These 9 Frank Lowy Quotes Show You How to Create a Stronger Business
Need some expert advice on growing your business? Learn how to do it from one of Australia’s most powerful business leaders.
Regardless of your accomplishment as a business owner, new knowledge can always come in handy. It’s the only way to make sure that your success keeps growing. Of course, you need to choose your sources of knowledge wisely for this to happen.
There are very few people as reputable as Frank Lowy when it comes to learning what it takes to thrive in business. From 1959, the year when he opened one of the world’s biggest mall businesses in Sydney, he’s been dominating the market.
And just last year, he struck a $16 billion deal in the sale Westfield Corp, the most valuable takeover ever in Australia at the time.
You might agree that when Lowy talks, you should probably listen, or at least it’s in your best interest to. Let’s see what he has to say about growing a business on a large scale.
1. ‘Life has its ups and downs, but you can only look forward.’
Lowy’s personal and business life have been quite a rollercoaster. He’s lived through things that most people can’t imagine, both good and bad.
After surviving the Holocaust, not only did he come out as a winner, but he became one of the most successful people in history.
By pushing through hardship better than most and not letting anything slow him down. And if you want to succeed in both life and business, this is the mindset that you’ll have to develop.
It can get crazy out there. In today’s business environment, it’s to eat or be eaten. There’s no doubt that you’ll go through times when it feels like there’s no way to move forward. But don’t allow this to knock you down. Know that this is just a test of your strength, which you must pass if you want to come out on top.
2. ‘The human being is very resourceful. When you fight for survival, you don’t think much; you just do. If you think too much, you sink.’
Planning is an essential component of success. But you still have to carry out the plan. And yet, most business owners can’t get out of their heads and start taking action. As a result, they may stand still as the competition moves forward.
As a leader, you need to be quick on your feet. You can’t afford to sit around thinking about what might happen. If you’re to ever think, you ought to do so in the direction of problem-solving. Focus on the solution instead of the problem, and then take action.
3. ‘I am 84 years old and have not retired because I feel I have something to contribute.’
This one’s a few years old, as Lowy is now 88. But his frame of mind remains unchanged. He has all the right to hang it up and spend his golden years enjoying his considerable success. But he continues to fight as hard as he did decades ago.
Imagine closing the biggest deal in the history of Australia at the age of 87. Most people of this age only want to enjoy the comfort of retirement and relax as much as possible. But not Lowy and his legendary drive. Emulate this drive and you can be one step closer to your destination.
Noticed how Lowy didn’t mention wealth and success in his decision to not retire? Rather, he talks about contributing to the world. Every business owner does this in some form, so this is the lens that you’ll want to look through.
When you see that your business is bigger than you, you’ll have an infinite pool of motivation to draw from. You make every move with an eye on growth, and results will follow.
4. ‘I don’t remember all my successes, but I do remember failures.’
When was the last time you failed? How did you feel about it? There are many answers to this but few of them positive. For whatever reason, most of us are still hard-wired to regard failure as a bad thing.
But not Lowy, who sees it for what it is – a chance to do better. To rise above the hardship and learn an invaluable lesson.
If you expect running your business to be smooth sailing, you’re going to be disappointed. Those who are in the thick of it already know that this is not how things work. You’ll hit many bumps on the road and it’s what you do next that matters.
You can either beat yourself up over it or learn the lesson and move on. The right answer is obvious enough. But it’s your choice at the end of the day.
5. ‘The philosophy I shared… was one of ambition – ambition to succeed, ambition to grow, ambition to move forward – backed up by hard work.’
Every business owner would like to find the formula to success. This is why there are more business coaches than ever who each promises to take you to where you want to go. And that’s just for a start. Information goes on and on and it’s no wonder many people get confused.
They jump around from one thing to another, trying whatever someone promised them to work. More often than not, these efforts don’t amount to much.
This is why Lowy has always kept it simple. His formula for success? Hard work and ambition. Simple as that.
When you have the two ingredients, everything that you do will gravitate towards success. And they are things that hardly any coach can supply. They need to come from within and you must always find new ways of replenishing your drive. This is the only way to thrive in the long run.
6. ‘If you are successful there is an accompaniment. If your goal is just to make money you won’t succeed. Money is a commodity to use, not to be dictated by.’
In relation to the last point, what’s your biggest motivator? Don’t forget that money is something that you spend and invest, not something that you should chase after.
If you’re too focused on profit. Lowy believes that you won’t have a successful business for a variety of reasons.
First of all, people will notice. Customers know when you’re just trying to get the money out of their pocket. If this is the way they see you, they’ll never connect with your business. At best, they’ll buy from you because they have to rather than they want to. At worst, they won’t buy from you at all. They’ll go to someone who makes the effort to show that they care about them and want to solve their problem.
Another reason why you should never focus on money is its long-term unviability. At some point, you’ll see that all the work that you’re doing might not be worth the money that you’re getting. What do you think will happen then?
In most cases, you’ll want to say the heck with it. And without a stronger reason to keep going, you probably will.
So, find something that will serve as a constant reminder of why you’re doing what you’re doing. With a strong enough ‘why’, you can be unstoppable.
7. ‘For every mountain there is another one. The big question is if you reach the top of the mountain, what then? What do you do then? I suppose you die.’
We all dream of reaching the top. You might think that this is unachievable right now. But let’s say it is. Let’s say that you’ve made it to the top. Now what?
You might find yourself stuck. There’s no other way to go but down.
This is why many business owners need a wholesale shift in the perception of success. Instead of chasing perfection, chase constant improvement. The moment you think that you’re doing everything perfectly is the moment you get complacent. And it all goes downhill from there.
You’ll never reach perfection, which is in fact great news. It means that there will always be something new to strive towards. And this is what true success looks like.
8. ‘Invincible is never how I felt, but optimistic… yes.’
Optimism is one of the most important traits that a business owner needs to have. You probably know that already. But are you truly optimistic about what the future holds for your business?
The sad truth is that many business owners may not be. They may believe that this is something that you need to be born with. The good news is that this isn’t true.
Like almost any other trait, optimism is something that you can learn. You can rewire your brain to think positively about the future and to see something good in even the worst of situations.
This mindset can do wonders for your business. Not only will it help you deal with issues more easily, but it will also make the whole journey much more enjoyable.
9. ‘I don’t work for nothing. I’m entitled to get paid.’
While you should never make profit a priority, you shouldn’t forget about it either. There’s a surprising number of people who are afraid to ask for the money that they deserve.
Remember that you provide value to someone. You add something new to their life and you deserve compensation for that. Everyone has their own interests in mind, so don’t forget about yours.
With the right approach, you can ask to get paid without appearing money-hungry. As long as people see the value in what you offer, you have all the right to ask for something fitting in return. This is a skill that might take some time to develop, but it’s an obvious must if you want to succeed.
It All Starts with You
Life may not have dealt Lowy the most desirable cards. But he learned how to play the game and came out a winner. He’s the ultimate proof that success is mostly about your frame of mind.
You have seen in the above some of the main things that separate the richest people in the world from everyone else. The vast majority of them didn’t sit around and wait for success to fall from the sky. They went out there and grabbed it.
So, if you feel like your mindset and business could use some tweaking, use what you’ve learned here as a starting point. After that, it’s up to you to go a step closer to success with every move you make.
At CUB our ambition is to unite those who are changing the world through their businesses. We support these people by building a private community of Australia’s next titans of industry. And we bring these titans together to accelerate the achievement of each other’s ambitions.
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