Prescription for Radical Mediocrity

[My wife, Ann Hoffnar, wrote this text ten years ago for her own
benefit.  I loved it.  I have used it many times in leadership
seminars.  To me it remains the definitive formula for avoiding
fulfillment and serenity.]

     1.  Set impossible goals.  If a goal looks achievable, expand
it.

     2.  If you begin to feel adequate, concentrate on past
failures.

     3.  Never count on the accomplishment of day-to-day tasks. 
They just have to be done again.

     4.  If you have free time, fill it with work you dislike.

     5.  Never do anything because you like it.  Do it because you
should.

     6.  When someone compliments you on your splendid work,
itemize its flaws for him or her.  

     7.  Never go for walks.

     8.  Look back occasionally to see if you can find reasons to
disparage past accomplishments in light of new insights.

     9.  If it is a grey day, assume it is your fault.

    10.  If the sun is shining, remember that it won't last.

    11.  If people seem to like you, bear in mind that they don't
really know you.

    12.  If you do accomplish something you consider commendable,
remember there are lots of people who could do it just as
well--probably better.


                                        --Ann Hoffnar
                                          6 April 1981

Provided by Tom Glenn, TQM BBS, 310-585-1164