SUFFICIENCY, PARTS I AND II

Here a couple of random thoughts on the issue of sufficiency, or what's good enough. 

Part I.  Mark Twain once quipped:  "I was gratified to be able to answer promptly, and I did. I said I didn't know."  (Life on the Mississippi)  What worked for Twain will work for all of us, at least occasionally; unfortunately,  it won't work more than once in awhile.  In the big wide world, answer "I don't know" too often and your boss will find someone else to go to when he or she needs the answer.  Guess who will then be picked for the promotion, the the pay raise, or the next "good deal" the boss has to give away. 

Part II.  Satisfice is a term used in the fields of management, economics, and conflict studies.  To satisfice means to take the first alternative that is acceptable, regardless whether it is the best.  To satisfice, then, is to look for the easy solution and do it right now rather than to look for a solution that might be better all-around.  We all do this sometimes, and it can be a useful practice.  A good example might be studying just enough to pass a quiz in one subject so that you can devote greater effort to earning an "A" on a critical project in another class.  Be careful, though; satisfice too often and you will miss the opportunity to achieve your greatest potential. Good enough is the enemy of good.

I'll close this little sermon with another quote from Twain that seems to have some relevance here:  "If it's your job to eat a frog, it's best to do it first thing in the morning. And if it's your job to eat two frogs, it's best to eat the biggest one first."  (Eating two small frogs would be satisficing!)