My Life and Work. Henry Ford

Henry Ford's book "My Life and Work" withstood more than a hundred publications in more than half of the world. In fact, this is the autobiography of a world-famous person who organized the production of automotive production, written in bright and imaginative language with great energy and inspiration.

The book presents not only a unique material interesting from a historical point of view, but also relevant to the practice of psychologists and sociologists, designers and engineers, economists and managers, even today, almost a century later, because it is a classic work on scientific organization of labor activity. But, of course, the work "My Life and Work" will be interesting to a wide range of readers as a motivating, inspiring and endlessly informative book.

About Henry Ford

Henry Ford is a famous American industrialist and inventor, organizer and owner of automobile plants, author of more than 160 patents. Also this person is known that became the first who put production of cars on a stream of the industrial conveyor. Conveyor used in production before, however, Ford began to apply it to production cars. The result of Ford was the sale of millions of cars "Ford", and the industrialist became the head of a very successful Corporation" Ford Motor Company", existing today.

The book consists of a Preface, introduction, seventeen chapters and an afterword. Guided by the fact that the book is a lot of interesting ideas, and chapters, in fact, a lot, we decided to highlight the most interesting, in our opinion, the thoughts of Henry Ford on certain topics.

About change

We should not fear the future or bow to the past. Otherwise, the person himself narrows the scope of his abilities. Failures are the reason for a new beginning and more reasonable actions. It is shameful not to fail, but to fear it. The past can only be useful in pointing to new ways of development.

The meaning of life is not to fight. If it is necessary to fight, then only with own inertia and laziness. In that case, if we want to grow, we have to Wake up early in the morning and stay awake. Life is a journey, and the one who rests, does not stand still, and rolls downhill. In fact, everything is always in a state of motion.

The profit motive

The work should be, first of all, for the common good, but we should not forget about profit. A good enterprise should bring both profit and benefit. However, profit should be the result, not the goal.

If money is at the head of the corner, work is slowed down, and work loses its importance. Obsession with money creates fear of failure, which excludes the right business approach, makes you fear competitors and all that can affect the conduct of business.

The only source of profit for the organization is production, but this does not mean that the businessman should not understand the financial issues. Just understand the Finance better less, so that there was no desire to engage in monetary transactions instead of being a real producer. It is important to understand that there is nothing wrong either in loans or in bankers. The bad there is in trying to replace the work of credit.

Loans do not allow to see the real side of financial Affairs, as well as contribute to the development of laziness. Many entrepreneurs are very lazy to dig up the cause of the losses, or very proud to accept the fact that something they have failed.

Production should not be understood as cheap buying and expensive selling. Production is the purchase of raw materials at an adequate price and its transformation into a product of the highest quality. If a businessman is engaged in speculative activities, participates in the race for money and plays dishonestly, he slows down production.

Over the price

Even if the business of the company is not going well, you can always find a consumer-you only need to have the prices were low enough. Overpricing is a sign of unhealthy business and an abnormal economy. If a person is healthy, he will have a normal temperature; if the market is healthy, he will have normal prices.

Outdated views suggest that prices need to be raised as long as the consumer can pay. But the new business vision suggests the opposite. If lawyers or bankers with old views are introduced into the business, nothing good will come out.

Due to the reduction in prices, you can achieve an increase in turnover and even business expansion. Once the profit from the production of cars "Ford" was so high that it was decided to return to each buyer for $ 50.

The life goal of Henry Ford was to ensure that the cars could buy as many people as possible, and the maximum number of workers received a stable and well-paid job. And Henry Ford was sure that if he did not insist on moderate income for himself and his companions, he would have suffered a complete collapse.

About management

In cases where a large number of people work together, the biggest evil they have to fight is over – management. The most dangerous animal is a brilliant Manager who loves to make schemes with functions, positions, names.

The enterprise is not a machine. It is a community designed to work, not to exchange information. And what is happening in one shop, it is not necessary to know the other shop. If a person is seriously busy with his work, he will not be interested in someone else's.

The task of the Manager is to make sure that all the links move to the same goal. But to work was effective, to love each other is not necessary. And excessive partnership can cause failure when one covers the other, and it is harmful for both.

Henry Ford's company has never been distinguished by a complex administrative apparatus, and its fame was achieved thanks to the products, and not the giant structures in which these products were made.

About salary

Typically, the Manager or owner of the company does not call their employees partners, but they are. Every entrepreneur who does not cope with the task on their own, attracts partners. Why the manufacturer, which can not cope with the production of their own hands, does not call those whom he called for help to his company, partners? Absolutely any business that requires more than one person to run it implies partnership. And at the moment when the entrepreneur attracts a person for help, even if it is a messenger, he already attracts a partner.

An employer who considers himself an ambitious person must pay his employees higher wages than his competitors. Employees should help the employer to realize these ambitious intentions.

Many competitors of Henry Ford were sure that the salaries in it are high because of good deeds or the need for advertising. They condemned the management of "Ford Motor Company" for the fact that they have gone from the tradition to pay employees as much as they are willing to take.

But poverty cannot be overcome in this way, and reform in this area was carried out by Ford for the reason that it was necessary to strengthen the Foundation of the company. Henry Ford said that they were engaged not just in the distribution of money, and thought about the future, because the company that pays its employees a little, will never be sustainable. And the world in which everyone has everything he needs is the best world.

In conclusion

Naturally, Henry Ford in his book "My Life and Work" talks about other interesting topics: where to start any business and production, what you can learn from these processes, what is the relationship between people and machines, money and goods, why it is important to do good things and how you can produce goods at a low price, what is the meaning of poverty and what is good in charity.

Henry Ford was a man-phenomenon who managed to make a revolution not only in the automotive industry, but also in the minds of people. Millions listened to his ideas during his life and continue to listen now. And, frankly, read "My Life and Work" is recommended to anyone who is interested in self-development and success, and, of course, business and economy.