Dear All
The following extract had been taken from
My Dad has had a saying by Peter Drucker taped to his computer monitor.
He has had it for years. The card it is on is old and yellow, I can even see where he messed up when he typed it and had to type over the mistake.
“You are efficient when you do things right. You are effective when you do the right thing.”
My Dad is one of the most efficient and effective workers I have ever known. I love this saying. I have started asking myself this question when I am working on a project.
Sometimes I’m efficient, sometimes I’m effective. And yes, sometimes, I’m neither. Which one are you? Are you efficient? Are you effective? Are you both? Is one of these things more important than the other?
I think it probably depends on what you are doing.
If you need to get a lot of things done it is probably more important to be efficient. If you have one or just a few very important things to get done, effectiveness is probably more important.
Take time and examine your tasks and decide which you need to be, do you need to be efficient or do you need to be effective?
Then structure your work or your day to meet your “eff” goal. A caveat here, it is possible to be efficient at the wrong things. So be careful.
A final point. It is sometimes okay to do things that are not efficient or effective.
Here’s an example: It is not very efficient to let your kids help you paint the living room. Its probably also not very effective to let them help... make sure they actually put the paint on the walls and not on each other!
I would argue, however, that letting them help will pay “eff” dividends down the road.
I titled this article Efficient vs. Effective, but I think it should probably read Efficient OR Effective.
It is a simple concept but so very powerful. So what do you want to be?
Efficient?
Effective?
Both?
Decide and go be!
Comments & further reading are appreciated from readers.
From India, Mumbai
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166The following extract had been taken from
My Dad has had a saying by Peter Drucker taped to his computer monitor.
He has had it for years. The card it is on is old and yellow, I can even see where he messed up when he typed it and had to type over the mistake.
“You are efficient when you do things right. You are effective when you do the right thing.”
My Dad is one of the most efficient and effective workers I have ever known. I love this saying. I have started asking myself this question when I am working on a project.
Sometimes I’m efficient, sometimes I’m effective. And yes, sometimes, I’m neither. Which one are you? Are you efficient? Are you effective? Are you both? Is one of these things more important than the other?
I think it probably depends on what you are doing.
If you need to get a lot of things done it is probably more important to be efficient. If you have one or just a few very important things to get done, effectiveness is probably more important.
Take time and examine your tasks and decide which you need to be, do you need to be efficient or do you need to be effective?
Then structure your work or your day to meet your “eff” goal. A caveat here, it is possible to be efficient at the wrong things. So be careful.
A final point. It is sometimes okay to do things that are not efficient or effective.
Here’s an example: It is not very efficient to let your kids help you paint the living room. Its probably also not very effective to let them help... make sure they actually put the paint on the walls and not on each other!
I would argue, however, that letting them help will pay “eff” dividends down the road.
I titled this article Efficient vs. Effective, but I think it should probably read Efficient OR Effective.
It is a simple concept but so very powerful. So what do you want to be?
Efficient?
Effective?
Both?
Decide and go be!
Comments & further reading are appreciated from readers.
From India, Mumbai
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Hi,
Yes, that is a very informative post. It is applicable in every sphere of management. From a time management point of view, it is important that we do the right things and do them right. The same holds true from the point of view of managerial skills, including leadership, where the leader has to point out the right things to do and ensure that the task is done correctly. From the perspective of delegation too, it is important to realize which tasks can be delegated - the process of selecting the right job for the right individual and empowering them to do it.
On a personal note, you are welcome to visit my blogs listed below to view more inspirational and motivational themes and my commentary on each. Do keep posting such thought-provoking information!
Jacob
- [Personality Development, Corporate Training, Communication Skills](http://www.actspot.com) - Website
- [Academy for Creative Training](http://www.poweract.blogspot.com) - Blog 1
- [Actspot's Blog](http://www.actspot.wordpress.com) - Blog 2
From India, Mumbai
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Yes, that is a very informative post. It is applicable in every sphere of management. From a time management point of view, it is important that we do the right things and do them right. The same holds true from the point of view of managerial skills, including leadership, where the leader has to point out the right things to do and ensure that the task is done correctly. From the perspective of delegation too, it is important to realize which tasks can be delegated - the process of selecting the right job for the right individual and empowering them to do it.
