More than 36 million impressions can’t be wrong! And as entertaining as the original honey badger video is, he’s not just about walking in slow motion and eating cobra. If you watch and listen carefully, you’ll notice several business tips hidden throughout.
Check it out again to see if you can catch them all, or keep reading for seven specific business best practices, insights and recommendations from the most fearless animal in the animal kingdom.
“Honey badger don’t care”
If there’s a catch-phrase from the video, this is it. But don’t mistake the intent as carelessness. Honey badger knows what he wants, and doesn’t let much distract him. Bees? Not a problem. Cobra? Scary, yes, but honey badger has a job to do. He’s relentless, but goal oriented.
“He’s getting stung like a thousand times”
Growing a business isn’t easy. You’ll face constant obstacles and challenges. And, if you’re doing something that nobody has ever done before, you’re going to fail. A lot. But despite the fact that honey badger continues to get stung in his quest for honey, he eventually gets his honey. Know what you want, know that it’s going to be a hard road to get there, but carry on.
“Look, he’s going in slow motion”
You have a ton to get done, and things fly at you at breakneck speed. But sometimes you need to be deliberate, and slow things down enough to make sound, strategic decisions. Make time in your day and week to think, reflect, be strategic. Spend most your time executing, but commit time as well to going slow to ensure you’re still on the right track.
“That’s nasty!”
The end-goal may be fantastic, but getting there isn’t always pretty. There’s plenty of “sausage making” in every business. It’s inherent in finding the right market opportunity, getting the product or service itself right, scaling a business from concept to fully-functioning machine, and so forth. But that’s just part of the process.
“He’s the most fearless animal in the animal kingdom”
Honey badger has a strong brand. And I’m guessing he’s stubbornly proud of that brand. What’s yours? How would customers, investors or competitors describe you? Can you live with that? And what are you doing (or can you do now and moving forward) to better manage that?
“Nothing can stop the honey badger when he’s hungry”
No matter what stage your business is in, I hope you’re hungry. I hope you have and keep a sense of urgency. I hope everything you do, everything you prioritize, is relevant to your end-goal, measurable and results-oriented. This is also about being relentless, but with a specific goal in mind.
“Honey badger gets right back up and keeps eating cobra”
You’re going to have haters. Unhappy customers. Disgruntled employees. Impatient investors. Peers who think you’re crazy. Your market, and even business, is going to knock you down repeatedly. Don’t give up. Keep fighting. Eat cobra.
