論「勿為清單」之要

論「勿為清單」之要，以輕腦力之負

夫世人皆知待辦清單之利，以助產能之增。然人天生知其所當為，所當為之時。書之於紙，不過助其記憶，使其更明其責耳。

然則，非人人皆知其所「不當」為者，即應避之事也。此乃偽裝為當先為之事，實則累進度、擾心神者也。若待辦清單之重，則「勿為清單」亦然。日日面臨抉擇，乃吾人之大患，隱患亦多。吾人皆知增產能之時，當避邪魅之誘：社群媒體、網絡閒逛、工時觀劇、讀書習樂等。

然則，辨「真工作」與「無用功」甚難，須深思熟慮。

宜先將竊時損標之事，填入勿為清單。此等事，或不重，或用時不當，或無益於果，或多做反損。

若日日耗時於此，則當先之事與目標必擱置。以下乃宜入勿為清單之事。

一、當先為，然因外境而無能為之事。

此等事，多方皆重，然須待他人覆，或待他事成。宜入勿為清單，因實無能為也。

故勿耗神於此。待覆之前，其事猶存。記「待覆」，並註「催覆之期」即可。然後，將此事逐出腦海，因其乃他人之待辦，非己之待辦也。亦可明他人之疑，問他人之題，暫且擱置。如此則輪至他人行事，而己可乘隙為他事。

二、於所為之事「毫無加分」之事。

多有不入關鍵之瑣事，且皆需奔忙。可委託他人，或外包之乎？其事真需己時乎？換言之，其事值得耗己之寶時乎？且有人察乎？或唯己察乎？委託他人與親為之別，豈非己陷完美主義之泥淖乎？宜將己時用於推專案之要務，而非眼下之末節。

此等事，多為看似重要，實則無關緊要之工，如為豪宅建案擇自行車格之漆色。

三、當下所為，然無益於他工或引人注目之事。

此等事困於收益遞減之窘境。徒耗精力，因雖可助改善（豈有不可改善之事乎？），然改善之度或與付出不成比例。

其結果有何別乎？或成，或無大損，然時力之耗，為整體計，宜視為「已成之態」。故勿再耗時於此，勿入優先之陷阱。待己事皆成，再思有多少時可改進何事。

若有工需品質至九成完美，則宜觀他事，需己專心從無至九成。換言之，成三事之八成，勝於成一事之百成。

當知勿為清單之事，則可極專注，增效率。且不耗神時，日產值亦大增。何以觀菜單之無供之品？此不僅無義，且占思考之寬。若不欲精力耗於卡時耗神之事，則宜擬勿為清單，以助專注於要事。

於日常事，此法影響甚巨。

腦中牽絆之事愈少，則愈佳，因雜事徒阻礙或扼殺產能。

勿為清單可解腦力之負，因削雜事後，可專注於所為之事，逐一擊破。

年少對未來茫然之時，難以辨何事有益於己。故吾以為宜多為，有錢多為，無錢亦試學之（偷學有錢更佳）。

多為方可在試錯中定未來，亦更明己之擅與不擅。

若年少不為，徒言不知未來所為，則令人頭痛。

然若年過三十或四十，已積經驗，明己之能，定職涯之勢，則宜聚於能為己加分之事。

故可如文中所言，列明「勿為清單」，使夥伴及己有更聚之向。

論商賈之道與會計之要

論商賈之道與會計之要

夫商賈之道，貴乎明算。蓋利潤者，售價減成本也，售價者，成本加利潤也。是以商賈之術，多有提升售價之法，或以增值之品相佐，或以互補之業相連，以分攤成本。然則售價與價值之認知，又豈能盡同？譬如法蘭西之珍饈，其烹飪之術，亦可為生財之道。

夫銷售之盈收，乃單價乘銷售之次數也。重覆之交易，乃顧客終身價值之所繫。

夫會計之學，非習會計或財經之士，多以為艱澀難懂，以為有會計師足矣，常人無須涉足。然則欲破除會計之難，以日常之事為例，冀望人人皆有會計之基，無論理財、家計、創業，皆能得益。

