Simple truths are good. Lazy truths are bad.Simple truths are indisputably correct, universally applicable, and by their very essence prevent us from over-complicating matters. Lazy truths are simplistic rather than simple and are usually correct only for a brief moment or in one isolated circumstance.
“Lower inventories means higher profits” is a simple truth. “We have too much of this product line” is a lazy truth.
“Praise in public, criticize in private” is a simple truth. “She needed to be called out about what she did” is a lazy truth.
Price elasticity is a simple truth. Your current pricing structure is a lazy truth.
“The happier you make your customers, the more loyal they will be” is a simple truth. Your customer satisfaction program is a lazy truth.
There’s almost always nothing wrong with lazy truths the first time they’re applied – in that circumstance, at that moment, for that person, in that place, they’re usually true enough. The problem comes when we turn that one-off moment of truth into a lazy truth – something we come to depend on and use as if it is a “simple truth”.
What are the simple truths about your business?
Look more closely. You’re sure there aren’t a few that are just lazy truths?