iNeut fl utk Hate QJollege of Agriculture At Qfocndl Iniaersttg 3tJjaca, ». $. liibrattj Cornell University Library BF 431.G8 Lessons in personal efficiency 3 1924 014 105 435 The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924014105435 LESSONS IN PERSONAL EFFICIENCY THE MACMILLAN COMPANY NEW YORK • BOSTON ■ CHICAGO ■ DALLAS ATLANTA ■ SAN FRANCISCO MACMILLAN & CO., Limited LONDON • BOMBAY • CALCUTTA MELBOURNE THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, Ltd. TORONTO LESSONS IN PERSONAL EFFICIENCY BY ROBERT GRIMSHAW •NVnt tyatk THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 1918 All rights reserved Copyright, 1918 By THE MACMUXAN COMPANY Set up and electrotyped. Published May, zgx8. PREFACE There is little need for any more preface than merely to state that from the very beginning the publication of my lectures has been called for by those who heard them at the New York University and elsewhere. As they were very largely impromptu, and as the mass of notes from which they were delivered grew with each repeti- tion, their publication as delivered has been impossible, but this resume may serve as a useful reminder to those who heard the lectures, and a thinking point for those to whom I have not had the advantage of speaking. Robert Grimshaw. 717 W. 177th St., New York, January, 1918. CONTENTS Lesson page I. Introduction i II. Examples of Efficiency 13 III. Forces — Attention 30 IV. Attention 43 V. Perception 56 VI. Records and Standards 71 VII. Planning 85 VIII. Environment and Habit -ioi IX. Time — Fatigue 115 X. Memory 131 XI. Reasoning, etc 159 XII. The Will 172 XIII. Loyalty and Cooperation 179 XIV. Short Cuts 194 LESSONS IN PERSONAL EFFICIENCY LESSON I INTRODUCTION The word " efficiency." In the beginning let us be clear about what the word means. The man who would start out studying about arson, under the impression that it meant highway robbery, or housebreaking, would not progress very far on the road to knowledge of his subject. " Efficiency " is a quality of mind, or of body, produc- ing, or capable of producing, maximum result with a given effort, or a given result with minimum effort; akin to buying a maximum amount of goods with a given sum of money, or a given amount with minimum outlay. Strenuousness vs. Efficiency. Efficiency is not only entirely unconnected with strenuousness, which implies a strain, but in fact is diametrically opposed thereto. The elephant is less efficient, although much more powerful, than the horse. Foreign missions are much less efficient than domestic, because they produce com- paratively little result for a given outlay of cash, human life and effort. Effectiveness vs. Efficiency. Efficiency is not effec- tiveness. A thing may be wonderfully effective or ef- ficacious, yet not efficient. A medicine which is too powerful may be effective, but not efficient, because it does not "produce the desired result with a minimum of effort." Taking a line of trenches at immense and 2 LESSONS IN PERSONAL EFFICIENCY needless cost of life and munitions is "effective" in clearing out the enemy — but lamentably inefficient, be- cause the desired result is not attained with minimum effort. One may remove a rock from the road which it blocks, by pulling it out of the way on a sled; it would be more efficient to use rollers, or explode a dynamite cartridge under it. Capacity vs. Efficiency. Denned scientifically, we have capacity as "ability to receive, understand or ac- complish; adaptedness to do; productive power;" whereas efficiency ("duty," the professional engineer calls it) is "the ratio of useful work, or of effect produced, to the energy expended or outlay made in producing it." More concretely put: — Capacity is ability to make or to do at a certain rate per time unit, as to turn table-legs, reap wheat, haul coal, deliver letters, make out bills, at a certain speed. Inefficiency. To carry a loaded wheelbarrow on the head, as the negroes in Jamaica and the Italian women in New York do with ordinary loads, would be ineffi- cient; so would letting its axle bearings get rusty, and pushing it. Mental efficiency implies well-trained, well-exercised, well-balanced, well-co-ordinated brain, fed in proper quantity with rich red blood, and subordinated to a calm and cheerful soul and spirit. The mentally efficient man can handle ordinary brain problems at a reasonable rate, without effort, during ordinary working periods; and in emergency draw on his reserve mental forces so as to prolong and intensify his mental activity, without endangering his sanity or equanimity. As a rule, mental efficiency calls for a healthy body. "Mens sana in cor pore sano" is a valuable possession, well worth striv- ing for. The study of efficiency will help attain, keep and enjoy, both factors. Mental efficiency is improved in the same way as