Theory of Constraints Handbook - James Cox Iii [725]
I was not guaranteed that dropping three seconds would be fast enough anyway because what I was doing was very similar to a sales forecast for a business. I looked at the history of women’s swimming and figured that a 2:00 (two minutes even) was a safe bet, but as every business manager knows, forecasts are not always reliable!
I suppose, however, that my philosophy amidst all of this fear and questioning was, “I just do not want to look back 50 years from now and wonder ‘what if . . .?’” The one thing I knew for sure was that I needed to return to Georgia and finish my last quarter in order to get my bachelors degree (specializing in Production/Operations Management). I enrolled in my final three classes, one of those being Management 577 with Dr. Cox. I had taken a few production management courses with Dr. Cox already, and he was always understanding of my swimming schedule.
We started the quarter learning the fundamental productivity tools: Current and Future Reality Trees, Evaporating Clouds, Transition Trees, and Prerequisite Trees. Our first assignment was to apply these tools to a situation in our personal lives, a personal productivity analysis. Of course, the first and only thought to come to my mind was, “How do I get faster to have a chance at making the ‘96 teams? What have I done incorrectly in the past, and how do I change that?”
This assignment was in-depth, and I loved every minute of it. I knew that it would help me identify the track I needed to take for reaching my goal. I spent many days after class asking Dr. Cox for help in preparing my tools correctly. He helped to point out the missing links in my thought process. As my Current Reality Tree was beginning to come together, I started building confidence in myself. The most amazing realization was that my core problems were not larger than life!
The following pages are the actual paper that I wrote in 1992.
Personal Productivity
Sheila Taormina
Man 577, Dr. Cox
Spring, 1992
Here was the scene: There was a fireworks display in the Natatorium while the National Anthem played in the background. A huge American flag dropped from the ceiling and the people inside erupted as the 41 members of the United States Swimming Olympic Team paraded around the pool. It was a send-off for the swimmers who will be going to Barcelona.
I thought that I would retire from swimming after the Olympic Trials in March, 1992. Even though I tried to convince myself that I could make the team to Barcelona, deep inside I had no confidence. When the trials were over, I could not bear the thought that I had just posted some personal best times in two of my events and was going to quit swimming while I had the opportunity to learn more and improve. I have found it interesting to complete a Thought Process Analysis for a personal problem, and it helps me to understand why it is essential that business entities should look deeply into the problems which face them. I always believed that there was no need for a business to constantly strive to be the leader in the industry, because, as long as a profit was made, then what is the big deal about claiming the number one position? This personal analysis has made me realize why businesses compete on a continuous basis. One competitive disadvantage can be the difference between reaching a goal or not, and when a few of those disadvantages are put together, it is sometimes amazing that a company or individual is still in the game at all.
I think that I stayed in swimming after the trials because I was still learning in each practice