San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1925-10-11
FORBES URGES
MEN TO KEEP
EYE ON BALL
Finds Business Leaders
Ignorant of the World
Series, Too Busy.
By B. C. FORBES


Five Of them filled responsible posi-
tions. The sixth introduced the sub.
ject of the worlds baseball series. Not
one of the five knew anything about
the contest. Several couldn't tell
when the matches would be played.
The sixth man apparently had COM
plete baseball data at his finger tips.
I once asked James A. Farrell, presi-
dent of the U. S. Steel Corporation and
walking encyclopedia on shipping, how
he had cultivated what is perhaps the
most amazing memory of any business
leader in America. He replied:
~ don't ask my mind to absorb all
kinds of useless information. For ex-
ample, / don't clutter it up with the
batting averages Of baseball players, or
other things of no earthly service to
me in my work.
DISCUSS GOLF.
James ]. Hill in his day had admit
tedly the greatest memory Of any
man of large affairs. When / quizzed
1T is easy to remember things yod
are interested in. l don't try to re-
member things am not interested in"
Is there a suggestion in this for the
rest of us?
During the evening one of the six
asked naother: is golf q recreation
with you or disease?"
1T is only a recreation now, but
after l broke hundred the first time,
it did seriously threaten to become
a disease. got bravely over it."
WORK SUFFERS.
know, and you doubtless know, ex-
ecutives and other business men who
have allowed golf to take such posses
sion of them that their work has suf-
fered and their success in life has
been either endangered or ruined.
The head of department pointed to
n young woman the other day and
remarked: II have just had to give
her notice. She is one of the bright
est girls in the place and gets more
pay than most of them, but she has
nothing in her head but frivolity.
When / ask her a question she should
be able to answer, she rarely could re.
member a thing about the subject. The
final straw was when / asked her
the other day to work overtime, and
she refused because she was going
out dancing-as usual.
MIND ON WORK.
Look at that other one. She has
had less experience and l know she
didn't have as much education. But
she's a dandy. Her mind is on her
work. She does not have to be told
twice to do a thing. She can answer
questions right off the bat. She is
already paying an income tax, and
there is no telling how far she will
CO."
Haven't you seen this happen time
and again: A man or a firm or a
company launches business and ex-
erts tremendous energy and enterprise
to develop it. In time, success comes.
Then the enthusiasm, the energy, the
zest, the enterprise wane, progress
lags, retrogression sets in, and failure
follows-unless, as sometimes hap
pens, new blood is infused and fresh
start made?
What is the explanation?
KEEP EYE ON BALL.
In the early, building stages the
dominating heads had their minds sole
" on the business. But prosperity
proved seductive. Too much time and
attention were devoted to non-business
diversions.
]. D. Rockefeller Jr., recently de-
clared that he envied his father the
necessity of having had to make his
own way in the world. Rot" you
say?
Yet does not the reason why so
many sons of wealthy men go to the
dogs lie in the fact that affluence re.
leases the sons from the necessity OF
applying their minds to the struggle
for existence and success?
As | rose from that dinner table L
remarked to myself: ITO get on. in the
world. you must keep your eye on
the ball-not baseball"
cConyright. 1895. by B. c .Forbes)