Increasing Efficiency In Business | Page 7

of any sort are
completely depleted if they are unable to get the special form to which
they have been accustomed. This holds true for tobacco, morphine,
coffee, and many other forms of stimulants actually indulged in by
many persons. If they are able to resist the temptation and deny
themselves the stimulant, the period of exhaustion soon disappears and
the subject may even lose all craving for that which formerly seemed
essential to his very existence.
The quantity which we eat is partly a matter of habit. There is doubtless
a minimum of nourishment which is absolutely necessary for health
and strength. On the other hand there is doubtless a maximum limit
which cannot be passed without serious injury. Our bodies seem to
demand the amount of

food to which we have accustomed them.
If we should increase the amount ten or twenty per cent, we might, for
a while, feel some discomfort from it, but soon our system would begin
to demand the greater quantity and we could not again return to the
lighter diet without a period of discomfort. Likewise the amount of
food which most of us consume could be reduced materially with no
permanent injury or reduction of energy or danger to health. Following
the reduction would be a period of discomfort and probable reduction
of weight. This period would last for but a relatively short time, after
which we would again strike a physiological equilibrium such that an
increase of food would not be craved nor be of any benefit.
Any great increase in the amount of physical or mental work results in
a feeling of weariness which is usually sufficient to cause us to return
to our habitual amount of expenditure of energy. Our system is,
however, wonderful in its capacity to adjust itself to changed demands
which come upon it, whether these

demands be in the nature of
changes in temperature, in stimulants, in nourishment, or in the
expenditure of physical or mental energy.

There is, of course, a limit to possible human achievements. There are
resources which may not be exhausted without serious injury to health.
Those who accomplish most, however, compare favorably with others
in length of days and retention of health.
_While overwork has its place among the things which reduce energy
and shorten life, it is my opinion that overwork is not so dangerous or
so common as is ordinarily supposed_.
In not a few industries, the dominant house or firm has for its head a
man past seventy who still keeps a firm and vigorous grip on the
business: men like Richard T. Crane of Chicago, E. C. Simmons of St.
Louis, and James J. Hill, whose careers are records of intense industry
and absorbed devotion to the work in hand.
_Many persons confuse overwork with what is really underwork
accompanied with worry or unhygienic practices_.

A recent writer on sociology calls attention to the fact that nervous
prostrations and general breakdowns are most common among those
members of society who achieve the least and who may be regarded as
parasites. Exercise both of brain and of muscle is necessary for growth
and for health.
Those nations which expend the most energy are probably the ones
among whom longevity is greatest and the mortality rate the lowest. In
the city of Chicago there are many conditions adverse to health of body
and mind, yet the city is famous for its relatively low mortality as a
parallel fact. It is also affirmed that the average Chicago man works
longer hours and actually accomplishes more than the average man
elsewhere. This excess in the expenditure of energy--in so far as it is
wisely spent--may be one of the reasons for the excellent health record
of the city.
In every walk of life we see that the race is not to the swift nor the
battle to the strong. We all know men clearly of secondary ability who
nevertheless occupy high positions in

business and state. We
are acquainted also with men of excellent native endowment who still

have never risen above the ranks of mediocrity.
_Human efficiency is not measured in terms of muscular energy nor of
intellectual grasp. It is dependent upon many factors other than native
strength of mind and body_.
The attitude which one takes toward life in general and toward his
calling in particular is of more importance than native ability. The man
with concentration, or the power of continued enthusiastic application,
will surpass a brilliant competitor if this latter is careless and
indifferent towards his work. Many who have accomplished great
things in business, in the professions, and in science have been men of
moderate ability. For testimony of this fact take this striking quotation
from Charles Darwin.