By Lior Michalovich, translation by Yasmine Ariel
Forget what you know
While in mathematics 1+1=2 is indeed valid for dry calculations on paper, in natural reality things look completely different. To be more precise, the sum of 1+1 can carry any value and does not necessarily always equal 2. Sound confusing? - Maybe because we learned math in a classroom and not in nature.
The painter knows that when he has two colors, red + white, potentially he also has countless shades of pink, as a result of different combinations between the two. In this example, 1+1 can equal much more than 2. The exact number is not clear since the possible pinks exist in an endless series of shades between white and red, and are impossible to single out for counting.
The concept ignored in Math class was the phenomenon of Gestalt whose famous quote is "The whole is greater than the sum of its parts."
If we take a car that has finished driving from one city to another, and disassemble the parts, and then afterwards arrange the parts differently - not according to the designer's specifications, it can be assumed that although we won't see a difference in the weight of the vehicle (here you see the same number of parts are present), the car will lack the quality it had before: the ability to transport people from city to city.
This means that it's not enough to count the parts to find the value of the machine and of no less importance is the inward arrangement of the parts resulting in a reciprocal relationship between components. Every other arrangement of the parts creates a different "energy of addition" and this creates the added value that is greater than the sum of its parts.
Importance Of Connections
An excellent example of the "energy of addition" can be derived from the structure and functioning of the human brain.
A baby's brain is comprised of billions of cells. With the years brain cells die off, but the person adds knowledge and wisdom despite this. How does he do it? Evidently wisdom, knowledge, memory and intelligence are not determined by the number of cells; rather, they are the result of the quality and amount of connections between them.
A "healthy" brain is one that contains more network connections between the cells and themselves; and, this allows us to possess the ability to be more "intelligent", and to take better advantage of our potential.
How is it possible to utilize the "energy of addition" principle to improve the profits of organizations?
The profits of organizations are not only connected to the dry data that bring about their product, but also the more important part (and ironically the more neglected) - quality of the connections of their living human fabric.
The interaction between workers can cause an entire organization to bring forth a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts, or unfortunately, a whole that is less than the sum of its parts.
Harmonious relations in a work team and in a whole organization, not only contribute to synergy between the components; they enable an additional force beyond what can be found in numbers.
They create energy possessing greater value. This is comprised of everyone's energy plus another something that comes from it, something that is a unique energy characteristic of the group. Couples are aware of this: there is him, there is her and there is their energy as a pair, their own unique characteristic. It is the same with families.
The Spiritual Message for Economic Thinking
It is possible to affect the "energy of addition" produced in an organization. It can be raised or suppressed. It can be emphasized (group spirit) or dissolved. It can be aimed like a precise arrow (vision and shared goals), be made more flexible, and be purified (transparency, and work on relations between employees), and directed to be abundant, and yield profits that continue to grow for the whole organization.
Lately, the number of organizations making a focused use of their energy for the sake of the community is continuing to grow. There are many reasons for this; but, the wonderful thing is that it indirectly contributes to the growing profitability of the organization itself.
This growing field can be described as "organizations possessing social responsibility", and research verifies that as a result of dealing with these organizations, and activities that benefit the community, something positive happens for the good of the organization as well. In the organization itself: the workers become united, team spirit and a sense of belonging and identification with the workplace are created, and these things ultimately translate into continually increasing profit.
Importance of Motivation
For example, a study was done that included thousands of employees in 800 stores belonging to the Sears chain. It was found that the organization's investment in the community resulted in a 5% increase in worker satisfaction, and caused a 1.3% improvement in customer satisfaction. When this information was translated into financial terms, it was found that these improvements were worth 65 million dollars per year for Sears!
Evidently, when an employee is satisfied and has a sense of purpose with their work, they become more loyal to the organization; they invest their energy and talent as a mutual part of the investment and support between the organization and the employees.
Research on motivation to improve achievements and profit in the workplace points to a number of possible parameters for strengthened motivation. A powerful example is taken from the Human Relations approach developed in the 1940's and 50's in light of the Hawthorn experiments; when, the importance of the quality of relationships between workers was proven to affect the efficiency of their work.
For the most part, it seems that a worker responds well to motivation such as: group coherence and identification with his workplace, and responds more to his own social needs than to incentives or orders from management.
The Human Relations approach in management claims that management means achieving goals through people. It turns out that managers need to deal with the social-psychology of individuals and groups in an organization. This means, focusing on the informal part of the organization, on the relationships and connections between workers, on their attitudes and values; and, specifically, involving the workers in the "bigger picture" of the organization.
Possible Applications in the Organization
1. Morning Activity: Starting the day with a short bonding activity helps people attune themselves to the unique frequency they are trying to achieve.
* For example, if managers are interested in directing their employees to higher productivity in an industrial plant, they could start the day with 15 minutes of a physical sport that includes team playing.
* If it is of interest that a crew work harmoniously to develop new software for the market, they could start with group meditation or guided visualization that helps them direct their consciousness towards that.
* In the case of a service organization that provides customer service to clients they come into contact with throughout the day, it is likely the workers will feel the need for reinforcement every morning anew - before they start to receive customer complaints. In this instance, a group activity that helps deal with emotions can be performed, and in a group help empower one another with compliments and mutual praise which always have their place.
2. Throughout the day: Anytime a conflict arises between employees or management, try to bridge and resolve the situation in a way that is "win-win" rather than furthering conflicts of interest.
Realize that conflicts of interest are harmful to the integrated energy of the organization, and it's best to solve problems when they are still small. For this, you must gather courage, foster openness and transparency - and a lot of good will to preserve group coherence.
3. At the end of the day: Find a reinforcing insight. What have we done well today? How have we improved ourselves today? In what have we failed, and how will this help us be better tomorrow? And privately: Who would I like to thank today, and for what?