When it comes to (our) aging and business one of my inspirational characters is the life of Colonel Harland David Sanders (1890 – 1980), the American businessman who founded KFC, earlier known as Kentucky Fried Chicken.
Kentucky Fried Chicken established its first franchise in 1952, in Utah, USA, after which the company’s growth “went viral”, outgrowing its owner’s capacity to manage to the extent that he had to sell out in 1964.
Four important lessons:
- It’s never too late to start. Sanders was 62 in 1952. Previously, he had held a number of jobs, some totally unrelated to what ended up becoming his key to success. They included a job as a steam engine stoker, an insurance salesman and a filling station operator.
- There is never a great time or a bad time to start something you believe in. Sanders started selling fried chicken from his roadside restaurant in Kentucky during the Great Depression. The business survived the bad times, and, ultimately, thrived when times changed and Sanders also changed, recognizing the value of franchising.
- Know yourself. Know your capacity. Recognize and accept your limits, and order your work and roles accordingly. There is a time to start; a time to build; a time to sell; a time to hand over.
- Don’t retire too soon. Instead, change tack. Instead of retiring after he sold out his company to two investors, John Y. Brown, Jr. and Jack C. Massey for $2 million, Sanders’ new role became that of brand ambassador. His image still appears on the company’s packaging. Up until 1980, the year he died, he was still representing the company physically, signing autographs. In his earlier life, he sweated himself out to earn. In his later life he was using the power of his good name (Proverbs 22:1) and reputation to continue earning and for self-actualization.
Haron Wachira 