An Equine Tale.

Thanks to Jonah Goldberg in National Review, I now have a new management-type slogan. "Stop holding your horses."

Here's the relavent background story - "At the outset of World War II, Britain was still scrounging for any weapons it could get its hands on, and so de-mothballed a piece of light field artillery from the Boer War. The five-man crew it rounded up had a curious system for firing the armament: Precisely three seconds prior to discharging the gun, two of the men would snap to attention until all was silent again. None of the experts or young officers consulted could deduce the point of the exercise. Finally, they brought in a wizened retired artillery colonel. He watched the exercise for a moment, then, jarred by an old memory, recognition flickered in his eyes: “I have it. They are holding the horses.”

I see this so often. Stuff that is done simply because that's how it's always been done. Find these problems and you'll find waste you can eliminate.