virgin islands scene

Character building begins in our infancy, and continues until death.
-- Eleanor Roosevelt
 

 

Friday, September 18, 2026

Efficiency

Efficiency is an important aspect of accomplishment. But it’s certainly not the only one that matters.

In general, improving efficiency has a beneficial effect. The problem comes when too many other factors are sacrificed in the name of efficiency.

If efficiency increases a little while quality suffers a lot, that’s a net negative. When greater efficiency makes a product or service less convenient or more complicated to access, value is lost rather than gained.

Efficiency can usually be directly measured, and that’s why there’s often so much focus on it. Yet just because other factors can’t be precisely gauged, doesn’t mean they should be ignored.

Every course of action has consequences, and steps taken to improve efficiency are no exception. What’s important is to weigh the benefits of efficiency against potential problems it could cause.

Efficiency is a worthy goal. Just make sure not to ignore all the other ones.

— Ralph Marston

previousBrighten the future       

Copyright ©2026 Ralph S. Marston, Jr. All Rights Reserved. The Daily Motivator is provided for your personal, non-commercial use only. Other than personal sharing, please do not re-distribute without permission.