Are You Stuffing Chocolates Down Your Shirt Like Lucy Ricardo?

A few days ago, I watched the old I Love Lucy episode where Lucy and Ethel take a job at the chocolate factory…

…and can’t keep pace with the assembly line.

It might be the funniest scene in television history. 

Classic slapstick comedy…

…that also has me thinking about business systems.

Assembly lines and other automations are great. 

But what happens when a cog in the machine is out of tune?

Maybe the conveyor belt is moving too quickly.

Maybe the people on the line are working too slowly. 

Maybe a cog in the machine could be improved. 

Take Henry Ford’s assembly line for the Model T. 

Ford famously said, “Any customer can have a car painted any color that he wants, so long as it is black.”

But it wasn’t just any black. 

It was “Japan black” which,  according to Richard Koch, was the only paint that “could dry quickly enough to keep up with the speed of the line.” 

I read about Ford and his “Japanese black” paint in Koch’s book Simplify – How the Best Businesses in the World Succeed. 

The book is all about how innovative businesses simplify processes to save time, reduce costs, and increase profits.

I’m all about content creation. 

But this assembly line stuff is still relevant to me. 

I’ve created multiple “assembly lines” for my business — systems and processes to automate everything from market research to recording and publishing podcast episodes. 

And like Ford, I’m always looking to simplify. I’m always looking for my “Japanese black.” 

How about you?

Are your systems and processes as simple and efficient as they can be?

Shoot me an email if you have a good example of how you’ve simplified your business to save time, reduce costs, and increase profits.

And, if you want to compare notes with others, join us in the Mastermind Book Club. It’s free. 

We’re reading and discussing Simplify this month in the Club.  

Every month, Ted Prodromou and I choose a great business book for the group.

In the MBC community, Ted and Tom will share short videos, blog posts, and other conversation-starters. 

Members chime in with their insights re: the book.

You can join the club (it’s free) and read the book, too. But you don’t have to read to join the conversation.

The idea: 

Share insights drawn from the book.

Discuss how to apply those insights to improve your business.

Celebrate success as you or other members implement 

The key word above: IMPLEMENT.