An “ethical enterprise” has to adhere to the “alphabet” of the diligent merchant by all means. This remains true, even though sometimes this attitude is out of fashion. Occasionally, it seems to me that optimization against rules and laws seems to have become a common sport.
That is why I require sensible rules for an integer businessman. They are absolutely mandatory. If you thoroughly stick to them, it will make your business life a lot easier.
The alphabet of the diligent businessman:
- Appropriate and immediate accounting: nothing must be done without receipt, everything must be filed diligently.
- Business correctness: what has been agreed on has been agreed on. A handshake is a handshake, a contract is a contract.
- Deadlines: all deadlines – such as that for finishing the balance sheets, etc. – must be met!
- Financial advantage: better not experiment. Mostly, you “learn the hard way” by paying the price several years later.
- Taxes: taxes must always be paid correctly.
- Social costs: here, too, optimization or trying to minimize them is useless.
- Mandatory charges: there are many varieties, such as Chamber of Trade fees, insurances, and charge for handicapped people,… All you can do is pay and not get angry.
- Bribery: neither actively nor passively!
- No cheating: separate strictly between what you bought privately and what you bought for the business!
- Illegal Earnings: No way! It makes you a potential blackmail victim!
Well, and then there are all the regulations and laws that make life difficult for a businessman. Among them are:
– Working Hours Act
– Works Constitution Act
– Employment Protection Act
– Equality Law
– Data Protection Law
And these are supplemented by all kinds of regulations and statutes for countless purposes (and non-purposes). All these regulations are well-meant (and poorly executed). For historical reasons, they assume wrong situations and antiquated structures. Sometimes they were made by people who had no idea of real life in contemporary enterprises, sometimes they were motivated by special interest groups.
And these rules and regulations are really complicated. Optimization is useless. You need plenty of (expensive) advice, which, however, in the end does not give you an advantage. And beware of ideas of your own. Mostly, they are just as little help as grumbling and demanding reform. You can be sure that nothing will change, so save your precious time.
An “ethical enterprise” focuses on its business and adheres to the laws, even if it is sometimes very difficult to see any sense in them! In this sector, you do not try to optimize, even if it is sometimes quite tempting.
Besides, regardless of the aforementioned shortcomings that annoy us businessmen, an “ethical enterprise” must not forget that, all in all, we in Germany have quite unique circumstances for establishing a successful business.
RMD
(Translated by EG)
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