Evening star., 1921-04-19
10. Take Stock of Yourself.

hOnOred INSTITUTION. In aQdltlon TO tne
deft fingered dealer. there was lynx
! eyed man. the lookout" who at in a
high chair at the end of the table and
watched every turn of the card to
"see that no bets were overlooked
This practice probably marks the ori-
so frequently used in business now
adays. and it also illustrates the value
| of the detached viewpoint.
| 1t is not always practicable or de-
! Sirable to get the views of a second
person. but you can frequently accom-
+; pliSh the same result by critically re-
viewing your own work and plans
| To do this successfully you must
| free your mind from every vestige of
| pride in, or satisfaction with what
you have done. or contemplate doing.
and endeavor to detect flaws therein.
! | have found it helpful in my own
case. to devote fifteen minutes at bed
time to a reconstruction and critical
view of my days work. Frequently ]
am able to discover a bet that was
| overlooked. and usually such over
sights can be corrected on the follow
| ing morning. 1t may be argued that
! this practice is likely to provoke
/; sleeplessness. but in my own case I
find it easier to go to sleep after /
have thus drawn off a mental trial
| balance for the day.
! whether or not you see At to fol-
low this plan of checking up on your
work regularly every night before you
J close your eyes in sleep, l would urge
you at least to make it point to
take stock of yourself at frequent
| intervals. Just as every business con-
| Germ makes periodical inventory of
| its assets and liabilities, the salaried
! employe who wishes to succeed should
| take an occasional inventory of his
own mental and moral resources
Ine sole purpose of this series of
articles has been to aid you in TAX
ing stock of yourself. by pointing out
the underlying causes which prevent
many workers of the so-called white
collar class" from getting out of the
business rut. If you have followed
the series until now, 1 venture to
believe that your eyes are opened to
the fundamental defects or weak
nesses which must be overcome before
the salaried employe can hope to get
recognition from the corporation or
individual that hires his or her
services, in the form of more money
in the pay envelope, or a more i'm
portant job-or both.
Doubtless, you have noted how the
various basic mental and moral quail
ties we have discussed blend into each
other and furnish complete ground
work for the man or woman who
seriously plans a marked improve
ment in the character of his or her
work. In a sense the listing of ad-
ditional qualities is unnecessary, as
practically any deficiency in any ad
ditional quality can be traced to a
deficiency in one or more of these
fundamentals. However, in order to
make sure that you will not "over-
look any bet" in planning to i'm
prove your business status. offer the
following supplementary suggestions.
Have you a definite ambition? Do
you know what you want to be five
years from now, ten years from now
and twenty years hence? II not, you
should decide at once. You should es-
tablish a series Of goals. and try TO
reach theni-not by attempting to un-
dermine some other person, or by
clamoring for promotion. but by
demonstrating your fitness for greater
responsibility.
Are you diplomatic enough? Diplo-
macy-the brand needed in business
does not mean suavity and soft soap
1t means being regular fellow" If
we are inclined to be Smart Alecks"
or crabs" or anything else obnox-
| ious to our fellows. We should en-
deavor to overcome that tendency.
The business world does not want
milksop or mollycoddles. but on the
other hand it does want men and
| women who can disagree or criticize
each other without starting a battle.
| We should all endeavor to be as con-
sderate of each others feelings as
is consistent with the effective con-
i duct of the business.
| Do you go about your work in a
! systematic manner? All of US should
make a purposeful study of our work
! with the object of learning how to do
! the best work of which we are capa-
: BILE. in the easiest way Some people
| think that system means red tape and
| elaborate detail The right kind of
! system is a foe to red tape. and toll
/ crates no detail that is not essential
| as a safeguard, or as a helpful aid
! toward the desired objective. True
! system always has an objective in
, view, and seeks the shortest road to
! such objective.
! Here are some test questions which
| may aid in determining your use of
| systematic methods:
; Could you go to your desk in the
| dark and lay your hand promptly on
! any needed implement or piece of
| stationery?
! Do you keep your desk clean? If it
! is necessary for you to have an accu-
i mutation of files on your desk. do you
| keep them subdivided, and arranged
! according to their relative lmpOr-
! tance. and do you always know ex-
| actly what you have on your desk?
| When you temporarily fall behind
| in your work, have you a regular
| method Of giving preference to rush
/ matters" or do you let everything
| take it's turn!
Have you established the relative
| frequency with which you use sta
! tionery, pen. pencil. ruler. different
: printed forms. etc. and do you have
! them correspondingly accessible?
! Have you studied the form and pro-
cedure of your work, and are you
satisfied that the methods and forms
which are used could not be i'm
proved?
Then there is the quality of dis
patch. Many salaried employees take
the view that accuracy requires slow
work, but such is not the case. The
trained croupier collects and pays
| wagers at the roulette table with
lightning like rapidity. and unerring
accuracy. because his mind is wholly
concentrated upon his work. and he
has practiced it until it is second
nature to him to calculate instantly
the winning wagers at whatever odds
they happen to be.
Haste should never be accepted as
an excuse for error. No matter how
great your haste is. you should omit
no necessary precaution. You should
know your work so thoroughly that
Il ro.o.nu& nj M,l...