Unrecognized Simplicity

In Paramount, California, in the downtown section of the city on the main street is a large bank. The unassuming building, which housed the bank was on the FBI’s most robbed banks list year after year. No matter what changes to the security system, the number of guards on duty, the bank was always in the top five of most robbed banks in America. The bank spent time and large sums of money to prevent the robberies, and each year, the same thing occurred, it was the most robbed bank in America. Then someone new on the staff offered a suggestion: “I live near the police yard, and they have a bunch of old police cars just collecting dust, why don’t we borrow one, have it cleaned and park it in front of the bank?” Do you know what happened after they did that? The number of bank robberies went down to zero, that’s right ZERO.

I love the bank story for two reasons: the beauty of “unrecognized simplicity” that we often ignore when leading/teaching/coaching and the notion that money will solve all our problems. Having money never solves problems, in fact, having money create problems. Everyone reading this email who is wishing you worked at larger organizations, better programs, better offices need to understand how lucky you are to NOT have money. Having money stops us from thinking, prevents us from finding solutions, stops us from seeing the simplicity in life. In fact, having money spoils us—in the worst possible way.

Today, be grateful for what you have and use your mind to solve problems, not the company’s checkbook. Think divergent, find a different solution to all the questions, and test them. If they don’t work, then go back and work on another solution, don’t bitch or complain that you work for an organization who lacks funds. Money stops thought, money stops the growth, and most of all, money stops us from seeing the simple answers because we are too busy throwing money around.

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