Everything changes but the truth.
You’re greeted with these words upon landing at thefloworks.com. The word “truth” appears something like 37 times on this website but in none of those places does it answer the question…
… What is truth?
Universities offer countless courses in pursuit of an answer exploring statements ranging from “there is no truth” to “everybody has their own truth.”
That’s fine. But rather than spending time trying to settle such academic matters ourselves, we'll leave them to it and nail down something that works for us.
That’s fine. But rather than spending time trying to settle such academic matters ourselves, we'll leave them to it and nail down something that works for us.
Let’s start with a fact: man took his first flight in 1903 and then, in 1969, within the span of one lifetime, walked on the moon. Think about that: every generation in the history of mankind had dreamt of flying. Then, after all these millennia, the Wright brothers were airborne, the Eagle had landed, and Neil Armstrong had taken one giant leap for mankind.
What happened?
Newton happened. He came, showed us his three laws and boom! We’re now able to make sense of things that had perplexed man from the beginning of time.
Yet did you know that by the time Armstrong walked on the moon, Newtonian physics had already been invalidated? Nevertheless, it remains to this day true enough to put a man on the moon. Nobody can take that away. It’s fact: a truth all on its own.
In the same way, Deming, with his four-part system of thinking, has given us a way to make sense of the complexities we face in running an organization. Though, unlike with Newton, nobody like Einstein has come along to refute the validity of his management framework: the framework that enables the predictions around cause and effect that tame the complexities, and make a business organization hum. [1]
These two guys—these brilliant physicists—came along, wrapped their heads around a meaningful chunk of the truth offered up by the universe, and presented it in a way that we—us regular guys—can understand and utilize to great effect. Newton in the physical realm, and Deming in the realm of free enterprise.
On top of that, Deming has even given us a list of 14 action items to help us get started in putting his way of thinking to work.
Good enough to put a man on the moon. Good enough to revive the industry of Japan, taking it from a bombed-out nation with very few natural resources to unquestioned global superiority. [2]
It’s not up for debate, the Deming management philosophy works. The evidence is there, the framework is there. The way to learn it is right here. It’s our truth—the truth of leadership—and it’s being handed to you right now.
There is nothing better for bringing delight to your customers and running circles around the competition. It’s based on such sound thinking that the more you explore it the more awe it induces. See the convincing contrast evolve as you read through this timeline. Additional detail is revealed about the Deming management framework in this essay. Good enough for the industrial revival of a country devastated by war and good enough to put a man on the moon, and with that, just as the Eagle had landed, we have landed on...
Yet did you know that by the time Armstrong walked on the moon, Newtonian physics had already been invalidated? Nevertheless, it remains to this day true enough to put a man on the moon. Nobody can take that away. It’s fact: a truth all on its own.
In the same way, Deming, with his four-part system of thinking, has given us a way to make sense of the complexities we face in running an organization. Though, unlike with Newton, nobody like Einstein has come along to refute the validity of his management framework: the framework that enables the predictions around cause and effect that tame the complexities, and make a business organization hum. [1]
These two guys—these brilliant physicists—came along, wrapped their heads around a meaningful chunk of the truth offered up by the universe, and presented it in a way that we—us regular guys—can understand and utilize to great effect. Newton in the physical realm, and Deming in the realm of free enterprise.
On top of that, Deming has even given us a list of 14 action items to help us get started in putting his way of thinking to work.
Good enough to put a man on the moon. Good enough to revive the industry of Japan, taking it from a bombed-out nation with very few natural resources to unquestioned global superiority. [2]
It’s not up for debate, the Deming management philosophy works. The evidence is there, the framework is there. The way to learn it is right here. It’s our truth—the truth of leadership—and it’s being handed to you right now.
There is nothing better for bringing delight to your customers and running circles around the competition. It’s based on such sound thinking that the more you explore it the more awe it induces. See the convincing contrast evolve as you read through this timeline. Additional detail is revealed about the Deming management framework in this essay. Good enough for the industrial revival of a country devastated by war and good enough to put a man on the moon, and with that, just as the Eagle had landed, we have landed on...
...our standard for truth:
Good enough to make sense of the complexities in the systems we find ourselves operating within, and in fact, good enough to make them thrive, and well-proven by the test of time.
I’ll offer a corollary to our standard to help solidify it: Timeless, governing principles and natural laws that we cannot break, but will only break ourselves against if we fight them. [3], [4]
Let’s let that be our standard for truth and get to work making good things happen for our organizations and for all who depend upon them to thrive.
I’ll offer a corollary to our standard to help solidify it: Timeless, governing principles and natural laws that we cannot break, but will only break ourselves against if we fight them. [3], [4]
Let’s let that be our standard for truth and get to work making good things happen for our organizations and for all who depend upon them to thrive.
[1] Remember: Management is action based on prediction.
[2] If you sometimes think that the deck is stacked against you as a small business, pause to consider what was Japan's plight: war-torn and with no natural resources to speak of. What they have done they did with smarts, discipline, sound-thinking, and by embracing the truth. You can do it too, no matter the challenge!
[3] ‘Natural’ to include human nature. The stuff of leadership.[4] Stephen Covey provides memorable illustration in this great story from 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.
Also Note: The banner photo above is the first earth rise ever captured on film. It was taken by Apollo 8 mission commander Frank Borman on Christmas Eve, 1969. The color is digitized to reflect what the astronauts actually saw. They took a now-iconic color photo a few minutes later, but this one was first. The photo further down has been verified as the Wright brothers' first flight. That's Wilbur pictured on the beach. The small bench in the foreground is where the right wing had rested. They flew twice more that day, each flight farther than the one before.
