As a business coach, I come across the idea of a self-made man every so often. More frequently in casual conversation than articles and white papers. It became a stand-in term for ‘making it’ in business, but it never sat quite right with me, and I thought I’d give some thought as to why exactly.

So I googled it: about 2,950,000,000 results in 0.67 seconds. It must be more on people’s minds than I thought.

Trusted Wikipedia is first, closely followed by rankings of the greatest self-made men in history. Then a debate begins between articles pro and against. Here’s my take.

“Self-made man” is a classic phrase coined on February 2, 1832 by Henry Clay in the United States Senate, to describe individuals whose success lay within the individuals themselves, not with outside conditions”[1].

The meaning of a self-made man

In everyday language, it became a synonym for a successful career, a prosperous business. While I admire the element of will, tenacity, and fulfilling your potential based on grit rather than privilege, I recognise that inheriting a company does not automatically create an easier situation. Each comes with its own challenges.

My other reflection is that in our collective understanding, self-made man implies detachment. And this bothers me even more. While it is not impossible to go it alone, how many of us in business do it truly alone – or would we even want to? I suppose 2020 has unearthed the downside of solopreneurship and proven that its raw edge can become tender. Recent months have highlighted the role of cooperation and its significant benefit to business and personal development, even if socially distant.

Doing it all alone is not impossible but fraught with danger because you have only your own mistakes to learn from. In addition, you have to make them in the first place, before you discover those lessons and then rectify whatever is left to repair.

The blind spot

Another aspect is that this common concept overlooks the idea of a support network and developing a team. It even disregards supportive spouses, educators, mentors, and colleagues. The longer I look at the term itself, the more it actually sounds as if it prohibits that sort of cooperation. To me, choosing to close those routes limits entrepreneurial potential. It may even stop business owners from becoming business leaders.

The term has inspired many to ponder upon its meaning and consequences. Frederick Douglass devoted a series of lectures to the idea, and he states that there is “no such men as self-made men. That term implies an individual independence of the past and present which can never exist… Our best and most valued acquisitions have been obtained either from our contemporaries or from those who have preceded us in the field of thought and discovery.” Ironically, he is listed as one of the self-made men in an article I came across.

From a self-made man to a self-aware human

We can never be fully detached, especially in business. As a result, I would like to upgrade the concept and push a self-made man towards a self-aware human.

And from there, to a leader.

If this compels you to start a conversation with me, please do. I look forward to reading all your different points of view – or do you agree with me? In which case, let me know how this resonates with your thoughts on business and leadership.

[1] Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-made_man