Why Sweating the Small Stuff Makes a Big Difference

By Dr. Barrett Mosbacker

December 26, 2011

For years I have been taught not to “sweat the small stuff.” I warmly embraced this notion because it reinforced my natural inclination to focus on big strategic initiatives and to pay less attention to small details, leaving those to others.

I have changed my mind. I have concluded that small things make a big difference. Small things deserve a great deal of our attention.

What Convinced Me

God’s Care for Us and Creation

If anyone were going to focus on big strategic plans, it would be God. As the creator and governor of the physical universe and the affairs of heaven and earth, God certainly is focused on large-scale objectives.

Yet notice the incredible attention to detail exhibited by his rule:

Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows (Matthew 10:29–31).

Consider the remarkable detail in God’s creation. Look at how intricately God designed a flower. While God wrote our names in the Book of Life before he laid the foundations of the world and “made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place” (Acts 17:26), he also designed the intricate details of flowers.

And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these (Matthew 6:28–29).

Ugly can be beautiful. The head and eyes of a horsefly may not be “beautiful” in the classical sense, yet the incredible creativity, detail, and symmetry are a beautiful reflection of God’s attention to detail and a nearly incomprehensible marriage of function and form.

Few things are more ethereal and ephemeral than a snowflake — especially in the American South! Yet even with something so fragile and short-lived, the variety, symmetry, and beauty of a snowflake testify to God’s care for the smallest things.

Not only does God’s creation work, it is beautiful and awe-inspiring — and to the attentive soul, soul-ennobling. Who has not stood in the mountains, on a prairie, at a beach, or beside a lake and been enthralled and enriched by the beauty made possible by God’s attention to the smallest details of his creation?

Steve Jobs

It may seem odd to include Steve Jobs alongside God. I do so because, as an image-bearer of his Creator, Jobs’s attention to detail reflected that of his Creator — whether he chose to acknowledge it or not. Jobs was fanatical about every detail of Apple’s products, even the unseen components:

From his father, Jobs had learned that a hallmark of passionate craftsmanship is making sure that even the aspects that will remain hidden are done beautifully. One of the most extreme — and telling — implementations of that philosophy came when he scrutinized the printed circuit board that would hold the chips and other components deep inside the Macintosh.

No consumer would ever see it, but Jobs began critiquing it on aesthetic grounds. “That part’s really pretty,” he said. “But look at the memory chips. That’s ugly. The lines are too close together.” One of the new engineers interrupted and asked why it mattered. “The only thing that’s important is how well it works. Nobody is going to see the PC board.”

Jobs reacted typically. “I want it to be as beautiful as possible, even if it’s inside the box. A great carpenter isn’t going to use lousy wood for the back of a cabinet, even though nobody’s going to see it.”

For Jobs, designing and manufacturing electronics was craftsmanship, not merely an economic activity. He was fanatical about design and detail, even in product packaging, because he understood that people judge a book by its cover. Markkula captured this philosophy in a one-page paper titled “The Apple Marketing Philosophy” that stressed three points.

• The first was empathy, an intimate connection with the feelings of the customer: “We will truly understand their needs better than any other company.”
• The second was focus: “In order to do a good job of those things that we decide to do, we must eliminate all of the unimportant opportunities.”
• The third, awkwardly named impute, emphasized that people form an opinion about a company or product based on the signals it conveys. “People DO judge a book by its cover,” he wrote. “We may have the best product, the highest quality, the most useful software etc.; if we present them in a slipshod manner, they will be perceived as slipshod; if we present them in a creative, professional manner, we will impute the desired qualities.”

Application to Our Leadership and Schools

Perception matters. How we present our product matters. We may have wonderful teachers and programs, but unless we present them with excellence, prospective and current parents may perceive our schools as second-rate. The good news is that good presentation need not be expensive — it simply requires attention to detail.

Like the cover of a book or a first impression, perceptions form almost immediately. The first impression parents receive comes from a phone call to the school, the website, or a visit to the campus.

