It has served them well. Who wouldn’t want to work for a company that
essentially says “do what ever you want every Friday!” However, using
20% of your resources to pursue random projects is highly inefficient.
While it it might work well for a company like Google, with absurd
margins and free cash flow, it’s a fairly crazy strategy for any
normal company–or country–to employ.*

Well, our entire country has been taking 20% time for at least the
past five years. It’s time for us, just as The Mighty Google did
recently according to the Wall Street Journal, to reconsider.

We’ve overspent, taken expensive vacations, built absurd homes (in
both scale and quantity), run our savings into the ground and
skyrocketed our debt to record levels. Our addiction to consumption
and our sense of entitlement have killed us. Sure, many of us have
lived conservatively, working hard without debt.  But, on average,
we’ve:

1. Spent well over 20% more than we should have on the price of homes.
2. Built homes that are well over 20% larger than they need to be.
3. Purchased 20% more consumer electronics than we needed. (In my case, 300%).
4. Extended home ownership rates 20% beyond where they should be (to
the mid-to-high risk credit folks).
5. Gotten 20% fatter than we should be.

The orgy of overspending is over and it’s time to move on.

Who’s to blame for all this?

Was it the greedy Wall Street Bankers who engineered this huge mess? Yes.

Was it the mid-level mortgage broker pushing high-risk mortgages on
clients who should have never had a mortgage to begin with? Yes.

Was it the over-reaching consumer who got in over her head and didn’t
research and question the mortgage she was signing? Yes.

Was it the government that didn’t regulate all the bad actors in this
tragedy? Yes.

There’s plenty of blame to go around, but we’ve got to get past the
blame stage and into the solution phase. (Holding the folks
responsible who behaved criminally, of course. I predict there will be
many white-collar perp walks on CNBC next year, just as there were in
2002.)

* Note: I’m not saying Google’s is to blame for any of this, or that
20% time was a bad idea for them. Their 20% time is simply what lead
me to thinking about what’s wrong with our country. I think Google’s a
brilliant company, filled with brilliant people who have done
brilliant things. That being said, they do need to get more
focused–and they clearly are.

The 120% Solution
——————————–
If we’re going to have any chance of bringing America back to
greatness, we’re all going to have to work 20% more than we have been.

I’m suggesting that, until America takes care of its debt, untangles
the housing mess and gets unemployment under control, we all commit to
working six days a week. Yep, move the standard 35-40 hour work week
right up to 48 hours.

For me and my team, this is a non-issue, since we only hire folks who
are looking to absolutely kill it, love what they do and don’t
consider it a job. Of course, positions at a startup company, where
stock options make for a great reward if we hit a home run, have
certain advantages over normal day jobs. In the technology industry, a
48 hour work week would be, for most, a vacation.

It was our collective sloth, consumption and sense of entitlement that
got us into this mess, and the only thing that will get us out of will
be lots of hard work.

If you’ve got a good job, you should bust your butt to make your
company as successful and profitable as possible.  That way, salaries
can increase, jobs can be created and your products and services
become so world class, the phrase “Made in America” will come to mean
something other than “not worth buying.”

If you’re working at a government job, you should be putting in extra
hours to reduce government spending. Come in this weekend and make the
government more efficient. (Yes, I just told a government worker to
come in on Saturday.)

If you’ve got credit card debt, pay it down if you can.

If you’ve got a mortgage, pay it off if you can.

If you work in the service industry, try to work 20% faster and come
up with ideas to make your team more efficient. (Side note: I was in
Japan recently and was amazed at the personal productivity of each
individual when compared to the U.S. workers.)

If you’re a rich person looking to take a couple of years off, don’t.
Instead, start a company that creates an amazingly innovative product
that the world–not just the United States–needs. Set the goal of
trying to employ 100 Americans.

Seriously, the affluent folks in this country should start businesses
now. Drag your ass out of bed and try to make this country great
again.  It’s this country that made you affluent. Yeah, you’re rich
and you don’t need to work, we know. Who cares? Your country needs you
right now! Sell your second or third home and start a company!

If you’re affluent and you can’t start a company then angel invest in
a bunch of smart, hard working folks at the very least.

If you’re a college student thinking of getting trashed this weekend,
or taking a year off, don’t. Instead, take an extra class or two, do
an internship at a company or get a graduate degree in Engineering.

If you’re in high school, go work at your parents office or start an
online business. (You would be surprised at how many high school
students email me every week to share with me their online businesses
that make $2-3k a month.)

If you’re a lazy and bitter worker who has been screwed by the system,
swallow your pride and stop trying to stick it to everyone. Double
down and take pride in your work effort, even if your boss is a
complete jerk.

If you’re the complete jerk of boss, check yourself and realize that
the folks working for you need the job, and that if everyone doesn’t
get their act together, we’re all going to be out of work. (This is
directed specifically at the dysfunctional automakers and airlines,
which seem to spend more effort fighting their customers and each
other than they do taking on their global competitors!)

Everyone must step up, and we’ve got to do it now. I’ve been traveling
around the world the past two years, and I can tell you that the work
ethic, attitude and productivity of American workers–white and blue
collar–is half of what I’ve seen in countries like Japan, China, and
Korea.

We’re not going to get our asses kicked. We’re in the process of
getting our asses kicked!

Good debt vs. Bad debt
——————————–
One quick point of clarification around debt: While I an advocating
everyone pay down–and, in fact, stop–the debt associated with
unnecessary consumption, I’m very much in favor of investment in new
companies, ideas and eduction. If we’re going to take on any more
debt, it should into things that pay back at least two dollars for
every one dollar invested.

Investment in new technology, technical training, new companies,
energy independence, mass transit, high-speed trains, cheap broadband
and education are critical in getting us out of this mess.

I’m not against debt; I’m against debt that is wasted. Let’s invest in
our future

In summary
——————————–
What made America great was our ability to innovate and create
world-class products, ideas and services that people around the globe
fell in love with and wanted for themselves.

From health care to human rights, from democracy to dishwashers, from
windshield wipers to the World Wide Web, from search engines to soda
pop, we’ve accomplished so much by dreaming and rolling up our
sleeves.

We need to put down the remote, cut our credit cards in half and start
new companies with new ideas. Our entrepreneurial spirit and hard work
will get us out of this mess.  All we need to do is release them.