Christmas is one of the most wonderful times of the year – a chance to reflect, eat tons of food and not feel guilty (until after you make that New Year’s resolution for the 289th time to lose weight and diet), share in gift giving, and spend time with family. So naturally I spent Christmas day doing what any normal person might do – reading.
Now before you think to yourself what a nerd, let me clear a few things up. You’re absolutely right. I’m a nerd.
My selection of books had grown since Kris Kringle last came. I narrowed it down to two books: The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire and The Google Story. I decided to tackle the modern day empire of Google and leave the Romans for another holiday…
As I was reading the fascinating story of Google I came across their informal company motto: “Don’t be evil.” When I first skimmed over those words I thought, “Oh that’s cute and simplistic. Only Google could get away with something like that.” However, the further I delved into the book the more this phrase kept appearing over and over again. *Insert the proverbial light bulb above my head turning on – This motto must be important.
So I began to mull over and ruminate on those 3 (well, 4 if you split the contraction) small words. What did they mean? Why say what you don’t want to be instead of what you do want to be? What does evil even mean?
Let me tackle a few of those questions:
- What does evil mean? Google defines it jokingly as whatever their founders say is evil IS evil. After all, it’s their motto.
- What did they mean by their motto? It’s an all encompassing motto for Google. No matter what they do whether it be Gmail, Froogle, Google News, or just searching – don’t be evil about it. Don’t try to crush the competition (oops). Don’t try and cheat consumers. Don’t go against everything the company stands for. Don’t sacrifice the Google brand and image for a short term profit gain.
- Why use a negative motto? Google could have used “be good” or “do good” yet they chose to say what they are NOT going to do. So if Google knows what NOT to do…then what SHOULD they do? The door is left wide open in that area. They effectively eliminated all of the things they shouldn’t be in 3 (ok, maybe 4) words. That leaves a plethora of possibility for what they should be. This matches the Google culture completely – one of innovation, risk taking, and ingenuity!
Google used a motto that gave them flexibility. If they had used one like “Put Google in the hands of anyone with the internet” then they’d be out of business. Done. They’ve achieved their motto. By using “don’t be evil” they allow themselves limitless growth and a motto that is almost universally applied at their company.
So what does all of this mean for other companies? Ok, yes, duh. “Don’t be evil.” Treat your customers right – they are people not money machines. I could insert here a corny motto like “Don’t be Worthwhile” err wait “Be Worthwhile.” Lest I digress further let me wrap this up….Companies everywhere – treat your customers right (after all, you are here to SERVE them not SUBDUE them). Also, provide a culture at work that promotes fairness, honesty, and a place where employees know what is expected of them yet have room to grow. “Don’t be evil.”