「人何以見免費二字，則失其智？」，民易為「中獎」、「贈禮」、「優惠」、「限時」之言所惑，此乃不諳會計，無數字之念，故見免費二字，則失其智也。

一、何以見免費二字，則失其智？

諸君常聞廣告云：「單筆消費滿額，免費贈禮」，然則此物可用乎？人多有不取白不取之心，然為湊滿額，豈非多費？

蝦皮之免運券，亦利用人欲省運費之心，然其亦有消費滿額之限。是以為湊免運，必多費。此乃變相之訂閱制也。

人何以好免費二字？此乃行為經濟學之「展望理論」所釋。簡言之，失萬金之痛，遠勝中萬金之喜，此乃「損失規避」也。

是以人好免費二字，乃因免費可避損失。然則免費之物，往往最貴，為湊免運、滿額，豈非多費？

二、何以叫賣竹竿之小販不倒？

經營企業之使命，乃「永續經營」。是以求存，或降費，或增收。

以日本賣竹竿者為例，一竿二千金，非日日有客。其存活之道何在？

或為五金行之附業，或為工程之佐料。

其有三要點：一、有固定客群；二、客群消費力高；三、商品單價高。

是以「存在必有其道理，只是你不知道罷了」。

三、省小錢花大錢？

一千金之物，五折省五百金；百萬金之物，九折省十萬金，孰為賺？

節省之目的，在於控支。是以不看折扣之高低，而看省下之金額。

省錢不看百分比，而看實際金額，及替代方案之金額。

譬如節能減碳之專案，或回收貴金屬之專案，孰為優？

執行專案，亦有隱形成本，是以須注意省錢與投入成本之比。

吾嘗遇一例，管制化學藥品，或投資廢水處理設備，或更換藥劑。老闆選後者，然則換藥劑後，品質不穩，後續多費。

是以經時間驗證之物，勿輕易更動。

吾亦嘗貪便宜，買不合腳之鞋，徒增浪費。

是以喜愛之物，勿貨比三家，買之為上。

四、拆帳時，刷卡結帳有利？

主動刷卡，收現金。此有二利：一、信用卡有紅利或回饋；二、付款宜慢，收款宜快，以留現金週轉。

經商者，須有現金週轉，以應風險或投資。

個人亦然，如遇急病，或有投資之機。

然則須注意卡債，勿過度消費。

冀望人人皆有數學概念，以應生活之需。

會計之數，小學已教，計算機或excel可助。

生活多用會計，有數字概念不吃虧。

如「見免費則失智」、「省小錢花大錢」、「庫存過多」，皆為例證。

吾人多有不必要之物，乃因無數量之概念。

冰箱之食材，衣櫃之衣物，多有浪費。

有數字概念，可避浪費。

吾人當為聰明之消費者。

SOP for implementing the Radiant Flow budgeting process

 Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for implementing the Radiant Flow (TOC and Lean) budgeting process within a company, considering its seven departments: Human Resource, Production, Purchasing and Supply, Finance, Engineering and R&D, Sales, and Marketing.

Standard Operating Procedure: Radiant Flow Budgeting

1. Introduction and Principles

This SOP outlines the process for creating and managing the company's budget using the principles of Theory of Constraints (TOC) and Lean, termed "Radiant Flow." The core principles are:

• Focus on Flow and Throughput: Budgeting decisions will prioritise activities that enhance the overall flow of value creation and increase the company's throughput (revenue minus truly variable costs).
• Constraint Management: The budget will be structured to ensure the identified constraint(s) of the organisation are fully supported and exploited.
• Reduced Budget WIP: Funds will be allocated closer to the point of need, minimising unutilised allocated budgets.
• Centralised Buffer: A central budget buffer will provide flexibility and absorb unforeseen financial needs.
• Dynamic Feedback and Improvement: The budgeting process will be continuously monitored and improved based on performance and buffer status.

2. Roles and Responsibilities

• Senior Management: Responsible for defining the company's strategic goals, identifying the current constraint(s), approving the overall budget framework, and ensuring adherence to this SOP.
• Finance Department: Responsible for facilitating the budgeting process, managing the central budget buffer, consolidating departmental budget requests, providing financial data and analysis, monitoring budget performance, and reporting.
• Department Heads (Human Resource, Production, Purchasing and Supply, Finance, Engineering and R&D, Sales, Marketing): Responsible for understanding the company's strategic goals and constraint(s), developing departmental budget requests aligned with these, managing their departmental budgets, providing feedback on budget performance, and identifying opportunities for improvement.
• Budget Committee (comprising Senior Management and Department Heads): Responsible for reviewing departmental budget requests, determining the allocation of the central budget buffer, approving the final budget, and reviewing budget performance against strategic goals and flow.

3. The Radiant Flow Budgeting Process

The budgeting cycle will follow an annual rhythm but will incorporate continuous monitoring and adjustments.

Phase 1: Strategic Alignment and Constraint Identification (Months 1-2)

• Step 1.1: Define Strategic Goals: Senior Management will define the overarching strategic goals for the upcoming fiscal year. These goals should be clearly communicated to all departments.
• Step 1.2: Identify System Constraint(s): Using TOC principles, Senior Management and Department Heads will collaboratively identify the primary constraint(s) within the organisation that limit throughput. This could be a physical resource (e.g., a machine in Production), a market limitation (in Sales and Marketing), a policy (potentially affecting any department), or even cash flow. The identified constraint(s) will be the central focus of budget allocation.
• Step 1.3: Communicate Strategic Direction and Constraint(s): Finance will formally communicate the company's strategic goals and the identified constraint(s) to all Department Heads, along with the guidelines for the Radiant Flow budgeting process.

