Liars and Cheaters are the Only Ones who Get Rich

Nov 27, 2012 • Entrepreneurship, Marketing, Op-Ed, Social Media • Espree Devora

Many people in business think they need to cheat and lie to gain wealth. They call it negotiating, marketing, positioning… Call it what you will, but it has forever been against my moral integrity to be anything other than transparent and forthright. Being a top business woman has been my dream since I was a child watching my parents grow their own businesses. It’s sad that several times I’ve felt forced to question my moral integrity wondering if being this way would hold me back from truly being ‘successful’. It wasn’t until I brought up my concerns to my investors, after raising money for my action sports company, that those worries were dissolved.  My incredible investors responded something like… ‘Espree, if you weren’t who you are, we wouldn’t have invested in you. There will be times in your business path people will take advantage of your kindness, they will hurt you or let you down, but being a kind person is what will make you the winner.’

Lots of times in business, and in your personal life, it seems the only way to get ahead is by not being so nice. Being a bad boy gets you the girl, right? Being a bitch gets you the guy, and being cutthroat scores you the big pay day… The saying goes, ‘Nice Guys Finish Last’, doesn’t it? But, I have made it my mission to prove us good guys can be just as financially successful without compromising our morals. And I’m not alone in thinking so. When I was lucky enough to hear Neil Strauss speak at an intimate gathering, (he’s the best selling author, Rolling Stone contributing editor and empowerment leader), he shared that people confuse being ‘nice’ with being a pushover.  He revealed people aren’t attracted to assholes, they are attracted to confidence and boundaries. We must shift our mindset starting by disassociating nice from weak and then focus on demonstrating confidence.

With the help of TechZulu, I am doing what I hope to be a quarterly series of Fireside Chats featuring successful entrepreneurs who I hand select to share how they remained ‘Nice Guys’ and continue to finish 1st in business. You’ll learn the exclusive tactics, tips and techniques they use to maintain their upstanding moral code and efficiently grow their organizations.

Here’s a video of Neil Strauss speaking at Google

The Fireside Chat to kick things off is tomorrow night, Wednesday, in Santa Monica at ROC, which is located in the old Google building. Join me by clicking here.  Greg Cargill will be sharing his story how he co-founded bigMETHOD, a social media marketing agency which was recently acquired by BLITZ Agency. His client list includes elite brands such as Harley Davidson, NIKE and Honda.  He is both a friend and mentor.  I’ve had the privilege of watching his company go from he and his business partner, in a small Venice office, to a huge agency with several incredible employees located on the 3rd Street Promenade.

Fireside Chat with Greg Cargill

I’ve been a business owner since I was a teenager, and being a kind, good hearted, honest person is truly important to my core values.  I hope it is to yours as well. I invite you to join me tomorrow night for this important educational and candid Fireside Chat. I even hear there will be free pizza and beer. Look forward to meeting you in person.

Here’s Greg Cargill speaking at TEDx