{"id":1200,"date":"2009-03-09T20:45:43","date_gmt":"2009-03-10T03:45:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/staging.opexlearning.com\/resources\/?p=1200"},"modified":"2014-10-07T16:34:19","modified_gmt":"2014-10-07T21:34:19","slug":"mind-before-money-creativity-before-capital","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging.opexlearning.com\/resources\/mind-before-money-creativity-before-capital\/1200\/","title":{"rendered":"Mind Before Money, Creativity Before Capital"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"a296a24fa2fc69ef5487857f02f111e8\" data-index=\"9\" style=\"float: none; margin:10px 0 10px 0; text-align:center;\">\n<script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Single Post readerboard -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:inline-block;width:728px;height:90px\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-8207522353004717\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"1144967431\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\n<\/div>\n<p>My <a title=\"maintain forward tension, shmula.com\" href=\"https:\/\/staging.opexlearning.com\/resources\/maintain-forward-tension\/497\/\">Kung Fu<\/a> brother and I spoke last week and he taught me something that remains with me:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>I continue to do Wing Chun because it allows me to create<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>In a business setting, how many of us can say that we enjoy what we do because it allows us to create? \u00a0 In fact, from my experience, when something becomes too difficult, businesses all-too-easily pull out their wallets and hire a consultant, preventing any need to think and creatively solve their own problems.\u00a0 This is analogous to good-hearted-but-misguided parents that do everything for their children, robbing their children of precious life-lessons.<\/p>\n<p>I&#8217;m not casting judgment on consultants, but I am making a judgment on weak mindedness that companies often exhibit, robbing their employees of the opportunity to think, to create, and to contribute to solutions to the challenges the company is facing.<\/p>\n<p>There are times when organizations need outside expertise and help &#8212; and that is perfectly fine &#8212; but too often companies &#8220;give up on thinking&#8221; and quickly hire outside help.\u00a0 This type of thinking is weak-minded and is antithetical to Lean Thinking.<\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"color: #800000;\">A Simple Principle<\/span><\/h2>\n<p>An unsaid principle of Lean Thinking is this, said in two different ways:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a title=\"mind before money in kaizen\" href=\"https:\/\/staging.opexlearning.com\/resources\/the-atomic-rules-of-kaizen\/1112\/\">Mind Before Money<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a title=\"creativity over capital in kaizen\" href=\"https:\/\/staging.opexlearning.com\/resources\/ten-ways-to-boost-your-creativity\/4174\/\">Creativity Before Capital<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>No explanation needed &#8212; before you spend money, think first; before you beg for resources, use your creativity first.<\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"color: #800000;\">A North Star<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><a title=\"shmula.com, my mentor, aran sambandar, life lessons\" href=\"https:\/\/staging.opexlearning.com\/resources\/overmanaged-and-underled\/457\/\">My mentor taught me<\/a> a long time ago about life lessons; growing up a poor, fatherless, immigrant has shaped my character &#8212; for that I am thankful.<\/p>\n<p>Just like people, organizations need a north star to follow &#8212; a guide that is steady regardless of market fluctuations.\u00a0 Ideally, the company culture &amp; mission ought to be the behavioral demonstration of that north star, but sometimes it is not.\u00a0 These types of organizations that have a shallow culture are the ones, I submit, that will not be around when the market shakedown is over because their roots aren&#8217;t planted deeply.<\/p>\n<p>In these tough times, I am reminded of my dad&#8217;s favorite poem from his hero and mine, General Douglas MacArthur:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Build me a son who will be strong enough to know when he is weak, and brave enough to face himself when he is a afraid; one who will be proud and unbending in honest defeat, and humble and gentle in victory.<\/p>\n<p>Build me a son whose wishes will not take the place of deeds; a son who will know Thee &#8211; and that to know himself is the foundation stone of knowledge.<\/p>\n<p>Lead him, I pray, not in the path of ease and comfort, but under the stress and spew of difficulties and challenge. Here let him learn to stand up in the storm; here let him learn compassion for those who fail.<\/p>\n<p>Build me a son whose heart will be clear, whose goal will be high, a son who will master himself before he seeks to master other men, one who will reach into the future, yet never forget the past.<\/p>\n<p>And after all these things are his, add, I pray, enough of a sense of humor, so that he may always be serious, yet never take himself too seriously. Give him humility, so that he may always remember the simplicity of true greatness, the open mind of true wisdom, and the meekness of true strength.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">Nevermind the <a title=\"jargon monoxide, bullcrap bingo\" href=\"https:\/\/staging.opexlearning.com\/resources\/how-to-be-a-human\/1039\/\">Jargon Monoxide<\/a> of Lean, Lean Thinking, Six Sigma, etc. &#8212; Mind Before Money and Creativity Before Capital is just plain good business.<\/p>\n<!--CusAds0-->\n<div style=\"font-size: 0px; height: 0px; line-height: 0px; margin: 0; padding: 0; clear: both;\"><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>My Kung Fu brother and I spoke last week and he taught me something that remains with me: I continue to do Wing Chun because it allows me to create In a business setting, how many of us can say that we enjoy what we do because it allows us to create? \u00a0 In fact, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12327,"featured_media":8607,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[338],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.0 - 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