Phase 2: Departmental Budget Requests (Months 2-3)

• Step 2.1: Departmental Budget Preparation: Each Department Head will prepare their budget request, focusing on activities and resources required to support the strategic goals and, critically, to exploit and subordinate to the identified constraint(s).
  • Budget requests should clearly link proposed expenditures to expected impact on flow, throughput, and the constraint.
  • Departments should identify both essential and desirable expenditures, allowing for prioritisation.
  • Finance will provide historical financial data and relevant forecasting information to support this process.
• Step 2.2: Justification and Flow Impact Assessment: Each budget request must include a clear justification for every significant expenditure, outlining how it will contribute to achieving strategic goals and its impact on the overall flow, particularly around the constraint. Departments should identify any potential "budget WIP" within their initial requests.

Phase 3: Central Budget Buffer and Initial Allocation (Month 3)

• Step 3.1: Submission and Consolidation: Department Heads will submit their budget requests to the Finance Department. Finance will consolidate these requests into an overall company budget proposal.
• Step 3.2: Establish Central Budget Buffer: Based on historical data, anticipated variability, and strategic priorities, the Budget Committee will determine the size of the central budget buffer. This buffer will be a percentage of the total initial budget requests, held centrally by Finance. The rationale for the buffer size will be documented.
• Step 3.3: Initial Departmental Allocations: The Budget Committee will review the departmental requests, focusing on their alignment with strategic goals and constraint management. Initial budget allocations will be made to each department, which will typically be less than their full request, with the remaining portion held in the central buffer. Allocations will prioritise the needs of the constraint.

Phase 4: Budget Approval and Communication (Month 4)

• Step 4.1: Budget Review and Approval: The Budget Committee will meet to review the consolidated budget proposal and the proposed initial departmental allocations and central buffer. Discussions will focus on ensuring alignment with strategic goals and effective constraint management. The final budget, including initial departmental allocations and the central buffer, will be formally approved.
• Step 4.2: Budget Communication: Finance will communicate the approved budget to all Department Heads, outlining their initial allocations and the purpose and management of the central budget buffer.

Phase 5: Budget Execution and Dynamic Management (Ongoing)

• Step 5.1: Phased Fund Release: Departments will operate within their initial allocations. For expenditures requiring funds beyond the initial allocation, departments must submit a request to the Budget Committee (via Finance) clearly demonstrating the need and its impact on flow and throughput, particularly in relation to the constraint.
• Step 5.2: Central Buffer Management: Finance will manage the central budget buffer. Requests for funds from the buffer will be evaluated by the Budget Committee based on:
  • Alignment with strategic goals.
  • Potential impact on throughput and the constraint.
  • Urgency and potential negative consequences of not approving the request.
  • Availability of funds within the central buffer.
• Step 5.3: Performance Monitoring and Feedback: Finance will regularly monitor budget performance against actual results. Reports will be generated that focus on throughput, operating expenses (categorised by their support of throughput), and the status of departmental budgets and the central buffer.
• Step 5.4: Dynamic Buffer Review and Adjustment: The Budget Committee will periodically review the status of the central budget buffer.
  • High Green Zone: If the buffer consistently remains significantly unused, the committee may consider reallocating some funds to departments with demonstrated needs that further enhance flow or throughput, or potentially reducing the size of the buffer in the next budgeting cycle.
  • Yellow/Red Zone Penetration: If the buffer frequently experiences significant drawdowns, the committee will analyse the reasons for these drawdowns. This analysis will feed back into the budgeting process, potentially leading to adjustments in departmental allocations, improved forecasting, or identification of systemic issues hindering flow.
• Step 5.5: Continuous Improvement (POOGI): Department Heads and Finance will continuously seek opportunities to improve the budgeting process, enhance accuracy, and better align resource allocation with flow and throughput principles. Feedback and lessons learned will be documented and incorporated into future budgeting cycles.

Pull and Feedback Systems in Budgeting

• Pull System: The release of funds from the central budget buffer operates on a pull system. Departments only receive additional funds when a specific need arises that is justified based on its impact on flow and throughput. This prevents the "push" of funds that might not be effectively utilised.
• Feedback System: The regular monitoring of budget performance and the status of the central buffer provides crucial feedback. This feedback informs decisions about fund release, identifies potential bottlenecks or areas for improvement in resource allocation, and drives the continuous improvement of the budgeting process itself. The analysis of why funds are requested from the central buffer, and the impact of those expenditures, is a key feedback loop.

6. Documentation and Review

• This SOP will be maintained by the Finance Department and reviewed annually by the Budget Committee.
• All budget requests, approvals, performance reports, and central buffer management decisions will be documented.

By implementing this Radiant Flow budgeting process, your company can achieve a more agile, responsive, and effective financial management system that directly supports its strategic goals and the principles of TOC and Lean.