Illustration of This Complexity. — Table II represents the man working for himself, with subdivisions under it showing the possible relationship between his record and his programme. We find that these are at least ten, reaching all the way from the unconscious record and unconscious programme of the migrating transitory laborer to the standardized record and the standardized programme of the manager who manages himself scientifically.
Each one of these represent a distinct psychological stage. The progression may not be regular and smooth as is here given, — it may be a jump, possibly even from one to nine. It may, however, be a slow progression from one stage to another, largely to be determined by the type of mind that is considered, and the opportunities for development along scientific lines which are afforded. It is the writer's intention to discuss these at length at some other time. Here it is only possible to enumerate, in order to show the size and complexity of the problem which is here involved.
The table does not indicate, as perhaps it should, the fact that the relationship between an unconscious record and an unconscious programme is slight, while the relation between a written programme and a written record is very close indeed. In Table IV this will be indicated.
TABLE III
Elimination of Waste Possible. — The third table — that of the man working for another man — attempts to do no more than indicate the first and last step of a long series, beginning with the man, one of a gang, an unconscious record, and an unconscious programme, on the part of both the manager and the man, down to the final stage of individual output, with the written record and programme known to both manager and man. It would be a most interesting problem to work out the various steps stretching between these two, and the various ways in which progression might be made through these steps, either taking one step after another slowly or making the various possible jumps long and short. A psychological discussion of each step would be of value, and certainly must in time be made, but this book has not the scope, nor can the time be devoted to such a discussion.
If this third chart had no other purpose, it would be useful to suggest to the student the wide tracts which still remain for study and development. It must not be thought that any of the steps omitted on this chart are not in existence. Every single possible combination of record and programme is in existence to-day, and must be studied by the manager of men. Not until these are all discovered, described,
and standardized, the progression noted, and standard progressions outlined, can methods of least waste be adopted.
With a more thorough experimental study of the mind will come a possible prediction as to which stages the various types of mind must pass through. So, too, with the training of the young mind in the primary schools and in the methods of Scientific Management, will come the elimination of many stages now necessary, and the possibility, even, that the final stage may be introduced at the outset, and the enormous waste of time, energy and wearing of unnecessary brain paths be absolutely abolished.
The Programme Derived from the Record. — Having considered the various records and programmes and their relation, we will now consider the four stages of the record, — (1) unconscious, (2) conscious, (3) written, (4) standardized, and trace the derivation of the programme from each stage.