Inertia is a powerful thing, as any physicist will tell you: “A body at rest tends to stay at rest; a body in motion tends to continue its motion along its trajectory.” In other words, the power of the status quo. If one tries to apply forces to change a body’s inertial state, whether relatively at rest or relatively in motion, the power required is directly proportional to the direction of change intended.
As a group, Americans are not known for planning ahead. We have had a negative savings rate in this country for many years, until the Great Recession demanded we rethink our profligate ways. We’re borrowing against our futures as a country, in both the public and private sectors. If you ask a random sample of people what their long term plans are, they typically talk about events within a one to two year horizon. If you ask a random sample of stock analysts the same question in the morning, they will describe their observations and projections before lunch. So now that the advent of a slowing and possible downturn in our economy is upon us, the idea of planning ahead for current events seems contradictory. But that doesn’t stop someone from picking up the binoculars once the ship is on the rocks.
“You’ve got to see yourself achieving your goal,” said the Guru of Success, as he squinted towards the crowd, his right index finger pointing to his eye for emphasis. “You can’t allow any thought of failure to enter your mind. The first time you consider not succeeding, you’ve ensured that you will not.”
“You’ve got to face the brutal facts, as Jim Collins said,” the business consultant explained to his struggling client. “If you don’t see the hurdles in front of you, you won’t have any chance of overcoming them.”
“Take every obstacle as a challenge, an opportunity”, the COO said to his staff, as they pored over the disappointing shipment numbers. “You can surmount any obstacle if you really believe you can.”
“You can’t teach a pig to sing,” said the long-serving engineer, when asked why his junior staff wasn’t completing the project on time. “Some people just can’t do what you want them to do, no matter how bad they want to do it.”
This kind of phone call doesn’t come often, but when it does, it makes me sad.
“Mr. Sewitch, you were referred to us by Sam Bahe. He felt you might be willing to assist in a difficult matter,” the attorney began the conversation. “My client needs a provisional director for the corporation.”
