Count What’s Working
During World War II, lots of fighter planes were getting hit by anti-aircraft guns. Air Force officers wanted to add some protective armor/shield to the planes. The question was “where”? The planes could only support few more kilos of weight. A group of mathematicians and engineers were called for a short consulting project. Fighter planes returning from missions were analyzed for bullet holes per square foot. They found 1.93 bullet holes/sq. foot near the tail of the planes whereas only 1.11 bullet holes/sq. foot close to the engine.
The Air Force officers thought that since the tail portion had the greatest density of bullets, that would be the logical location for putting an anti-bullet shield. A mathematician named Abraham Wald said exactly the opposite; more protection is needed where the bullet holes aren’t – around the engines.
His judgment surprised everyone. He said “We are counting the planes that returned from a mission. Planes with lots of bullet holes in the engine did not return at all”.
Learning from the Story
- Most of the times we get great results in business but we do not think about what worked for us and even if we know whats working in that moment, we do not make a conscious note of it. Over the period we start taking results for granted and stop doing things which worked for us. This leads us to going back to our old ways.
- This is the biggest reason, lots of business owners experience zig-zag pattern or up-down cycle in their fortunes.
- Cultivating an habit of listing Whats Working, Whats not and Whats next helps in avoiding this trap of ups and downs in life and business.
Questions to ask ourselves-
- What has worked for us in the past?
- What is working for us in the present?
- How can I cultivate the habit of making note of Whats working and referring it constantly to generate better results consistently?
