The Lil Helper Employee Manifesto

These are the few things I want you to keep in mind when serving our customers at Lil Helper.

Don't take it for granted. The reputation Lil Helper has built took thought, perseverance, and a lot of heart. When a parent spends their hard-earned money with us, we owe them a fantastic product and even better service. We make mistakes but we are never careless, and we are never negligent. That attitude has been here since Day 1. It's not changing.

Treat them like family. Not like kings and queens. Like family. Which, in my opinion, is better. Bend over backward to help. Do what you would do for your own people. We are still a for-profit business, and you'll need to balance that. But we will never choose profit over common decency. If it's in someone's best interest, point them to a competitor. Profits can be compromised. Integrity cannot.

Behave as if the customer is in the room. Rarely, very rarely, you'll deal with someone who is difficult. When that happens, empathize. Don't take it personally. And never, ever talk poorly about a customer to your teammates or to me. State the facts without putting anyone down. Always give the customer the benefit of the doubt. This policy has always let me sleep well at night.

Take big risks. You're here to do something no one else can do. If you do the same things I do, we don't need you. I need you to do things I don't have the gall to do, for our customers and for how we run this company.

You are the CEO of what you do. I'm CEO by title only. Every single one of us has the same power and the same responsibility to create change at Lil Helper. If you have a better idea, bring it up. Better yet, implement it and show your team. We are all leaders here. Act like one.

Don't ask for permission. If something is broken, fix it. You don't need to ask me or anyone else. If you do something bold in pursuit of something great and it doesn't work, ask for forgiveness. But don't waste your time, or mine, asking for permission. As long as the goal is to make Lil Helper and its customers better, do it.

Learn. Then teach. If you're only doing what you were hired to do, I've failed you. Spread your wings. Learn new, challenging things. Once you do, teach them to others, including me. That's how we all grow.

We carry each other. When things go well, we share the credit. Always. There is no "I did this." It's always "we did this." Lift your teammates. Encourage them. The more you give, the more you get, in business and in life. I'll die believing that's true.

Shout out the good stuff. If you do something great, share it. Not everyone, including me, has eyes on what you're doing. Give us the chance to celebrate you. And if you see a teammate doing great work, tell the rest of us. Compliments should never be in short supply around here.

Feedback is how we get better. Art is never finished, only abandoned. A business is the same. It might be beautiful as it is, but there is always room to improve. Give feedback freely. Receive it the same way. Improve anything you see that could be better, including my work.

Nip it in the bud. If you see a behavior from anyone, including me, that needs to change, say something. All of us benefit from honest reflection.

Make new mistakes. Make mistakes. It means you're doing something new. If you repeat the same ones, that's carelessness, and carelessness means you've stopped caring. I would rather you fail chasing something revolutionary than do mediocre work safely.

Do what lights you up. If there's a part of this business you want to learn, dive in. If you enjoy a project more than others, take the lead. You have the responsibility to find happiness in your work. That's not a perk. That's part of the job.

Always ask why. Every policy, every process at Lil Helper exists for a reason, and that reason is almost never "to make more money." If the why isn't clear, search for it. When you know the why, the work becomes meaningful. As Nietzsche said: "A man who has a why can endure almost any how." Our why, at Lil Helper, has always been the same: to bring joy. Everything else follows from that.

Show it well. Jo dikhta hain, bikta hain. What shows well, sells well. Customers won't buy what they can't see or understand at first glance. The moment confusion sets in, they find a reason to leave. Infographics, multiple photos, honest descriptions, FAQs, videos. These aren't extras. They're how we respect the customer's time and make their decision easier. Never forget that.

Be extraordinary. Lil Helper is not another company selling stuff on the internet. We have already proven that a business can solve real problems, be fun, bring joy, make someone's life genuinely better and be profitable. That's rare. Don't waste it. Let's make this way of doing business so good that other companies have no choice but to copy us.

The golden rule. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Apply it every day, to our customers and to each other. If you follow this one rule, everything else falls into place. This is coming from a man of no faith.

I am available 24/7. I mean it. Call whenever you need me. The only dumb question is the one you don't ask. Lil Helper isn't work to me. It's what I do. It's what I am. And as long as we all know why we're here, the how is the easy part.

— Mo