Process and Methodology

Process is not about what you are doing. Process is understanding how you are doing what you are doing.

Think for a moment about the profound distinction made by the choice of either the tiny little word "what" or the equally small word "how":

What are you doing?

...Building a database...
...Speaking Arabic...
...Composing a sonata...
...Folding an origami swan...

How do you do that?

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Answering the question "what" takes only a few words. "How", on the other hand, speaks to an aspect of our capacities that cannot be told without paragraphs, diagrams, and the patience of a kindergarten teacher. "What" is so precise, so neat-and-tidy; "how" is messy, overwhelming and frustratingly verbose. Process and methodology is foremost the study of how.

Tab A, Slot B

The foundation of formal process is no more than written instructions. Converting individual knowledge and know-how from brain waves to dead trees not only ensures others can more easily help without a Vulcan mind meld, but forces the author to think about what they are really doing. This prevents omission and often inspires innovation. When forced to tell someone else what you are doing, it's easy to recognize what you could be doing better.

Unfortunately, people don't like to document. It seems fruitless, as "no one reads the manual", and holds up doing any "actual" work. Worse, a step-by-step guide alone is still not enough. The directions may finally answer the question of "how", but lead us to a real doozy: "why".

That's Just How It's Done

So much of our methodology in any activity is engrained through repetition and tradition, not comprehension and logistics. There's an old story about a big family dinner where the mother mysteriously chops the end of the ham before placing it into the oven. Her son asks why this is done, and she attributes the practice to grandmother who in turn says she learned it from her mother. Great-grandmother reports to the entire lineage that the reason she chopped off the end of her ham was that her pan was too small!

Following tradition can produce fantastic results but may also blindly repeat mistakes or create unnecessary waste. Good processes are more than just recipes; they are rich methodologies that explain not only how to complete each step, but why each is effective, relevant, and contributes to the solution. Reviewing procedures means not just making sure you can read them, but confirming that you agree with the logic behind the process.

The Methodology Lever

That crazy greek Archimedes claimed that with a lever large enough, he could move the world. Methodology is that machine. Virtually every unprecedented success in business, military history, civic organizations, government programs and scientific inquiry arose from a studious refinement of process. You can change the world by working smarter, not harder. To win big, figure out how and why you do what you do.