Greg's Right FIT #451

Quick notes to help you grow your business in less time with less effort. . . sometime next week. 

In this issue: 

- Thoughts on Outsourcing
- Being Human
- Random Stuff

Thoughts on Outsourcing

• Technology applied to existing systems and processes can add hours back to your day. New technology needing a new system or process can take hours away from your day. Just because it can be done, doesn't mean we should do it.
• If you can flow chart a process, you can outsource it to technology. If you don't outsource it, competitors might.
• Letting go is hard when we're bored. It's easier to let go when you're busy. When we're between projects, and we can feel the ruminating start, blink twice, and let it go. 
• The best outsourcing is for parties. Bring in some outside help and enjoy the good time. We deserve it. 

Being Human - When you get there

"Football combines the two worst things about America: it is violence punctuated by committee meetings." – George Will

Contrary to conventional wisdom, committees can be effective. A diverse group working toward a goal is fun to be part of. One challenge with a strong committee happens when the objective is reached. What does the committee do next? 

Easy, you say, it disbands. Everyone goes back to what they were doing before. I agree. What I've found, however, especially in effective groups, is another objective or two (or three) gets added. "You all work so well together, we have another objective for you." The group doesn't mind, after all, they just reached a goal. Why not keep the party going? 

Committees should disband. New ones should be formed for new objectives. Term limits should be honored. It's the nature of a committee. They have expiration dates. Things change, so the makeup of the groups need to change. It's a temporary organization. 

What about continuity? What about expertise? 

Two things you can do.

• Use a third party for a data dump. Have the committee throw out everything they can think of about lessons learned, what went well, what could have been better, and what needs to change. Tell it to a third party that can ask clarifying questions, summarize, and report back to the main organization. 
• Have a wrap party. Like they do at the end of a film or play. Tack it to the end of the data dump meeting and celebrate an achievement. Parting is sweet sorrow, but it has to be done.

What if members of the committee stick around too long? Some people love committees. Some long-tenured committee members are just so talented and find the structure easy to work in. 

Get rid of them. Do a data dump with them. Have a party for them. There will be short-term pain but long-term gain. Organizations that use committees effectively get more done in a shorter amount of time. Organizations that don't experience problems that could have been avoided. 

Do good work, celebrate, and move on. If you're a committee member, take what you've learned with the successful group and use it with your next group. 

Keep 'er movin', as Charlie Berens would say.

Random Stuff

"With freedom, books, flowers, and the Moon, who could not be happy?" – Oscar Wilde

The oldest human in the world died. She lived 117 years before passing away in her sleep. That sounds exhausting. It's more than double the number of years I've roamed a few square miles of this planet. 

I thought about this as I prepared a box of books to give away. These aren't my books, they are my kids' books dug out of a closet by my lovely bride. I read some of them, but many more I haven't ever heard of. In other bookcases in our home there are another hundred or couple of hundred books I haven't read. I wonder how long it would take for me to read them all? 

Last night another book arrived. This one is on the history of curry. (my bride teaches a food culture class) On my desk is a book about octopuses, an abridged version of Poor Richard's Almanac, and a book of haiku from the Japanese masters, Basho, Issa, Buson, and Shiki. 

It's organized by season. In autumn, Basho (17th century) offers:

The autumn full moon:
All night long
I paced around the lake. 

We have a supermoon going on now. The same moon that lit the lake Basho paced around 350 years ago. I haven't seen it yet because we've been under cloud cover for a few days, but I like knowing it's there. Waking up in the middle of the night to a full moon after snow is one of my favorite things. 

Full moon after snow:
No tripping to the toilet
Pacing easy now. 

Happy supermoon to yous.