Deep in Thought

Deep in Thought
On his drive home, Bob pondered all of the things
he had discussed with the CEO that day. How do the
“rights” in the Bill of Rights fit together to help me
solve the problem posed by the CEO? he wondered.
In fact, how do they fit together to solve any problem?
Less than a half mile down the road, Bob passed a
large billboard that bore the date “9/11/2001” and the
words “We will never forget.” Normally any event that
had taken place that long ago would have been a fading
memory by now, but that horrific day flashed through
Bob’s mind as vividly as if it had happened yesterday.
“That’s it,” Bob suddenly exclaimed aloud, as he
recalled the brave actions taken by Todd Beamer,
Jeremy Glick, Tom Burnett, and others on United
Airlines Flight 93. What a perfect example of the Bill
of Rights—doing the right thing, for the right reasons,
with the right people, at the right time, in the right
order, with tremendous resolve and intensity, for the
right results!
Bob reconstructed the events of that fatal flight in
his mind. The passengers had done the right thing by
crashing the airplane in order to save countless other
lives. They had done it for the right reasons, they had
formed the right partnership among the passengers,
and they had done it at the right time—far from
heavily populated areas and well before the intended
target could be hit. They had done it all in the right
order: They had developed their alliance, formulated
a plan, and jumped into action. And they had done it
for the right results, even though their tragic deaths
would seem to belie that fact.
Had they procrastinated in making their decision
or in taking action—had no one but “Last-Minute
Bobs” been on board that flight—the outcome would
likely have been different. The aircraft could have
slammed into the White House or the nation’s
Capitol building—and devastated the United States
government. On-time and on-target decisions
prevailed, but what a price those brave passengers
paid. What a selfless act of courage!
Bob reflected on other high-profile news events
in recent times. He thought about the various men
and women who had done the wrong thing with the
wrong people for the wrong reasons.
72 / Deep in Thought
I’m really beginning to see how having clear
priorities and then filtering them though the Bill of
Rights could help me become on-time and on-target,
Bob thought. But does that mean I’ll be able to
conquer my tendency to procrastinate—to be a lastminute
manager? There, I did it! I admitted that I
probably am a last-minute manager.
“How did it go with the CEO today?”
Bob the Occasionally Perceptive Manager
positively knew his wife was going to ask that exact
question when he walked through the door.
“Great,” he assured her. “But I have a tough
assignment tonight. All I have to do is keep our
company afloat while it’s losing millions of dollars,
guarantee that no employees are laid off, and make
certain that my mom doesn’t lose any money on the
stock she owns in the company.”
“Your mother owns stock in your company?”
Bob’s suddenly confused wife asked.
“No, she doesn’t. And we’re not actually losing
millions of dollars. Problem is, I don’t walk on water,
either. But with what I’m learning, I just might be able
to do that someday!”
Bob slipped into his study, took out a legal pad and
wrote:
Deep in Thought / 73
PROBLEMS
• Company is losing money.
• Stockholders are angry.
POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS
• Lay off some employees; cut costs.
• Increase sales/revenues by going after new
markets with improved products and customer
service.
• Merge with a competitor.
POSSIBLE OUTCOMES
• The cuts save the company.
• The company makes a spectacular turnaround
by going after new markets and introducing new
products.
• The merger saves the company.
• Despite all efforts, stock falls. Big sell-off
follows. Customer confidence plummets.
• Company goes out of business. Everyone loses
his or her job.
74 / Deep in Thought
Bob the Suddenly More Aware Manager
experienced an almost supernatural revelation. There
are only two problems, but three possible solutions
and five possible outcomes. Those seem like good odds!
I think I can tackle that!
What Bob didn’t realize immediately was that
both of the problems were negative, but only some of
the solutions and outcomes were negative. When he
finally recognized the situation, he dug out his notes
and did his best to employ the ideas they contained.
The note at the top of the stack read:
PRIORITY: Priorities change. Know what to do
and know when to do it. “Triage” the tasks at hand.
This strategy solves the first problem
procrastinators face: LATENESS.
PROPRIETY: The Bill of Rights.
• Do the right thing.
• Do it for the right reasons.
• Do it with the right people.
• Do it at the right time.
• Do it in the right order.
• Do it with intensity.
• Do it for the right results.
Deep in Thought / 75
This strategy solves the second problem
procrastinators face: POOR QUALITY WORK.
Bob thought about the priorities. I believe this
company still offers a valuable product and good
service. It also provides good jobs to some great
people. So my priority would be to help make the
company financially stable so it can continue to
provide products, service, and jobs.
With these thoughts clearly embedded in his
mind, Bob took a look at the topic of propriety.
“Do the right thing.” Hmmm. I think the right
thing would be to keep as many of its people employed
as it can, while balancing that “right” with the rights
of its customers and shareholders.
Then an oddly on-target idea crossed Last-Minute
Bob’s mind. If I were the president or CFO of this
company, and I had been spending a lot of my time
reading trade magazines and pursuing other lowpriority
activities, I wouldn’t have been tracking trends.
If I had tracked trends, I might have seen the downturn
coming and could have solved at least part of the
problem through natural attrition—retirements and
resignations. Procrastination could have contributed to
my present situation. Interesting how priority and the
Bill of Rights are so tightly linked together.
76 / Deep in Thought
Bob moved on. The next “right” was a little more
difficult. “Do it for the right reasons.” Job security is
certainly one of them, but more that that, securing the
financial futures of the company’s people and its investors
is a great reason to do the right thing, Bob thought.
Bob’s eyes fell to the next item on the list. “Do it
with the right people.” I’m sure all of us must have
been the right people at one time or another, or we
wouldn’t have been hired in the first place. So what
should the company do? Solve the cutbacks issue
through natural attrition? Would that happen quickly
enough on its own? Or should the company offer early
retirement? These issues are about human beings and
their lives. This really is tough!
Bob made a few more notes and continued. “Do
it at the right time.” It seems to me that a lastminute
manager is going to delay any decision until
it’s too late. So whatever I decide in any situation, I
have to follow through at the right time. Does that
mean right away? Or do I occasionally hold out,
hoping for a change in the situation?
Maybe the answer lies in the next “do it,” Bob
thought. “Do it in the right order.” Maybe the right
order is to focus on sales, cut executive salaries and
perks as a clear example that the company is serious
about this, count on some attrition to help, and, as a
last resort, proceed with layoffs.
Deep in Thought / 77
Bob worked through the remaining points on the
Bill of Rights—”Do it with intensity” and “Do it
for the right results”—and entered his plan on his
computer. He was confident that the CEO would find
it to be a carefully drawn plan.
But what’s the third P? he wondered the next
morning as he drove to work—and to his next
appointment with the CEO.