On a personal note, you are welcome to visit my blogs listed below to view more inspirational and motivational themes and my commentary on each. Do keep posting such thought-provoking information!
Jacob
- [Personality Development, Corporate Training, Communication Skills](http://www.actspot.com) - Website
- [Academy for Creative Training](http://www.poweract.blogspot.com) - Blog 1
- [Actspot's Blog](http://www.actspot.wordpress.com) - Blog 2
From India, Mumbai
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Effectiveness is getting things right, and efficiency is a measure of effectiveness. Hence, both are required. If effectiveness is present, efficiency can be measured. Efficiency would be zero when there is no effectiveness.
From India, Mumbai
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From India, Mumbai
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I have read in 7 habits about "effective with people and efficient with things". Can this funda fits into this termonology?
From India, Dehra Dun
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From India, Dehra Dun
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I feel both efficient and effective are correlated with each other. Explaining the same element is like quantity and quality. Both elements are integral factors for the development strategy of any process or product.
According to the Oxford Synonyms Dictionary, effective means successful, helpful, valuable, whereas efficient means well-organized, competent, proficient.
From India, Mumbai
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According to the Oxford Synonyms Dictionary, effective means successful, helpful, valuable, whereas efficient means well-organized, competent, proficient.
From India, Mumbai
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Dear Simmy,
Let me tell you that the first requirement is to be effective, and the second thing is efficiency. It is good if you design efficiency with effectiveness in your work, but ultimately, the first thing is effectiveness.
From India, Dehra Dun
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Let me tell you that the first requirement is to be effective, and the second thing is efficiency. It is good if you design efficiency with effectiveness in your work, but ultimately, the first thing is effectiveness.
From India, Dehra Dun
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Dear Simmy,
We have a habit of using big words for small things, which creates confusion. For example, instead of saying "I love my motorcycle, diamond set, or a particular book," we tend to use "love" instead of "like" without fully understanding the meaning of "love." This trend is widely accepted, but over time, the word "love" loses its original meaning and simply becomes a substitute for "like." It's important to remember that the word itself holds no inherent meaning; it is the significance we attribute to it.
In my understanding, "efficiency" and "effectiveness" are not about right or wrong but about action. Efficiency involves the combination of capability and willingness to act, while effectiveness is solely result-oriented. A person may not be efficient but still be effective. Consider this example: when a military officer commands "Fire!" and the soldiers immediately obey without hesitation, their action is effective. The words or actions that prompt a response or produce a result are considered effective. Even if the officer is not physically able to fire due to injury, the effectiveness of their command remains. Furthermore, being fully present in the moment is essential for effectiveness in both words and actions. There is a simple principle of effectiveness: "Presence in the moment correlates with effectiveness." If our presence is at 50%, our effectiveness will be 50%; if our presence is at 100%, our effectiveness will also be at 100%.
In management, efficiency is crucial for workers and lower-level staff who carry out tasks. On the other hand, team leaders or managers should focus on being effective alongside other leadership qualities. When hiring lower-level staff, efficiency is sought after, but for managerial positions, effectiveness is preferred. It's important to note that there is no absolute right or wrong; outcomes determine what was considered right or wrong. There is a Gujarati proverb that translates to "He is praised, who wins."
His Blessings,
Sharad
From India, Ahmadabad
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We have a habit of using big words for small things, which creates confusion. For example, instead of saying "I love my motorcycle, diamond set, or a particular book," we tend to use "love" instead of "like" without fully understanding the meaning of "love." This trend is widely accepted, but over time, the word "love" loses its original meaning and simply becomes a substitute for "like." It's important to remember that the word itself holds no inherent meaning; it is the significance we attribute to it.