INTRODUCTION 3 physical — by systematic practise based on correct prin- ciples. But there is no way of improving general mental efficiency. One may improve the memory, for instance; but that does not increase the general mental power. Each mind faculty must be strengthened, and the manner of its application bettered; just as any one set of muscles can be strengthened, and the manner of their application improved — each set for itself. Thus, improvement of memory does not imply betterment of perception or reasoning; nor is there any system of mental education which will develop memory, perception and reasoning power at the same time. Moral efficiency means more than mere adherence to commandments. It implies victory over self. It goes beyond the Decalog. Muscular efficiency has to do with all the muscles, in connection with the framework with which they act. It is inconsistent with either much fat or a very lean bodily condition. It is essential that every man keep his muscles strong, uniformly developed and under control of brain and nerves, that he may serve and pro- tect himself, his family and his country. The muscles may be kept supple and elastic long after the bones are brittle; hence old people should avoid exercises or activities which might risk a heavy fall. Outdoor exercise is the best method of keeping the muscles efficient, and subservient to the will; but there are many "home" exercises which call for no apparatus, and keep the waist line down and the muscle efficiency high. While not every elderly man can be a Muldoon, all may profit by his teachings. Physical efficiency calls for more than mere muscular strength or agility: — so-called "fitness." It refers to digestion and every physical function. It demands good teeth, stomach, lungs, heart, muscles, and all other parts of our complex and correlated or co-ordinated 4 LESSONS IN PERSONAL EFFICIENCY system. It tends to assist the attainment of a good condition of the entire physical system. Commercial efficiency consists in getting a given profit with least possible expenditure of work, capital and time, and least risk. It may come from any one of the following factors: — i. Organizing. 2. P lanning . 3. Buying. 4. Selling; or from a combination of any two or more of these. Personal efficiency may be either moral, mental or physical. To attain a high standard in all three lines is difficult — but this very fact should inspire us all with the desire to commence early and strive long and hard to raise soul, mind and body to the highest level that time and opportunity permit. Corporative efficiency (i. e., the efficiency of a cor- poration) depends not only on that of the individual units, but also on their perfect co-ordination. Thus our national government is far from efficient, because its units are changed too often and do not work in har- mony with each other. There is duplication of activities in some cases, entire neglect of important functions in others. Our States have conflicting laws — for instance concerning marriage, divorce, inheritance, etc. Latent efficiency, — that which lies dormant until wakened by some outside influence — probably exists in every normal person; indeed may be uncovered from the cloud which obscures it, in many instances considered as abnormal or only subnormal — as witness the develop- ment of the mind and body in "defective" children, caused by simply removing adenoids. Active efficiency bears the same relation to passive as a machine gun in action to one all ready for service. It is the brain supplied with good red blood, trained to INTRODUCTION 5 logical reasoning, and capable of retaining impressions, compared with one capable but untaught. Passive efficiency is that which, while existing, re- quires the application of some external force to utilize it — for instance in a steam engine, a cannon or a bow. It cannot put itself in action, as can the mind. Efficiency is usually only relative. The standard of attainment is generally capable of being raised — in the case of persons by effort from within; in that of the brute animals and of things, by forces acting from without. Thus the memory may be wonderfully im- proved; the range of cannon and the speed of race-horses has been raised by human effort acting along lines of principles based on records. Absolute efficiency does not exist in things human. But the higher we aim, the more likely we are to attain a high degree of efficiency — always providing that we follow principles which have been shown to lead to higher and higher results. Regular efficiency is that which has no seasons; no days nor nights; but goes on from time to time at the same rate — whether steady or regularly increasing. The essential is that it be unceasing and unremitting. The mill-stream which at one season overflows its banks and drowns the wheel, at