CurrentMarketing – A Cut Above

Stop me if you’ve heard this.
A man was walking through the woods when he happened upon a woodcutter working feverishly to fell a large tree.  The woodcutter was spending an amazing amount of energy, sweating profusely and breathing quite heavily…but making very little progress.
“Perhaps it would be wise to take a break to sharpen that saw,” the man suggested.  “It looks very dull, and you would certainly finish more quickly with a sharper saw.”
“I don’t have time for a break,” the woodcutter snorted.  “I’m too busy cutting this tree.”
Does that sound like you?  Too busy “being busy” to spend time improving the process?
One of the things I love most about the team we’ve assembled here at CurrentMarketing is that we spend time “sharpening the saw.”  Imagine that!  An advertising agency that actually encourages folks to spend time working on themselves!
Lest you think I’m just patting our management staff (which I lead) on the back, let me assure you our approach is not rooted in some touchy-feely altruism.
It’s sound business.  Because when every member of an organization is focused on life-long learning and recharging when necessary, productivity is maximized.  The goal is to work smarter…not harder.
In some way, the biggest threat to our group right now is the very workload our success has created.  We risk getting so swallowed-up in “producing,” that we could miss opportunities to expand our skills and stay ahead of the changing message delivery landscape.
Funny.  Success threatens future success.  Kind of like being too busy cutting a tree sharpen the saw.
The best defense against that threat is a culture that stresses balance, and that’s a focus we take very seriously.  Work hard.  Play hard.  Spend time with your family.  Keep learning.  Keep growing.
There’s endless forest of trees ahead (aka “opportunity”), and we’re going to need some really sharp saws.