Taking Control, Part Three
Your Control Problems Are Based on Weaknesses with Starting or Changing or Stopping
"Franticness, helplessness, incompetence, inefficiency and other undesirable factors in a job are all traceable to inabilities to start, change and stop things.
"However, in executives, foremen or workers, we have people today who are either stuck on one or another of the factors of control exclusively or who are incapable of any of the factors of control.
"We have people in the workaday world, whether managers or janitors, who are for instance fixated (stuck) on starting. These people can start all day and all night but they never get going. Such people talk about big schemes and big deals; such people talk a lot of enthusiasm about getting going but never themselves seem to move.
"Others, no matter what their class or classification, get fixated on change. These manifest* this usually by insisting that everything 'keep running.' They talk all the time about 'keeping things going,' but they will not listen to any new ideas ..." "A subdivision of this is the person who must change everything all the time. (*manifest: show, reveal)
"Plants, businesses, factories, ships and even the government are victimized particularly by people who can only stop things. No matter how well some unit may be running, some order is issued that stops whatever it is doing.
"No business can succeed unless it has been properly started, unless it is progressing through time or changing position in space and unless it is capable of stopping harmful practices and even competitors.
"Thus the secret of doing a good job is the secret of control itself. One not only continues to create a job, day by day, week by week, month by month, he also continues the job by permitting it to progress, and he is also capable of stopping or ending any cycle of work and letting it remain finished." -- L. Ron Hubbard, from the book The Problems of Work.
To improve your control, you simply correct the part of control that is most difficult for you. However, you must first identify the weakest part.
Which is most difficult for you: starting, changing or stopping? Which of these symptoms describes you best?
Signs You Have Difficulties Starting Things
You have many ideas that you never implement. For example, you get lots of great ideas from books or seminars. You make notes and even write down plans. But you never start them.
You may obtain the components you need to do a job, but do not start it. For example, you buy the tools and materials to build a dog house, but never actually start to build the dog house.
You might have big goals, but make no progress toward them.
Signs You Have Difficulties Changing Things
You prefer things do not change. You resist improvements. For example, you like an outdated computer or computer program and never update them.
You leave things incomplete. For example, you put on one coat of paint on a wall, but never get around to putting on the second coat.
You may start writing reports or organizing your office, but you never really get much done.
You might follow the same routine you learned in school or have had for years, even though you know a better way exists.
You might make big resolutions every New Year and do well for a day or two. Yet you never really make the change.
Signs You Have Difficulties Stopping Things
You have bad habits that you cannot break. You frequently say, "I just can't stop myself."
You hate to throw things away, even if they are useless. Your closets are stuffed with worthless junk.
If you force yourself to finish a project, you are likely to leave your tools lying around. You hate to clean up after yourself.
If you are a boss, you take too long to fire employees, even though they deserve it. Stopping people who are damaging your operation may be difficult for you.
You have a hard time ending bad relationships or forgiving people.
When you give a job or object to someone, you have a hard time leaving him or her alone. You can't stop possessing the responsibility or the object.
Signs You Are Fixated on Start, Change or Stop
Control is also difficult if you are fixated or obsessed with starting, changing or stopping things.
For example, you are constantly starting new programs or projects. Every week or so you start a new project or two. Unfortunately, they do you no good as you or your group cannot complete all the things you start.
Or you are constantly changing things. You do not like the way things are. You are never satisfied. Unfortunately, you end up changing things that should be left alone.
Or maybe you like to stop things a little too much. Your first reaction to any change is to stop it or end it. If you are a boss, you fire people too quickly. You throw things away you later need. Or maybe you feel like a police officer-constantly trying to stop bad things from happening. Unfortunately, you end up stopping good things as well.
Recommendations
1. Determine which is most difficult for you to do: starting thing, changing things or stopping things.
2. Work on improving this weakness.
3. Notice if you are obsessed or fixated with starting, changing or stopping things. If so, work toward improving lightening up on this aspect.
When you can easily and effectively start, change and stop things when they need to be started, changed or stopped, you are in control.
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