another has to be helped out by a steam engine, may be powerful on an average, but cannot be said to be regularly or even generally efficient. Symmetrical efficiency may be compared to that of a symmetrically developed human body, where there is absolute beauty and proportion among all the members — not as with the blacksmith, whose arms are unduly developed as compared with his legs. Automatic efficiency is that kind which, once at- tained, goes on for itself without new guidance or im- pulse. It may be carried so far that it is inherited — for instance in the trotting horse. His gait is not natural 6 LESSONS IN PERSONAL EFFICIENCY but an improvement on that which he inherits — but the offspring of several generations of trotters have been known to trot without instruction. Scientific efficiency is a term usually applied to the state resulting from organization and special investiga- tion and research, coupled with vocational guidance. It is most often applied to manufacturing conditions. The term, as well as the science and art to which it refers, have been much used by both fakers and honest incompetents, particularly in America. The father of this science was the late Frederick W. Taylor. He and his disciples have done much to improve American efficiency and increase the well-being of American em- ployers and workers. Efficiency of production enables a manufacturing plant, for example, to produce at minimum cost for materials, labor, and general expenses; to enlarge or diminish its output according to the demand of the product; and to keep plant, organization as such, and personnel, unimpaired in both slack and rush seasons and periods. Efficiency of supply refers to utilization of the time, money, muscular energy, etc., at our disposal, and which we cannot increase. In money matters it spells thrift, in contradiction to mere earning power. In the matter of time it means no unnecessary stoppages — no retracing of steps; no useless or hindering movements; so that we five to best advantage with the fixed income which all have from birth to death, of twenty-four hours a day. Efficiency of quality implies getting out of soil, fibre, or other source, the best practicable and attainable quality of product; distilling the best elements and dis- carding the less valuable; raising the standard of purity and of excellence — but irrespective of the time, effort and money expended in attaining mere quality. It is usually incompatible with efficiency of supply. INTRODUCTION 7 Efficiency of use refers to the manner of utilizing one's supply of material, labor, time, money, physical or mental capability. Just as at table one man can eat a fish or a crab, and leave but little unedible material on his plate, while another will get only half the meat — so the man who shows efficiency of use will live better on $2,000 a year than another on $2,500 or even $3,000. Efficiency of use comes partly by nature, partly by training. It may be entirely distinct from stinginess on the one hand, extravagance on the other. Efficiency of assignment differs from that of supply, quality or use; being a compound ratio showing the pro- portions between 1. The value of the product in a given unit of time, material or equipment, and 2. The standard value of the product. The carpenter who in picking up or straightening a nail spends time worth more than the nail, shows in- efficiency of assignment — unless it is the last nail avail- able. The mechanic who from pure laziness uses a monkey-wrench as a hammer shows inefficiency of as- signment, as the wrench not only does not do the work of the hammer well, but is liable to be sprung by the rough usage. But if it were a question of spoiling a good wrench, sooner than delaying a repair that might cause damage, or of losing more than its value in time going for or waiting for a hammer — then the efficiency of assignment would be good. Partial efficiency might be compared with partial good health, or partial commercial solvency. Games at home and outdoor exercises should be chosen which will develop the entire body; courses of study selected which, while specialized to conform with one's occupation or personal bent, yet leave no mental faculty absolutely undeveloped. No muscle, moral fibre, or mental faculty should be allowed to get atrophied. 