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What Psychologists Don’t Talk About?

What Psychologists Don’t Talk About Personal Efficiency?

CONTENTS

Introduction

Two Measures of Efficiency

The Psychology of Personal Efficiency

The Third Dimension

1. Adequacy of Personal Resources
2. Adequacy of Collective Resources
3. Adaptability to Controllable Conditions
4. Adaptability to Uncontrollable Conditions
5. Assertiveness in the Individual Approach
6. Assertiveness in Common Approach

Summary

Personal Efficiency is a very commonly used term that indicates the finesse of getting things done with minimal resources. Only two aspects are considered: Input versus Output. However, it is not as simple as that. Within the two aspects, there are other things to consider. There is another aspect of personal efficiency that is rarely talked about, in the context of Work-Life Balance and self-management. This three-dimensional nature is What Psychologists Don’t Talk About Personal Efficiency?

Introduction

The tendency at both the workplace and in life is to take for granted that the person is efficient in whatever they do. No one likes to get measured for personal efficiency. However, whether we like it or not, we must undergo such measurements throughout our lives.

For instance, students are measured time and time again for their performance in the examinations. Applicants are measured through entrance tests. Workers will have to go through an appraisal. Athletes cannot participate unless they are measured on their performance. In almost all competitions, there will be some kind of measurement undertaken.

Most people, including students, don’t like to be evaluated for their efficiency because they are not aware of what is measured in them!

For evaluation purposes, there are only two measures of Efficiency.

Two Measures of Efficiency

Sometimes, one of the measures is kept constant and the other becomes a variable.

For example, all examinations have a time limit. The maximum time allotted will be the same for all examinees. The variability is in terms of accuracy. If you can answer all the questions correctly and completely, you get full marks. Here, time is constant, though it is assumed that if you have greater speed, you can use it to your advantage.

On the other hand, some athletic events have accuracy constant but the speed as variable. Take, for example, track events. The distance is fixed for everyone and only the time taken to reach the finish line is the variable. Whoever runs the fastest will be the winner.

Some cognitive tests measure both speed and accuracy, taking into consideration the time taken to finish the task and the errors committed by the testee.

Now, this is the story of being measured by somebody. But is there a way for us to know whether we are being efficient or not?

The Psychology of Personal Efficiency

Two Measures of Efficiency – Speed & Accuracy

Two Measures of Success – Less Time & Less Effort

Two Measures of Inefficiency – Laziness & Carelessness

Two Measures of Failure – Boredom & Tiredness

If you observe the figure above carefully, you will see two positive parameters against their shadows shown as two negative ones. Each parameter has two categories. All these eight categories are measurable by us and we can improve Personal Efficiency if we keep in mind these variables.

Any task is measurable either in terms of speed or accuracy. You can see which one is relevant to increase your efficiency. Once you can measure yourself, you try to work on increasing your speed or accuracy, which determines your success.

As I have pointed out elsewhere, success and winning are two different things. For instance, all students who pass the exam are successful but they may not rank higher for getting selected.

Once you determine your base-level performance, you have to work systematically. I have mentioned elsewhere (See 'DO WE KNOW ABOUT OURSELVES?') how to carry on systematic learning with practice. Unfortunately, most people consider repetition as practice, but these two terms are a world apart. Mere repetition is a waste of time. Practice makes you methodical.

The idea of coaches being there is to improve your performance. Note that even the best athletes or sportspersons will have coaches. Coaches guide you specifically and make small changes so that your skills are tuned. They help you in consuming less time and less effort.

Each time you feel bored or tired, it means that you are not learning. You should adjust your speed so that you reduce the negative feeling. You can cut down on your inefficiency by eliminating carelessness and laziness.

So, keeping in mind these eight categories will ensure personal efficiency. This is something That Psychologists Don’t Talk About Personal Efficiency?

The Third Dimension

Is Personal Efficiency restricted to this or is there something else?

Personal Efficiency is defined by me as “Assertive Adaptability using Adequate Resources”.

When I put this definition on Google Search within quotes, it responded by saying, “No results found”.

There are three things to be considered here: Adequacy of Resources, Adaptability to Conditions, and Assertiveness in Approach.

Let’s call this an “A Cube” (A³) of Efficiency.

