Feb 04 2014

We want the world and we want it now! Jim Morrison sang that in the late sixties, I’m sure there were plenty of people who felt that way, then, before & for sure there are plenty now. We want our results and we want them now. No process, no long project, just give me my results!

Sadly, there are plenty of people promising & trying to deliver exactly that. Many are successful at least for a time now and some even get away with it long enough to not have to answer for their mistakes. I suppose it is not entirely true that it is not possible to get instant sustainable results, but it is very uncommon at least. Anything worth doing, is worth doing right, doing well, etc…

Getting solid, sustainable results, especially when transforming an organisation from static to dynamic, from mass to lean or any other transformation really, takes time and hard work. Thinking that a group of consultants or a fancy new software package or the latest technological contraption can somehow provide the everlasting results you seek is irresponsible at best.

Your current flavour of the month is just another “get rich (successful) quick scheme”. There is no substitute for hard work. If we spent as much effort on actually making the necessary changes, doing the work that needs to be done, as we do on trying to find an easy way to get there quickly, we might already be where we want to be. I’m guilty from time to time, I know many who are.

Success comes when we put in the work, there are countless examples & countless more of those who tried hard and never got there, not in a way that we might consider successful. But nobody ever got there with shortcuts across the board, there may be a few along the way, but they usually cost more than they save in the long run. Pay me now or pay me later I aways think…

While there are several cited sources, it appears Vince Lombardi, an American football legend, first said the quote in the image, sadly my Broncos weren’t paying attention Sunday night…are you?