8 LESSONS IN PERSONAL EFFICIENCY Compound or resultant efficiency is the product — not the sum — of two or more ratios; for instance where we consider efficiency of a steam plant as the resultant of those of the coal, the fireman, the boiler and the engine. The aims of efficiency are various. They may be either creditable or the reverse. Their praiseworthiness has little or nothing to do with the degree of efficiency desired or attained. The aims may be either ethical or material; in either case either creditable or not. In general, the study of efficiency leads to cutting out wastes of time, money, material, and muscular or mental force. Early difficulties, in efficiency study. Some find this study in the beginning dry and uninteresting, because they fail to see what is beyond the first investigations and definitions. But they will find that the theme un- folds systematically and symmetrically; that with each succeeding lesson the work will be more easy, the results more apparent. The study might indeed be compared to trying to pull open a drawer that offers stout re- sistance at first, but succumbs to repeated pulls and shakings, and at last — perhaps even before expected — opens suddenly and reveals the contents. Efficiency study should be compulsory. The fact that there is a fool born every minute should lead to enactments to protect fools, by making them in some degree efficient. A fool is no more responsible for being foolish than a negro is for being black, or than I am for not being handsome, eloquent, or musical. Very often the fool knows that he is a fool — it having been borne in upon him by countless humilating experiences. Is it not as much Society's duty to protect him from crooks, and against his own weaknesses, as to inspect and treat the teeth of school children, and to insist that feeble- minded and cripples shall be aided? How to attain efficiency. There is no one definite INTRODUCTION 9 method of attaining any one kind of efficiency; much less, any one definite means of achieving all the kinds thereof. There are, however, some means which aid in attaining all kinds : — study, counsel, imitation and prac- tice; each embracing many subdivisions and capable of many applications — even of several definitions, accord- ing to the application intended. Results of attaining efficiency. These are many, various, and usually desirable. As a rule they are bene- ficial both to the one attaining them and to the com- munity. For inefficiency means loss; usually, to the community or to some member thereof, other than to the inefficient person, corporation, or other causing it. And just as injury to one is apt to be harmful to all, so loss to one is apt to be loss to all. Therefore everyone, no matter how efficient, should aid in raising the standard of those within his sphere of influence. The measure of efficiency. Although efficiency has neither weight nor dimentions, it may be measured just as well as can those other weightless elements, electricity, and light — by its effects. Like the navigator's knot, it is a rate: — the proportion or relation between cause and effect, effort and result. A man, a thing, or a manu- facturing plant, is 100 per cent efficient when no more result could possibly be got by the same effort; or con- versely when a given effort could absolutely produce no greater result. How to record efficiency. Measurement having been effected, or estimates made, where possible, the results should be recorded for present and future guidance and comparison. The records should be accurate, full, thorough, comprehensible, and comparable with others, whether present, past or future. Graphical records aid in rapid comprehension and comparison. Comparison of efficiencies. The efficiencies of two IO LESSONS IN PERSONAL EFFICIENCY persons or things can be compared only when they have been measured under the same or comparable conditions, and the measurements are expressed in the same or comparable units. Thus we could not compare the efficiencies of two cannons when the one was expressed in foot-tons, the other in muzzle velocity. The zero man. The most pitiful thing that can happen to any man is to have it said of him as in the Bible of Jehoram, King of Judah, "And (he) departed without being desired." The "zero man" has been described by the author of "Torchy, Private Sec." as "two ciphers on the east side of the decimal point." The inefficient man has been described by Sewell Ford as "bright from the feet down." What efficiency calls for. i. Studying conditions 2. Recording the results of the studies in order to a. Do away with wastes b. Develop unused resources. What wastes are to be eliminated? i. Those of time 2. Those of space 3. Those of work (either mental or physical) 4. Those of money or its equivalent 5. Those of worry. Effort and result. Efficiency is only attained when instead of great effort producing a small result, a slight effort will produce a great result. To express these two conditions as mathematical formulas: — in the first case E^RorR^E while in the second E^RorR^E. The proportions of effort to result in producing efficiency may be expressed better graphically than algebraically. INTRODUCTION II Here are three pairs of unequal circles. In the first, the one marked " E " is larger than that marked " R." That means, Effort is out of proportion to Result; and we