s vision, mission, and values.
Schultz has always had a very high emphasis on culture in his business practices. He believes that your culture drives you and gives you the strength to succeed – so it needs to be strong for this to happen!
He emphasizes that every decision should be made with these three ideas in mind because they are all interconnected. This is where he states Starbucks succeeds when others have failed when they have changed their model: because they have taken into account these three ideas and made changes that fit into this vision.
9. You shouldn’t just work to make money – but with a sense of purpose and meaning behind it (which will make you more successful).
Schultz believes that if businesses want to be successful, they need to do work with a sense of purpose. It needs to mean something to them, their employees, and the world around them!
He emphasizes that businesses shouldn’t just be money-driven – which is why he changed Starbucks’ initial plan of maximizing shareholder value through cutting expenses (which would cut back on benefits for employees). Instead, Schultz believes that companies should maximize value for all “stakeholders” in the business – which he believes includes having a higher purpose in mind.
In conclusion
Schultz believes that “when we feel good about the work we are doing, it not only benefits society but also increases our success.” These nine lessons can be applied to creating a better sense of purpose in your life and why you do what you do!
Schultz also encourages us to “be part of something bigger than ourselves.” Of course, we all need to make a living and provide for ourselves and our family – but we should do this by impacting society!
Although we may not be able to achieve the same level of success as Schultz has (this is because he is a true business icon!), his advice can help guide us in creating our destiny. We can all learn from his mistakes, insight, and emphases on having a sense of purpose behind what you do – no matter how big or small the task may be!