How the CEO of Airbnb taught us to make money in the long-term
A short guide why Brian Chesky is successful and can manage his company during this difficult time.
I remember being let go from my full-time job during the lockdown in Denmark, and I’ve been overthinking it for no reason at all. It hurts.
Due to the pandemic crisis, the CEO and Co-Founder of Airbnb, Brian Chesky has been forced to act to axe 1900 out of their 7500 employees. But Brian has took a different approach that we can all learn from what he did to his employees. There are a few principles that I’ve jotted down to learn from Brian’s incredible interpersonal skills to manage a business for the long-term during this challenging time.
And here are some things I’ve learnt about when I see his announcement online:
1. Transparency breeds confidence and loyalty.
Brian has revealed his decision-making process during a time of panic. He knows the assumptions will become a toxic culture that destroys what a company has built. Clarity provides calmness rather than chaos. So Brian understands transparency and speaking out the truth are the key during the uncertain times.
2. You don’t have to be the smartest person in the room.
In the letter, Brian said this: “We don’t know exactly when travel will return. When travel does return, it will look different.”
Talking about the uncertain future, Brian shows us that nobody know how the future might go and we’re all just as smart as each other. After all, he is not a leader who has all the answers and he looks like an employee that knows as much as the next person.
3. Lead a team with empathy and kindness.
Many people think leadership is being aggressive or stern. But Brian has reverse engineered. He tried to plant himself inside his employee’s heads to understand what they might be thinking and feeling. The human side to dealing with a recession is to have caring and empathetic personalities. He gives people time to think and come up with ways to be helpful and beautiful to those leaving was yet another brave move. This heartfelt approach brings him to be more of a successful leader.
4. Leader makes mistakes too.
Brian may seems like a perfect human being, but being a leader also makes mistakes. In the letter, Brian did not share any of his financial pain personally. Most companies have problems with this because playing a short term game. Building culture takes financial commitment. Brian would have been more influential if he gives away some of his shares or make sacrifices to some of his salaries to make positive contribution through one of the most difficult times in history.
Reading the letter from Brian definitely showed some of the qualities you need be a successful leader. Regardless of how you get there, it takes empathy, self-awareness, kindness, and self-esteem to be a great leader. Ultimately, Brian has given one of his best career and business advices through the pandemic.
