Just because there is a saying....

....does not mean it is true.

I know a guy who is constantly referring to known sayings. And, whenever he refers to these sayings, he acts as though they are gospel.

He announces things like, "There is a saying, 'People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care.'" I am not necessarily onboard.

Just because you have heard a saying, does not make it true.

In this blog, I discuss effectiveness. And, I do not believe it is wise to blindly follow tradition. Which is what you do when you ascribe to 'sayings.'

What is effective is to sit on your butt and THINK. Sure, it can be tedious and lonely. But it is important. Because, in business and entrepreneurship, if you follow the crowd, you will likely get slaughtered.

The sage, Warren Buffett, would say, you are neither right nor wrong because people agree with you. If you want to be effective, and if you want to be an entrepreneur, you will need to learn to think for yourself.

We all know Steve Jobs said that thing about his customers not knowing what they want until he shows it to them. This is a skill set that is difficult, rare, and valuable.

I like the way Peter Drucker would put it. Drucker would say you need to do the long, hard work of defining the task and results.

The definition of the task is, and should, controversial. It is the commitment of present resources to an unknown, and unknowable, future. Such behavior is, by definition, risky. Consensus is not the goal. Effectiveness is.

Drucker would also say, what 'everybody knows' is usually 20 years out of date. Stated differently, what everybody knows is often wrong. Because, like Ferris Bueller said, "The world moves pretty fast."

As an entrepreneur, the status quo is your enemy. So, be careful of over-reliance on old sayings. Instead, practice your ability to think for yourself.