unique , unrepeatable , incomparable , unparalleled , priceless , invaluable , beyond price , without price , inestimably precious , of incalculable value / worth , of inestimable value / worth , of immeasurable value / worth , worth its weight in gold ; More Use Over Time For : irreplaceable .
Note how the word was hardly every used before the Industrial
Revolution . in · dis · pen · sa · ble adjective 1 . absolutely necessary . “ he made himself indispensable to the parish priest ” synonyms : essential , crucial , necessary , key , vital , needed , required , called for , requisite , important , all-important , vitally important , of the utmost importance , of great consequence , of the essence , critical , life-and-death , imperative , mandatory , compulsory , obligatory , compelling , urgent , pressing , burning , acute , paramount , preeminent , high-priority , significant , consequential “ education is indispensable for the preservation of democracy ” AGAIN , COMMON WORD USAGE TELLS US THAT BEFORE THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION , INDISPENSABLE WAS USED FREQUENTLY . Today , indispensable is at an all-time low . Ideally , though we want to use that word a lot more . We want entire teams of indispensable people .
WE DON ’ T WANT A SINGLE IRREPLACEABLE , ANYTHING . BECAUSE , ACCORDING TO THE DICTIONARY AND MY EXPERIENCE , IT OR HE OR SHE IS IMPOSSIBLE TO REPLACE IF LOST .
And worse , if your business thrives or dies on a single point of failure , it ’ s a huge liability . It should scare you , should keep you up at night , especially if that single point of failure is a dedicated anything .
So you shouldn ’ t have a dedicated VA , you shouldn ’ t have a dedicated graphic designer , you shouldn ’ t have a dedicated coder .
If you have an opportunity to outsource to an on-demand service , you need to have access to as many people as you need whenever you need them . Plus , you should have the freedom to “ turn out the lights ” as well , without remorse or regret . NO ATTACHMENT . Now it may sound heartless , but it will make your business sustainable and allow you to sleep at night because a single point of failure is literally just that a point of failure . But what about the replaceability thing ?
I BET YOU ’ RE THINKING .
If you ’ re replacing yourself with somebody else that is in a dedicated role , you ’ re really just taking the bottleneck from you and moving it to someone else . But it ’ s still there . It ’ s just someone else ’ s bottleneck .
YOU HAVEN ’ T CLEARED THE PATH ; YOU ’ VE JUST PUSHED THE DIRT ALONG .
Here ’ s another way to look at this paradox . Look at an engine , like it ’ s your business . The carburetor is irreplaceable because the car ( your business ) cannot , will not run without a carburetor .
Indispensable is the nitrous oxide that makes that engine go faster , accelerate better , and be more efficient and effective . You can still operate ; you can still grow without nitrous oxide . You can still get from point a to point b , but if you really want to do it the way you want to do it , then the nitrous becomes indispensable .
SO , FILL YOUR LIFE AND BUSINESS WITH INDISPENSABLE AND DO EVERYTHING YOU CAN TO AVOID IRREPLACEABLE .
Ari Meisel
Ari is the best-selling author of “ The Art of Less Doing “, and “ The Replaceable Founder .” He is a self-described Overwhelmologist whose insights into personal and professional productivity have earned him the title , “ The Guru ’ s Guru .” He can be heard on the award-winning Less Doing Podcast , on international stages speaking to thought leaders and influencers , and for those who prefer the written word , Ari ’ s blog posts on Medium offer immediate and actionable advice for entrepreneurs seeking replaceability .
LessDoing . com
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