This definition considers the third dimension whereby efficiency can be gauged with the help of six permutations and three combinations as each dimension is further classified thus:

n  Adequacy of Resources – Personal & Collective Resources

n  Adaptability to Conditions – Controllable & Uncontrollable Conditions

n  Assertiveness in Approach – Individual & Common Approach

The same is depicted below.

Let’s consider each of these in a little more detail.

1.  Adequacy of Personal Resources

Efficiency doesn’t lie in the abundance of resources. One may have energy, time, money, wealth, health, knowledge, ability, talent, skills, expertise, intelligence, attitude, motivation, etc., but what matters is whether they are necessary and sufficient to tackle the problem at hand.

For instance, students’ efficiency at the examination rests solely on how well they have practiced writing relevant answers and not on their intelligence, knowledge, memory, etc.

2.  Adequacy of Collective Resources

Both at work and in life, personal resources alone do not lead to efficiency. We may have to depend on collective resources, too. If collective resources are not adequate, it may result in inefficiency.

For instance, imagine how many person-hours are lost in meetings when members attend them without proper preparation. You may have prepared very well and you may have used all personal resources adequately, but even if one member of the team is not equipped properly, it will negatively affect your efficiency.

3.  Adaptability to Controllable Conditions

Sometimes plenty of controllable conditions are ignored when performing a task. Efficiency depends on how well we can adapt to these conditions.

For instance, morning chores, personal hygiene, diet, dressing, etc., are all controllable conditions. We can save time and effort if we can streamline them efficiently.

4.  Adaptability to Uncontrollable Conditions

There are always plenty of uncontrollable conditions an individual can face. It could be as simple as traffic jams to as complex as natural disasters. How fast and accurately we can adapt to these changes determines our level of efficiency.

For instance, a person having a contingency plan if the stock market crashes can go a long way in increasing profitability or cutting down on losses.

5.  Assertiveness in the Individual Approach

As I have mentioned in my earlier article on ASSERTIVENESS, a person has to use the strategy of “ASSERT” (A S S E R T Mantra) to get things done effectively. As indicated below, each letter represents a quality.

ASSURE – Assure yourself of your self-worth

SHARE – Share your thoughts and feelings without sin and guilt attached to them

STAND UP – Stand Up with self-confidence whenever your or others’ rights are questioned

ENSURE – Ensure emotional balance unless it is an emergency and ensure an internal locus of control

REMOVE – Remove feelings of hopelessness, helplessness, impatience, and rejection

TOLERATE – Tolerate frustration, ambiguity, irrationality, impulsiveness, and pressure

6.  Assertiveness in Common Approach

A person should be able to share the common goal of the group they belong to and be compatible in being assertive towards reaching the goal. This enables uniformity in complex interactions and it becomes far easier to deal with the situation at hand efficiently.

For instance, in a family, the husband takes a different approach than the wife, and there will be friction. Children in the family may get confused or may try to manipulate the parents. This is especially complicated when in-laws are there in the family. So, one has to find a common ground for taking up an assertive approach.

Another example is, that a train will arrive exactly on time when all the team members involved are assertive in their common approach. This efficiency should be ensured every day without fail. That is when consistency is built up and people start trusting the network.

Personal Efficiency is not purely individualistic. It has to consider overall efficiency and make suitable adjustments. This is something That Psychologists Don’t Talk About Personal Efficiency?

Summary

Personal Efficiency is always measurable through Speed and Accuracy. We can use eight parameters to measure our efficiency. The Adequacy of Personal & Collective Resources, Adaptability to Controllable & Uncontrollable Conditions, and Assertiveness in Individual & Common Approaches -- all help in achieving efficiency. Personal efficiency does not end in saying I am doing everything correctly. As we live in a complex society, we have to be compatible with others effectively to maintain Personal Efficiency.

Know why I am doing a series on this?

What Psychologists Don’t Talk About?

Let me know if I am wrong. I have started this series because there are hundreds of things psychologists don’t talk about. I feel that it would benefit everyone if they did so. I hope at least now, they will make a beginning.

This is an attempt to bring to the fore what has been hidden for a very long time.

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What Psychologists Don't Talk About Work-Life Balance?

What Psychologists Don’t Talk About Time Management?

What Psychologists Don’t Talk About Self Management?

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What Psychologists Don’t Talk About Value System?