10 Spartan Rules of Dentsu
I went to Tokyo with my colleague Sissal Kristiansen back in 2009. On our visit, we paid a visit to a few branding and advertising companies, including one of the world’s largest advertising networks Dentsu. Straight away, we were struck by the numerous posters hung up in one of the corridors with some very inspiring words. In 1951, the president of Dentsu wrote the “10 Spartan Rules” to inspire his employees. To this day they can be found on the wall of every Dentsu building around the world.
1. Create work for yourself; don’t wait for work to be assigned to you.
2. Take an active role in all your endeavours, not a passive one.
3. Seek out large and complex jobs. Trivial tasks debase you.
4. Welcome difficult assignments. Choose them. Progress lies in accomplishing difficult work.
5. Once you begin a task, complete it. Never give up.
6. Lead your fellow workers. Be an example for them to follow.
7. Set goals for yourself to ensure a constant sense of purpose.
This will give you perseverance and hope for the future.
8. Move with confidence. Confidence gives your work force, focus and substance.
9. Find new solutions. This is the way we ensure satisfactory service.
10. When conflict is necessary don’t shy away from it or be afraid. Conflict is the mother of progress and the source of aggressive enterprise. If you fear conflict, you will become timid and servile.
I felt it was time to catch up on some long due essential reading… I love the “Very Short Introduction” series by the Oxford University Press. They just have such a great way of summing things up - that can often be quite tedious to get through, if you go through all of the original texts …
As for the Massive Change, I have perused it on numerous occasions. I just never got round to getting my own personal copy of it until now.
