Image via Wikipedia
I have a food question for you to end the week. What do blueberries, salmon, and walnuts have in common? No, they’re not the ingredients to some fabulous new dish I’ve concocted. They’re among the top foods which some nutritionists call “superfoods.” The reason they’re labelled this way is that they are among the foods that contain high amounts of some substances – phytonutrients for those of you needing a big word for a crossword puzzle – that might just confer a bunch of health benefits. Blueberries, for example, have a ton of antioxidants, phytoflavinoids, potassium and vitamin C, which people who know about this stuff say lower your risk of heart disease and cancer and are also anti-inflammatory. Impressive little guys!
So what does this have to do with business?
First, I should be clear that many nutrition professionals hate the term “superfood.” In fact, it’s banned from marketing use in Europe unless the marketer can provide scientific proof. I’ll let you decide. In general, they are calorie sparse and nutrient dense, a good basic goal with just about anything we eat, right? Beans, yogurt (not the sweet stuff, kids), green tea – all pretty innocuous things we might choose without thinking they’re really giving us benefits beyond satisfying our hunger. But that’s the point.
We often choose people to hire or business partners without really considering what distinguishes them beyond satisfying our basic need. Hiring a salesperson who has no chance of becoming a manager or an analyst who can pull data but can’t do stand-up presentations is, in my mind, kind of like eating junk food. It fulfills your need but only for the short-term and might, in fact, be really bad for you in the long run. Partnering with a company without in-depth due diligence can cause long-term problems just like a diet high in sugar.
I’ll admit that when we’re starving and the candy machine is the only quick option, the occasional bag of chips might have to suffice. However, if there’s also a bag of assorted nuts in the same machine, we need to recognize that one is a much better choice. In fact, those kinds of simple choices in business can make a huge difference in how well our business does. Try to target the one who might just be a “superfood” as you hire or partner. They’re not so easily discerned on the surface, but a little research can help your decision-making.
What superfoods are your favorites?
Consult Keith 