Facilities

It is easy to become blind to our surroundings. We are like the proverbial frog in the kettle — so accustomed to what we see every day that we no longer notice what a visitor notices. Everything looks fine to us.

Take one hour and walk through your buildings with a notebook. Write down everything that falls short of excellent. Note every instance of chipped paint, scuff marks, dirty carpet, smudges on glass doors, paper or trash on the floor or in the parking lot, shrubs needing trimming, bare patches in the grass, book bags lying around, handwritten announcements or signs, messy offices and desks, items out of place, and pictures hanging askew in the reception area. You may be surprised at how much accumulates unnoticed.

Phone Calls

How are your phones answered? Do callers reach an electronic message system with a labyrinth of options, or a warm, professional receptionist? I have been lobbied for years to install an automated answering system on the grounds that it is “more efficient.” I have refused, because such a system — however efficient — does not reflect the warm, nurturing culture of our school. Besides, people dislike electronic answering systems.

I call many schools. I am often dismayed by the poor phone skills of those who answer. Too often I am greeted by a sweet but unprofessional receptionist — poor grammar or overly casual — or a very professional but cold one. In contrast, whenever I have called Apple headquarters or Apple support, I am greeted by a cheerful, pleasant professional who proves genuinely helpful. The impression is consistently positive.

Try this: call your school with fresh ears, using a phone that cannot be identified as yours. Was the impression you received that of a well-spoken, professional, and welcoming individual, or someone who seemed harried and unprepared? If you were calling for the first time, what impression did you form within the first thirty seconds?

Website

Was your website custom designed by a professional, or was it created from a template or by a volunteer? If the latter, it will look like it, and the first impression — while perhaps not poor — will not be excellent. When reviewing your website, look for the following:

• Simple design, uncluttered
• Easy to navigate
• Warm and friendly
• Professional in appearance

Remember that visitors will not spend a great deal of time reading material on your website. It should be designed to give a positive impression of the school, highlight important information, and provide clear navigation toward more detail.

I recommend against placing staff photographs in a website directory unless they are unusually and universally photogenic. A few well-chosen photographs of staff and students used throughout the site can be very effective, but a directory with staff photos is not. Most of us are not particularly photogenic, and there is little to be gained by it.

Staff Appearance

The way you and your staff dress creates a powerful impression. Although dress should be appropriate to the role, overly casual or poorly worn clothing does not convey quality. Walk through your school and discreetly observe how your teachers and staff present themselves. Are men’s ties tied properly? Are shirt collars crisp or wrinkled? Are shoes polished? Do any staff members appear unkempt? Designer clothing is not necessary, but being professionally dressed in contemporary styles is.

Your Presentations

Every presentation you make either enhances or diminishes the perception students, current and prospective parents, and staff hold of the school. Are your presentations professional and warm? Just as being professionally cold is to be avoided, so too is being overly folksy. Here are some details worth attending to:

• Start and end on time. It is unprofessional and inconsiderate of those who arrived punctually to begin any meeting late. Doing so also trains people to arrive late, since the meeting “will not really start until ten after.”
• Make sure the venue, including the stage area, is neat and clean.
• Less is more. Too much information delivered over too long a period is counterproductive. Keep things concise and then provide backup material for those who want it.

Review your presentation slides carefully. Your content should not appear on the slides; slides exist only to illustrate or generate interest. Speak as spontaneously as possible — know your material well enough that you only occasionally glance at notes. Maintain eye contact with your audience and do not turn to look at the slides. Use few words, a large font, and strong photographs or illustrations. Avoid clipart and minimize bullet points.

There are many other areas of the school — especially in classrooms — where we need to sweat the small stuff. While we must focus on long-term strategic initiatives, we must also ensure that every corner of the school reflects the quality we assure parents is present throughout.

Small things matter to God, and they should matter to us. Jesus said, “He who is faithful in little will be faithful in much.”

God is the master craftsman. Steve Jobs insisted on craftsmanship in everything Apple designed. Do our schools reflect craftsmanship?