— MADAME DE STAEL
IDIOM INSIGHTS
ILLUSTRATION PROVIDED BY ADOBE IMAGES
WHAT GOES DOWN MUST COME UP A PROGRESS IN SPIRALS .
BY KATHLEEN M . PETERSON , POWERHOUSE CONSULTING , INC
“ THE HUMAN MIND ALWAYS
MAKES PROGRESS , BUT IT IS A
PROGRESS IN SPIRALS .”
— MADAME DE STAEL
20 CONTACT CENTER PIPELINE
Madame de Stael was a French- Swiss writer , woman of letters , and early champion of women ' s rights . She was considered among Napoléon ' s major opponents and spent much of her life in exile . When I came across Madame de Stael ’ s quote , I was struck by the genius of it . “ Progress in spirals ” just seems like such an accurate description of many initiatives undertaken in business today . Often the changes we must deal with are driven by events , projects , or initiatives that require major alterations to infrastructure , process , procedure , culture , and technology .
The intention of these initiatives is typically to make some kind of “ progress .” We look to produce results that improve market share , profitability , margins , quality , the customer experience , efficiency , sales … the list goes on and on . The challenge I see often is that the expectations of these activities are viewed in a linear fashion . Expectations are organized around a strict relationship between inputs and outputs . A strong and optimistic belief is adopted ; if we do X , then Y will follow . We work hard to “ see ” the future outcomes of our various initiatives and the “ progress ” that will be enjoyed as a result of our expertise , creativity , energy , and hard work .
Unfortunately , it doesn ’ t always work out this way . Our plans may lack anticipation of the complexity of implementation , availability of resources , timeliness of decisions , adoption of changes , and a plethora of other unanticipated conditions that cause the project to pause or alter realities . At best this creates disappointment and at worst fear .