continuous improvement or just pre-holiday slacking?

When I worked in big-bad-retail they sent me on their Stephen Covey, Seven Habit's for Effective People course.

It was a typical three day 'happy-feely' type experience which had watershed moments for some of the people who attended but I found it all to be a bit to obvious with the exception of the seventh story (habit) which resonated with me.

This was the story of the woodcutter, who found himself working with a blunt axe, and when asked by a passer by as to why didn't he take a moment to sharpen the blade, he responded that he didn't have the time to take a break to do it.

Enter those "lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer," when the office is gets quieter, time pasess slowly and you are waiting for the holiday season to swallow you up.

I try to use this period to sharpen that axe - I try to read, to relax, to catch up on tv programmes recorded, to listen to music and to intellectually glance at some of the latest thinking that captures my imagination by way of business. I also clear my desk, upgrade software and loaf on the internet, clicking away between asking a few people what they are up to over the festive season.

On the face of it, it appears that I am wasting time but that's not entirely true, you need time to assimilate, you need time to explore, you need time to read and time to clear out, it's a fundamental part of continuous improvement and this is the perfect time within the business cycle to do it and not to feel guilty.

So hurrah for that notion of pro-actively being idle.