Published on: April 21, 2017
by Kevin CoupeThere is a lovely column by David Leonhardt in the New York Times suggesting that business leaders ought to take a page from one of the nation's most accomplished statesmen.
"When George Shultz was secretary of state in the 1980s, he liked to carve out one hour each week for quiet reflection. He sat down in his office with a pad of paper and pen, closed the door and told his secretary to interrupt him only if one of two people called:
“'My wife or the president,' Shultz recalled.
"Shultz, who’s now 96, told me that his hour of solitude was the only way he could find time to think about the strategic aspects of his job. Otherwise, he would be constantly pulled into moment-to-moment tactical issues, never able to focus on larger questions of the national interest. And the only way to do great work, in any field, is to find time to consider the larger questions."
Certainly, the emergence of technology has made finding such time more difficult. But, Leonhardt argues, "Our society, or at least the white-collar portions of it, needs some more of ... Shultz’s reflection time. (It is ) the route to meaningful ideas in any almost any realm: personal relationships, academic papers, policy solutions, diplomatic strategies, new businesses. I find it striking that new-business formation has declined over the last 15 years, despite (or perhaps partly because of) the digital revolution."
This is such a good column, making such a critical point - that most people have "confused the availability of new information with the importance of it. If you spend all your time collecting new information, you won’t leave enough time to make sense of it."
You can read it here.
It is the very definition of an Eye-Opener.
- KC's View: