The author of an acclaimed new book on leadership says Irish start-ups seeking funding in the U.S. need to "tell a story".
"That's what resonates and if you can tell a story, then funders understand your business and respond accordingly," says Rich Moran, author of 'Never Say, Whatever: How Small Decisions Make a Big Difference'.
A resident of Tiburon in the Bay Area of California, Moran has scored success with a series of start-ups and owns the Moran Manor winery in Napa. But his love of tech and business mentoring is rivalled only by his love for the land of his forebears.
Indeed, he relishes the opportunity to engage with Irish start-ups aiming to hit it big in Silicon Valley and enjoys visiting the Emerald Isle - last year, he hit the jackpot for any lover of Irish literature when he was appointed writer-in-residence at the Listowel Writers Week.
The connection between entrepreneurship and literature - spinning a good yarn is a cornerstone of both worlds.
"A great origin story sets a company apart," explains Moran. "For example, I am working with a start-up treating gum disease. The treatment emerged from a doctor who was worried about the bad breath of his dogs. He injected a drug into the gums of his dogs to combat the bad breath and found the side effect was that it protected their gums. That's a memorable story which people can relate to - and he's just raised $70m in funding to roll out the drug to the market."
In short, words and how we use them are important. Indeed, one word: "Whatever" is a bugbear for Moran - indeed so fed up was he with hearing the term used by so-called leaders that it moved him to pen his new opus.
"We make 30,000 decisions a day, everything from whether to put cream in your coffee to slowing down when you see a red light," he says. "But there are probably 20 big decisions which shape your entire life: who you marry; whether to have children; where to live and so on. However, no matter whether the issue is big or small, whatever does not count as a decision. So my new book is about decision-making - something which the Irish tend not to be good at."
M2W Podcast Episode #230 - Richard Moran Warns: Never Say, “Whatever”: Life can be a lot like Chutes and Ladders, says Richard Moran. Each time you say “whatever” you slide down a chute, but each time you make a decision, you have the… https://t.co/jfe7mu1xWt on iTunes & YouTube pic.twitter.com/9ZCtrMGPV8
— Manage 2 Win (@MANAGEtoWIN) April 27, 2023
A blogger and speaker at business conferences and seminars, Moran says his new work has struck a chord with corporate leaders. "No one wants to be involved with a 'whatever' organization," he says, "Could you imagine what the head of the Federal Aviation Administration would think if one of his air traffic controllers was to respond to a request from an approaching pilot about where to land with a 'whatever?'
Weaving in interviews with C-Suite executives, entrepreneurs and "everyday people" who are good at making decisions, 'Never Say Whatever' analyses why staff members get to the position where they just don't care — and "whatever" becomes the default response.
"It indicates a sense of helplessness in some cases but in others it's someone trying to avoid making a decision so a co-worker can be blamed when things go wrong," says Moran.
"The reality is that effective leaders don't say 'whatever'. Busy people never say 'whatever'. And if you want to make an impact with what you do, then you too should never give 'whatever' as an answer when a decision has to be made."
A veteran author, Moran invented the 'bullet-point business book'. His latest tome, however, will surely burnish his reputation as one of Irish America's most eminent strategists and tech leaders. As chair of early-stage Canadian AI company Charli.ai and the owner of Moran Ranch winery, he finds himself in demand for his tech investment nous. However, keeping his connection to Ireland fresh and vibrant is a priority for him — though he's understandably sore about the fact that he is not entitled to Irish citizenship because he doesn't have a grandparent born on Irish soil.
"When I did the 23andMe DNA test, they sent me a letter from the head guy saying that I was a rarity in being fully 100 per cent Irish," he says. "My grandparents were an O'Brien, a Hanley, a Brennan and a Moran. All were born in the US to immigrant parents - but sadly that's not enough to earn me citizenship."
And while there is access to an Irish passport via "Irish descent or association" at the discretion of the Irish Justice Minister, Moran, like many others, has found that process opaque and impenetrable.
If you didn't know better, you would think that the folks at the passport office, faced with making a decision on Moran's citizenship, have responded with a "whatever"!
