Wednesday, May 13, 2009
It’s time for business, and all of us, to slow down and think
When Barack Obama met David Cameron last summer, before the former was elected US President, the two chatted about their shared belief in “thinking time”.
Obama said, “the most important thing you need to do is to have big chunks of time during the day when all you're doing is thinking.”
He’s absolutely right. Yet sadly, in these days of instant messenger, Twitter and email, most of us have lost the art of taking things slowly and steadily, not just in the way we think and communicate, but in the way we live our entire lives.
It’s all about that instant hit, that immediate response, that quick-fire decision. It’s the pace of life that means we never have enough time to fit everything in – the ten-hour working day, seeing friends and family, going to the gym, keeping hobbies going.
When asked if we’re “keeping busy?” the right answer (more than ever in these straitened times when most of us are just grateful to have a job) is to respond joyfully in the affirmative. We wear this like a badge of honour.
But we all know that our personal lives are affected by the speed of modern life.
The question is, has this pace also cost us dear from a business perspective? Have the overnight meltdowns of some of the world’s biggest financial institutions followed knee-jerk decisions? More often than not these were taken by sleep-deprived politicians over weekends, with Monday’s stock exchange opening bell looming large as the deadline for resolution. Has this resulted in some very poor decision making? Should Hank Paulson have let Lehman’s survive?
Of course, the benefit of hindsight is a glorious thing. For example, at the time, the merger between Lloyds TSB and HBOS was hailed as a master stroke.
Looking back, we now know that the decision to go ahead with the transaction was agreed between Sir Victor Blank, Chairman of Lloyds TSB and Gordon Brown over drinks at a reception at Spencer House in London. We also now know that there was little or no due diligence carried out on the problems at HBOS, resulting in Lloyds taking on more than £200 billion of potentially toxic debts, losing its independence, and shareholders losing up to 90 per cent of shareholder value.
But as useful as it is to look back and learn from mistakes, it’s now time to look forward to a new way of working and living. Robert Peston has called this “The New Capitalism” which “may well seem fairer and less alienating than the model of the past 30 years, in that the system’s salvation may require it to be kinder, gentler, less divisive, less of a casino in which the winner takes all.”
We should try to take this approach to our lives, both personal and professional. The “Slow Movement”, seeking to address the issue of time poverty, is, pardon the pun, gaining momentum. Taking one’s time to grow and prepare food, or travelling to far-flung destinations by the least direct route and avoiding flying is becoming more and more fashionable. A recent “Slow Down London” campaign aimed to inspire Londoners to challenge the cult of speed, with a festival of slow music, art, yoga, meditation, walks and discussions.
As William Henry Davies wrote, “What is this life, if full of care, we have no time to stand and stare?” Maybe in that quiet moment of thought and reflection, you’ll come up with your best idea yet.
Anna Watson
anna.watson@greentarget.net