DAY 7: THE COST OF DO NOTHING!
Good evening, how was your day?.. Yesterday, I read a strange news about habits. I read that the German model Heidi Klum (and one of the judges on America's Got Talent) always carries her teeth in her bag wherever she goes.. No, not a temporary set of teeth, but her childhood teeth.. She believes that it brings her good luck.. So If we see her take out two brushes from her bag, it would not be surprising!.. I expect her bag to be expensive since it's the only one that can bite! (smiles).. But let put joking aside, I think Heidi has a beautiful spontaneity about her. You feel that she doesn't put on airs or have difficulty communicating with others.. Johnny Depp also has a strange habit; he likes to play with dolls, especially Barbie.. Quite bizarre for the pirate Jack Sparrow!
Today, not much happened for me at work, just some tasks that I had to complete. I didn't finish all of them as one took more time than planned. You know, business life can be somewhat monotonous. You build a certain routine and then repeat it every day. But it's necessary because passion and motivation aren't always present, as you know.
It's true that the business world can be routine, but let's talk today about an idea that broke the monotony for me one day when I came across it. This idea is the "cost of do nothing ".In the business world, as you know, decision-making is one of the toughest tasks that managers have to do, especially those in higher positions, as these decisions always have consequences. They can either positively or negatively impact the company.. Jeff Bezos says that the job of executives in a company is to make an average of three decisions a day, so they must structure their lifestyle in a way that their minds are in the best condition when making these decisions.
To assist decision-makers in companies in making better decisions, these companies resort to using what is known as a "business case." This is a written document or presentation that discusses a particular problem or proposed project, the proposed solutions and options, the pros and cons of each, their costs, the associated risks, and how it could impact the company's operations. Finally, recommendations are presented, believed to be the best for this problem or project. One of the most important aspects discussed in a business case is what is known as the "cost of do nothing." It is simply the assumption that not doing anything is one of the possible options, and therefore, it is studied and evaluated like the other options.
Let's take an idea of what not doing anything can cause. Let's take the example of Kodak, which is one of the famous examples of this. Kodak was one of the most well-known brands, if not the most famous, operating in the field of photography equipment, materials, and tools. It reached such success that its market share represented almost 90% of the American market. In the late twentieth century, the development of digital cameras began to replace traditional cameras, which were the company's major source of revenue. Although Kodak was one of the first companies to develop digital cameras in 1975,but its believed that building the market for these cameras would take time, so it continued to rely on its revenue from traditional cameras, which provided good profit margins. It postponed the digital transformation out of fear that it would impact its revenue. And here came the surprise, at the beginning of the twenty-first century, digital cameras rapidly spread among people, and Kodak became the second in the market, with a loss of $60 per product compared to competing Asian companies that achieved positive profit margins. Here, the company began to register a decline in revenue until it decided to declare bankruptcy in 2012. The lesson in the story is that Kodak, despite its knowledge of the industry's development, made the decision of not doing anything to maintain its revenue from traditional cameras, which led to its exit from the market.. There are many other similar examples like Nokia, Yahoo, and others.
However, is this concept important only in the business world? Or does it apply to all aspects of our lives?.. During my work on my own project, I was fully immersed in the planning and execution - as is typical for those developing their own projects. I always felt that I needed more time, which led to a strange behavior on my part: I always sought to finish my meetings with people as quickly as possible. I noticed this in the beginning, but I thought it was temporary and would go away. However, over time, it gradually became a habit and people began to feel that I was avoiding them or that the timing was not right to talk to me. This affected my ability to communicate with others and had other consequences, which I will discuss in detail later.. But don't worry, in the world of startups companies, these things happen and more. The reason is that people in startups often experience unusual circumstances and pressures, resulting in unexpected responses or suboptimal reactions. However, once recognized, addressing these issues usually becomes a matter of time.
If you noticed in my case, I also did not take any action to address this problem when it first appeared. As a result, it worsened and its consequences became apparent, requiring time and effort to address, which could have been avoided. The truth is, if we reflect, the concept of the cost of not doing something applies to everything as long as there are problems or opportunities, which are never-ending. For example, when someone tries to minimize us, the cost of do nothing what will be?.. what would it be when we are in a difficult relationship or when the cost of living rises?.. Similarly, when we reject an opportunity out of fear of success, what is the cost of do nothing?.. Sometimes, the cost can be truly painful!.. By the way, it can also be profitable!
The time is now approaching one o'clock in the morning, and here we must "do something" (smiles)
Take care of yourselves, and have a good night
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