Slouching Towards Success

This week reflecting on Reagan, I ran across this tidbit referring to the ease displayed in his life and leadership style:

The most common, indeed jejune criticism of Reagan is that he did not properly allow the presidency to fill his days, let alone his nights. His immediate predecessor, Jimmy Carter, proudly, even ostentatiously made the presidency seem crushing. It was Jefferson's "splendid misery" without the splendor. Reagan made being president look a little too easy for some tastes.

Whom would have thought Reagan was a master of Wu Wei [1] ;-) ...

Then I noted this post on entrepreneurial myths at The Entrepreneurial Mind (via Carnival of the Capitalists; this week hosted at The Window Manager):

Temperance is a virtue that is often forgotten about in today's 24/7 world. This article from Inc.com describes the problem quite clearly:

"So, do you really need to be at the office 24-7?’ The most dominant myth of this society is the Protestant work ethic,' says Al Gini, author of The Importance of Being Lazy. 'Entrepreneurs say, 'This is my baby. I have to do this myself with huge amounts of sweat equity.' They're right, but there has to be some moderation.' Gini advocates taking time to rest, recreate, and re-create...

OK, maybe titles like "The Importance of Being Lazy" don't strike a chord with the A-type set, but how about using leverage and the 80/20 rule [2] a little more than just applying sheer hours to problem-solving.

Case in point from the Inc. article:

Kim Peterson, 39, president and CEO of Light Force Therapy in Elizabeth, Colo., says her company wouldn't be where it is today--12 employees, $4.5 million in revenue--had she and partner-husband Doug continued on the 70-hour-a-week path they endured for three years since starting the company in 1998. "Time away from the office helps me devise better strategies," she says. The two-hour hikes she takes during the day spark her imagination and engender innovation, essential when your moneymaker is a therapeutic medical device. As a start-up, the company commanded all of the Petersons' time. Along the way Kim realized that burning the candle at both ends was sabotaging long-term growth. "We were working too much to get where we wanted to go," she says. "The goal is to work smarter, not harder." Once she cut back on a grueling schedule, she was able to prioritize goals and concentrate on achieving them. She now puts in 30 hours a week.

I already noted that Ricardo Semler, CEO of Semco Inc., a $212M Brazilian company works 30 hours a week mostly from his garden. Intrigued? Read Seven-Day Weekend.

I read "Bread and Butter: What a Bunch of Bakers Taught Me About Business and Happiness" by Tom McMakin, the COO of Great Harvest Bread Company, several years ago, and one of the things that struck me was the story of their most productive and profitable franchise owner. He actually worked the least amount of hours of any of their owners and was apparently the most centered among them. His secret?

He meditated two hours a day. Problems weren't insurmountable screaming catastrophes but just simply issues to be dealt with. Things flowed instead of skidded across friction.

I couldn't believe it myself when I read this in 2000 or was it 2001 (geez, it was all a blur working at that start-up), but it really made me come to a full stop and wonder. Maybe I was actually wasting time. I still don't meditate (in a traditional sense) but have incorporated meditative, mind-quieting, mind-reflective activities and non-activities (that'd be topic for another post) into my life because of that revelation.

It's a myth to think "hard" and "difficult" and "stress" generates results beyond having your hands full of hard, difficult, stressful work. Martyrdom isn't an ingredient for success.

Challenge yourself to apply leverage, use the 80/20 rule [2], renew yourself for strategic thinking and work smarter instead of harder.

I'll close with a repeat of this week's quote from the renowned management slouch, Peter Drucker: Follow effective action with quiet reflection. From the quiet reflection will come even more effective action.

[1] Wu Wei. Much of the essence of Tao is in the art of wu wei (action through inaction). However, this does not mean, "sit doing nothing and wait for everything to fall into your lap". It describes a practice of accomplishing things through minimal action. By studying the nature of life, you can affect it in the easiest and least disruptive way (using finesse rather than force). The practice of working with the stream rather than against it is an illustration; one progresses the most not by struggling against the stream and thrashing about, but by remaining still and letting the stream do all the work.

[2] Pareto's Principle, or the 80/20 Rule, should serve as a continual reminder to focus 80 percent of your effort on the 20 percent of your tasks that matters the most. Those 20 percent produce 80 percent of your results. Identify and focus on those vital few tasks to maximize your return on investment.

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[Gerald Ives]

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