In this short video, Terry Moore shares how even at the ripe old age of 50+ he didn't know how to tie his shoes correctly. Like most of us, Terry viewed himself to be an intelligent, savvy guy --- who felt one of the skills he'd really nailed in his life was being able to tie his shoes. Boy was he wrong --- and a smart shoe salesman set him on the right path. Along the way, Terry (re)learned a valuable lesson:
Sometimes challenging a seemingly small assumption someplace in life can yield tremendous results someplace else!
Watch the video (only 2:59 minutes) --- It's a hoot. Plus, after all these years, you may just learn how to tie your shoes correctly.
As business people we can learn from Terry Moore's lesson:
In business, when we do something and it works, we continue to do that thing. We stop asking if there is a better way. It works, so we keep doing it. But challenging the status quo, however successful, is critical to maintaining the vitality and competitiveness of the business and creates clarity. Just because something worked in the past doesn't mean there isn't a better way --- a much better way.
Many times, complexity in business is the result of not building a discipline of challenging assumptions about what we do today. This is true for strategic planning, sales development. marketing operations distribution and on and on. Every business' number one objective should not be to drive to capture every opportunity but to master simplicity, precision, focus and clarity -- (re)read last week's Switching Tracks --- Aha Moments for more on Clarity.
Clarity, n. 1. the continuous practice of increasing understanding so that effective action may be taken
2. simplicity 3. accuracy 4. certainty 5. the definition of what, how and why something should be done, in a way that is easily understood. 6. the absence of vagueness.
Business leaders frequently make the mistake of assuming that a simple change should be easy --- they make an attempt, then give up and go back to the tried and true --- because it's easier. Simple does not mean easy.
It's good to learn how to tie your shoes correctly at 50. It's good to challenge your business practices even when you're experiencing success --- especially when you're experiencing success, but it's critical when you're facing poor results.
WATCH THE VIDEO (2:59)
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TED.com is one of our
highly recommended resources
for challenging our thinking.
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