148 Mnh-ntils and Then Handling 



That is the way in which experience is brought 

 to its greatest usefulness by the individual. In 

 order to do this, however, it is necessary to read 

 regularly, so that the reasons for the things which 

 are being done are understood. It is necessary to 

 think when reading in order to understand what 

 one reads, and it is necessary to enter into dis- 

 cussion of problems with other men engaged in 

 the same general occupation, so that their experi- 

 ence may be added to our own. As an alert busi- 

 ness man put it a long time ago: "If we exchange 

 dollars we each have one dollar; if we exchange 

 ideas we each have two ideas." 



The processes of this use of experience follow 

 the path suggested in the last chapter. First, we 

 learn about our work the operations we have to 

 perform. That means that you must know the 

 work which is performed by your group, for you 

 have gained your position because you are experi- 

 enced in that work. Then, it is necessary to know 

 the reasons for the work. That means that you 

 should know something about the usefulness of 

 the things which you do, something about the or- 

 ganization in which you work, the other depart- 

 ments of the organization, how you fit into them, 

 the methods which they use, and the way in which 

 these methods fit everything together. 



