01/05/2022
Why did Henry Ford produce one model of car?
In 1903, Henry Ford created the Ford Motor Company.
One of the greatest innovations of the 20th century was the production line that he built. By 1909, he decided to simplify the production process.
“Therefore in 1909 I announced one morning, without any previous warning, that in the future we were going to build only one model, that the model was going to “Model T,” and that the chassis would be exactly the same for all cars, and I remarked:
“𝗔𝗻𝘆 𝗰𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗮 𝗰𝗮𝗿 𝗽𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝘀𝗼 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝘀 𝗶𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗯𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗸.”
My Life and Work, by Henry Ford in collaboration with Samuel Crowther, p.72.
He simply created an automobile for every family. They sold less than 20 thousand Model T’s in 1910. By 1927, 15 million cars had been purchased.
Henry Ford asked, “How can I make it easier to produce a car that any man can afford?”
Why did he want to make it easier?
Greg McKeown writes in effortless, “Our brain is wired to resist what it perceives as hard and welcome what it perceives as easy.”
We want to find the easy way.
Maybe that’s why you put off starting the project that you know needs to be completed. It seems too hard.
Maybe that’s why you don’t want to have that difficult conversation with a disruptive employee.
Is there any easier way?
Henry Ford found an easier way. He didn’t listen to the voice in his head that said, “This is too hard.”
Coaches have an irritating habit of asking, “What if it was easy?”
“But it’s not easy!”
“Okay. What if it WAS easy?”
Many people will resist the idea of considering this point of view. They are listening to the voice in their head that tells them it just isn’t easy; it will never be easy; and I don’t know how to make it easier.
It’s easier not to think about a new solution than to take the time to reflect and formulate a new process or procedure.
It takes a different mindset to approach the problem with confidence that a new way can be found.
You have to stop listening to your inner voice, the limiting belief that keeps you from progressing forward.
You CAN have that difficult conversation with the confidence that you can deal with any consequences that result.
You CAN break down a huge project into smaller tasks, each of which can be easily completed.
Look for the easy way. Your brain will work with you instead of putting up resistance to a hard task.
My coaching process guides you to rewire your brain to think about creating and achieving your greatest dreams.
If you need help finding the easy path, contact me to see if we can work together successfully.
