Old Doc Lewis, a general practice veterinarian, used to say a farmer’s favorite jobs were mowing hay and plowing ground. They are “see where you’ve been” jobs.
If you’ve knocked down a thick hayfield on first cutting, you know what he meant when he said you can see where you’ve been. Starting the day traversing a waving sea of tall grass and finishing the day admiring the sight of acres of flattened hayfield while enjoying the fresh cut fragrance of curing forage is a perfect day of work.
The evidence of your production for a day’s effort is on view for you and the whole world to see. A plowed field produces the same “see where you’ve been” feeling of satisfaction. Things have happened and you brought it about.
Doc’s observation of what constitutes measurable and gratifying work may have come about from his own diversions on his afternoon “off”. I recall seeing him more than once on his afternoon break, wearing a white shirt, necktie and huge grin, operating a bulldozer on his farm. The work routine of a veterinarian and the management of other business interests were probably the motivation for him to spend some “dozer time” being able to see visible results for his energy.
In most businesses, the important and strategic work that gets done each day is disjointed and incremental. Small pieces of work may lead up to the completion of a big project and an occasional sense of accomplishment, but too often the work you do is part of an ongoing cycle and is seldom readily measurable like the view of twenty tons of hay waiting to be baled.
What this means to business people, including Doc, you and me, is that we crave the opportunity to do work that allows us to see where we’ve been and avoid or abandon the work that is vital to business success because it provides no instant gratification.
As an example, have you been guilty of operating a pitchfork mucking stalls in the morning when you should have been making phone calls to prospective horse purchasers?
Or were you sweeping the barn alley when you should have been compiling and reviewing last month’s lesson revenue and lesson horse utilization?
Did you drive thirty miles to the office supply store for printer paper, tape and paper clips when you could have been organizing a staff meeting, creating a marketing plan or calling on a very delinquent receivable?
Your business will run smoother with better profitability when you recognize the attractive lure (addiction) of “see where you’ve been jobs” as a comfort diversion from the important, but more abstract work of running a business.
As uncomfortable as it may feel, put down the pitchfork and pick up the telephone to increase your profits during your normal workday. Schedule your see where you’ve been jobs for your day off.