In my understanding, "efficiency" and "effectiveness" are not about right or wrong but about action. Efficiency involves the combination of capability and willingness to act, while effectiveness is solely result-oriented. A person may not be efficient but still be effective. Consider this example: when a military officer commands "Fire!" and the soldiers immediately obey without hesitation, their action is effective. The words or actions that prompt a response or produce a result are considered effective. Even if the officer is not physically able to fire due to injury, the effectiveness of their command remains. Furthermore, being fully present in the moment is essential for effectiveness in both words and actions. There is a simple principle of effectiveness: "Presence in the moment correlates with effectiveness." If our presence is at 50%, our effectiveness will be 50%; if our presence is at 100%, our effectiveness will also be at 100%.
In management, efficiency is crucial for workers and lower-level staff who carry out tasks. On the other hand, team leaders or managers should focus on being effective alongside other leadership qualities. When hiring lower-level staff, efficiency is sought after, but for managerial positions, effectiveness is preferred. It's important to note that there is no absolute right or wrong; outcomes determine what was considered right or wrong. There is a Gujarati proverb that translates to "He is praised, who wins."
His Blessings,
Sharad
From India, Ahmadabad
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Here is a story, not actually a story, but an incident that happened in my life. It happened about 30 years ago.
We were studying in pre-university, and there were three of us in the same room. I don't know how we were put together. One was brilliant, always reading loudly and concentrating on studies. The other was an average person, scoring about 40%, always an outdoor person, and never seen studying. I was neither intelligent nor dull, aiming for a first-class if things went according to my way, otherwise 55%. At that time, this was Mr. Ethan's influence.
But when the results came, as expected, the first student got the highest marks, I got my usual 60%, but surprisingly, the other person also scored 60%. We were all shocked. How did this average student get 60%? We thought he might have bribed the teacher or his parents' influence, etc. (all these thoughts that come at that age).
We could not contain our surprise and anger, so we went to him and accosted him to know the reason how he got that many marks. His answer was even more surprising - "Why should I study? Do you think I was sleeping? The intelligent student was reading loudly, so I just concentrated on what he was studying. I just copied in the exam and got the marks."
The first one was efficient, but the other one was effective.
Nagaraj
From India, Bangalore
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We were studying in pre-university, and there were three of us in the same room. I don't know how we were put together. One was brilliant, always reading loudly and concentrating on studies. The other was an average person, scoring about 40%, always an outdoor person, and never seen studying. I was neither intelligent nor dull, aiming for a first-class if things went according to my way, otherwise 55%. At that time, this was Mr. Ethan's influence.
But when the results came, as expected, the first student got the highest marks, I got my usual 60%, but surprisingly, the other person also scored 60%. We were all shocked. How did this average student get 60%? We thought he might have bribed the teacher or his parents' influence, etc. (all these thoughts that come at that age).
We could not contain our surprise and anger, so we went to him and accosted him to know the reason how he got that many marks. His answer was even more surprising - "Why should I study? Do you think I was sleeping? The intelligent student was reading loudly, so I just concentrated on what he was studying. I just copied in the exam and got the marks."
The first one was efficient, but the other one was effective.
Nagaraj
From India, Bangalore
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Efficient - Productive or capable person with minimum waste / efforts Effective - Producing the intended results or impressive
From India, Mumbai
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From India, Mumbai
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Friends, the question asked isn't rocket science! If you're not effective, you just can't be efficient. When one is efficient, effectiveness is given. Referring to Steven Covey, if you climb up the ladder but the ladder is on the wrong wall, then that climbing up has no meaning.
Effectiveness is achieving the ends, and efficiency is doing the same with the least amount of resources of all kinds—tangible (i.e., HR, finances, equipment, etc.) and intangible too.
From India, Warangal
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Effectiveness is achieving the ends, and efficiency is doing the same with the least amount of resources of all kinds—tangible (i.e., HR, finances, equipment, etc.) and intangible too.
From India, Warangal
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