Mind Value: Progress Comes from Getting Your Proposals Adopted

29 August 2012

Progress Comes from Getting Your Proposals Adopted - Gui Gu Zi Shows Us How

Whether you are an entrepreneur, a start-up or working for people, you success comes from having your ideas adopted and implemented. It begins with a proposal, follow by a presentation to an interested party to finance, adopt and execute the proposal. Gui Gu Zi shows us how to come out with a solid proposal, how to present, how to find and even quit a partnership. Our success in life comes from mastering such integrated skill sets.

Some background on translation
There is much wisdom in Gui Gu Zi's writing. However, I find it very difficult and it takes me a long time to bring out the essence of his teachings. This is because even if I translate the writing from Chinese to English, the English translation may make no sense at all without explanation. I need to spend much time reflecting on what is written to get the meaning. Even the Chinese translations may not agree with one another, and I find the translated work not very useful as well. I will follow the typical rules of Hermeneutics for Interpretation - that is to let the text interprets itself and stay in context. I will also need to bring it up to date with the present to make it useful and therefore run the possibility of adding my own thinking. Sometimes, the translation just could not get the original Chinese meaning out well, so I at times, leave the original Chinese text there so that those who understand it can get the true meaning. So, in all these posts on Gui Gu Zi's writing, they represent my understanding of what Gui Gu Zi is saying. It may differ from other translations, and I hope you find my translation more useful.

The Affairs of Organization and Kingdom

The Chapter begins with a clear statement that it shall cover the affairs of management from the King to the officials. In our modern times, it is about the affairs of boss and staff. Successes are about ideas, plan and execution. Great plan needs to be presented to the right people for support, and great plan needs to be executed well. These 3 areas of having a great plan, making a persuasive presentation and finding the right partner are taught here.

Why You are Not Consulted or Missed Out - How to Get into Your Boss' Inner Circle

Gui Gu Zi covers the interesting situation that while some people are physically close to the boss yet they are not his confidantes. He give six reasons, covered in the mind-map below, and we need to take heed. It shows us how to get into the boss' circle.

Now that I get your attention, please read the full content of the mind-map below.

Have you been thinking and coming up with a good idea lately?

If you are a leader, then you must take the lead and come out with good ideas. If not, don't expect a promotion or an increase in revenues or savings.

Do you know how to convert your ideas into a plan?

Ideas without a plan remain empty. The grave yards are buried with the great ideas of many.

Do you know how to make a presentation?

Plan needs to be presented to get support and be adopted.

If your presentation has not been successful, you may want to cross check with mind-map below to find out how to improve your plan and presentation.

Do you have the right partnership to execute the plan? Are you pitching to the right people?

Presenting to the wrong party will only waste your time and cause you be depressed due to the rejection. Heard of Chinese proverbs about "singing to the cow"?

Working with the wrong party to execute your plan will only bring you pains and lots of disruptions and sabotages. You must find the right partner, understand their objectives, values and feelings.

It is not about spinning a story to suit any partnership but to truly find the match between you and your partners.

It is also about leaving the partnership or company when there is a misfit. You must need to know how to tell the would be losers and quit first before they bring you down with them, especially when they are not accepting your plan of transformation to save themselves.