How to Cut Costs and Become More Efficient
How to cut costs and become more efficient
Here is a good motto to memorise "Complexity and waste thrive on each other"
You want to achieve your goals. In order to do that you must:
- Maximise your productivity
- Minimise your costs
Efficiency is the ratio that relates your productivity to your costs:
- High productivity and low costs = high efficiency
- Low productivity and high costs = low efficiency
If you are inefficient you will lose ground to those who are more efficient.
In order to gain efficiency, consider the following five points
- Complexity and waste thrive on each other
- Simplicity is good
- Separate the method from the goal
- Ask what for? Rather than why?
- Divide things into three classes: Those that help you to progress, those that don't help you to progress and those that hamper your progress
1. Complexity and waste thrive on each other
The human mind has limits. Once you go beyond your mental limits you become confused and make mistakes. Over complexity causes the mind to fail, because it is unable to process the volume of information presented to it. Therefore needless complexity is to be identified and cut out.
Over complexity is bad because:
- It costs money to create and sustain
- It does not add any value
- It is the cause of error
2. Simplicity is good
If "Complexity is bad", then "Simplicity is good".
The mind must operate within its limits. That means that information must not exceed a certain level of complexity.
That means the information presented to the mind must achieve a certain level of simplicity.
Occam's razor
William of Occam was a 14th century English logician and Franciscan friar who created a principle called Ockham's razor.
The principle states that "Entities should not be multiplied beyond necessity." Sometimes it is quoted in one of its original Latin forms to give it an air of authenticity:
If you want to impress your mum, memorise this!
"Entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem"
It means "Entities should not be multiplied beyond necessity."
Things should not be multiplied beyond necessity
That means "more complexity is NOT necessarily better"
ie If two solutions can solve the same problem, the simplest one is more preferable over the complex one.
Implication: Look at what you are doing and simplify it.
3. Separate the method from the goal
Define your goal and recognise that anything not related to your goal is a relative waste of time money and effort.
In order to simplify you must know what you are trying to achieve (the goal) and separate the goal from the method of achieving it.
- The goal is "the object of your desires".
- The method is the "means by which you are trying to achieve the goal"
Many people do not distinguish between the goal and the method and they mix them up.
Then they make the mistake of committing themselves to a certain method, in spite of the fact that it is not helping them achieve their goal.
Example: The writer is committed to using his typewriter and won't change to a computer
Commitment to your goal - refusal to give up on your goal- is the character of determination: a positive trait.
Commitment to your current method - refusal to give up on your current ways of doing things- is the character of stubbornness; a negative trait.
4. Ask what for? Rather than why?
We do things for good reasons, but the reasons eventually become traditions.
And blindly repeating tradition is irrational and wasteful.
Rather than ask "WHY? Which gives us the historic justifications, it is often better to ask "what for?" Meaning: "For what purpose?" "With what intent?"
Asking Why? Tends to justify the method already in use and tends to work against simplification.
Asking WHAT for? Tends to challenge the method already in use and tends to work in favour of simplification.
5. Divide things into three classes
Divide things into three classes
- Those that help you to progress
- Those that don't help you to progress
- Those that hamper your progress
Those that help you to progress:
There are some processes and people who are actively helping you to progress.
You should identify, encourage and reward these people.
Those that don't help you to progress
There are some processes and people who are NOT actively helping you to progress:
They are coasting: taking out of the system without contributing anything valuable in return ie dead-weight
You should identify, challenge and inspire these people to upgrade their performance.
Those that hamper your progress:
There are some processes and people who actively HINDER and thwart your attempts to make progress.
They are insurgents, undercutting and frustrating your progress.
You should identify them and see if you cannot enlist their cooperation.
If you cannot change them, you should act to eject them from your team.
For more information about personal development training visit the Corporate Coach Group website
Blogs by Email
Do you want to receive an email whenever we post a new blog? The blogs contain article 5-10 minutes long - ideal for reading during your coffee break!
Further Reading in Personal Effectiveness
-
Improving your personal effectiveness
Improving Personal effectiveness How to make more progress in less time If you want to make more progress in the least amount of time, then it is important that you work in the most efficient manner possible. How can you ensure that you work in the most efficient manner possible? You...
Read Article > -
Having the Last Word
Many people have to have the last word in an argument, maybe it makes them feel powerful, or perhaps they just like arguing. By letting them have the last word, you then become the one with the empowerment, indicating that the discussion is closed.
Read Article > -
What does it take to Develop Personal Effectiveness?
Personal effectiveness is a measure of your ability to make good progress.
Read Article > -
Four Personal Effectiveness Training Skills
Four Personal effectiveness training skills In order to get the best from yourself and others what are the skills and knowledge you need to develop? There are many skills relating to personal effectiveness. But we will focus on four essential skills. Four essential personal effectiveness skills. There are four major...
Read Article > -
How to make the most of your journey to work
Commuting to work can be tedious and mind-numbingly boring. So, we have put together some suggestions on how you can make the most of your down time stuck in traffic, or waiting for the train. Use your down time to improve yourself.
Read Article >
Looking for Personal Development Training?
If you're looking to develop your Personal Effectiveness Skills, you may find this Personal Development Training Course beneficial:
Open Training Course Pricing and Availability
Next Open Course Starts in 4 days, Birmingham Jurys Inn, places available