Prioritizing clients and employees over ego

A few days ago, I saw two Indian startup CEOs on social media. One has this pseudo-Elon Musk persona (Founder One), while the other has an "in my lane, unbothered" vibe (Founder Two). One gets offended easily, and the other is kind of building in public.

I remember when F2 announced two fleets to deliver vegetarian and non-vegetarian meals, with delivery partners wearing red and green to differentiate. It was soon canceled, though, because people raised concerns about hate crimes targeting the delivery partners. His intentions were good, but ensuring their safety was more important.

Recently, F1 was busy fighting on Twitter, about highlighting the issue with the product, on the same day, F2 discovered a mall discriminating against delivery partners by banning them from using elevators—he found this out by posing as one.

I’m not here to say one founder is better than the other; there’s no "right" way to be a CEO. But if you’re not prioritizing your customers’ issues, you’re doing it wrong.

Most companies focus solely on their clients. It’s rare to find companies that care equally about both their clients and employees.

I’ve got my own issues with the whole "Dream company" concept, but if it means listening to your users and creating a fun, engaging work environment for employees, Peerlist would definitely be my "Dream company." If you highlight an issue the founders the Peerlist team will reach out to you address the issue solve the issue notify you about the correction.

The point is, your clients and employees should always come first. Otherwise, your "hero complex" or "disruptor" behavior won't get you far. Sure, you can be successful or fail, but what really matters is the kind of person you are. You could surpass Elon or Steve Jobs, but only after you’ve fulfilled your responsibilities to your clients and employees.

If you’re new to freelancing and don’t know where to start, I’ve created a toolkit to help you begin from level 0. For everything, you need a strong foundation, and this toolkit helps you build that foundation. It’s a roadmap you can use anywhere.

For Domestic: https://topmate.io/ankursyal/1134525

For Outside India: https://ankursyal.gumroad.com/l/a-client-centric-blueprint-with-templates

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