Remember learning about entropy in science class? Entropy simply means that everything tends towards chaos. Although this doesn't seem like a shock to most people, the concept often goes unacknowledged. Even in a working fridge, milk left too long can spoil. You would be hard pressed to find something that wasn’t degrading in this world. That being said, are we part of the problem?

Don’t worry. We are not going to get into the moral or ethical arguments of global warming, and we are definitely NOT saying humans should just stop producing because we are somehow evil. What we really want to focus on is sales and business, right? They are not exempt from this either, but we often make it worse. In business, a common practice is to just throw stuff at the wall and see what sticks. It is easy to see why. Often, we have so much going on that creating processes and methods are the last things on our minds. However, chaos only creates chaos. Rarely, if ever, does someone just stumble onto something that works. Granted, often we must test different systems to see what works, but we should never go in without a plan. Once you find something working, hold on to it.

Now, we are sure some of you reading this are raising questions like, “Don’t you think you shouldn’t trust systems out there?”. We can understand your concern. In fact, many businesses are so in love with a certain way of doing things they resist any change at all. We are not saying you shouldn’t change or even experiment. In fact, find out what percentage of your time should be spent on just doing some experimenting and testing. However, if you have found something that works, stick with it until you've found something that works 'better'; not just 'different'.

Entrepreneurs especially struggle with this concept. They constantly feel the urge to shift and stir the pot. This isn’t a bad thing, and without that drive, most of our innovations would never happen. However, it's just as important to practice patience. Shifting prematurely can cause you to miss out on massive opportunities that were simply at the mercy of time. Changing is good, but knowing when to change is what leads to greatness.

It is easy to want to “buck the system”. Many organizations have gotten it wrong and hold on to outdated methods because of fear. However, that doesn’t mean that systems themselves are a bad thing. In fact, systems help us scale process, as well as providing greater insight into what is or isn't working so that we can innovate. Once you find it, use it till it breaks. Then, rinse, wash and repeat.