Seeking Efficiency

Recently I loaned a friend my copy of the book, "Cheaper by the Dozen," by Frank Bunker Gilbreth, Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey.  I claimed, perhaps with some exaggeration, that this was the book that defined my whole approach to life.  In fact, it did have a big impact on my thinking about efficiency.  The book is about a couple, both of whom are time and efficiency experts, with twelve children.  The book is written by two of the children, and it is a series of tales about how their parents, mostly their rather eccentric father, applied efficiency methods to the running of the household.  In one story, father sits, fully clothed, on the living room floor, surrounded by children, and demonstrates the most efficient way to take a bath.  You might enjoy either the book or the movie.

This book's impact on me was to get me thinking about the most efficient way to approach most any task.  I like to get things done as quickly and efficiently as I can, and I believe that giving some thought to the method enables me to do this, at least most of the time.

It is possible for this emphasis on efficiency to backfire, though.  For me, the down side of the emphasis on efficiency comes when I try to rush through something that really requires a more careful approach.  Rushing often results in mistakes, which then take more time to correct.  Rushing and mistakes mess up my efficiency.  I have to watch myself and remind myself to slow down when this happens.

On a somewhat larger scale, I have observed many improvements in our departmental processes over the years.  Often these improvements result when a team puts their collective minds to process improvement.  Process improvement requires looking skeptically at the steps in a process and asking what is the purpose for each one.  Many times, a step is there for some historical reason that no longer applies.  Once it is removed from the process, things move more quickly.  Another strategy is to look for roadblocks in the process and to revise the process to remove or minimize them. 

Spend some time thinking about efficiency, and you may be surprised by the positive outcomes.