q "Let's go back to the basics." What basics? Mass production? Command-and-control organizations? The idea that "basics" exist is usually wrong, because the world has changed profoundly since the time when there was one right way to do everything.
q "It worked before." Past success is the enemy of change -- especially when it's offered as a safe alternative to blazing a new trail.
q "We're fine just the way we are." Maybe -- but it's unlikely that you'll stay fine unless you change. Success breeds complacency.
q "There's no threat." There's always a threat, there are always dangers -- and if they're not "out there," they're "in here": Internal threats are often the most destructive.
q "That's not in our core competence." Too bad. You'd better learn. Any organization that lets itself be bound by its old competencies is building its own coffin.
q "The numbers don't work." Old models are often irrelevant to the new economy. Pay attention to cash flow, but don't let the "green eyeshades" prevent change from happening.
q "It's a slippery slope. Once we start down that road, there's no stopping place." The real message: I'm not in control anymore! That part is true: Customers are in control. Old-fashioned control freaks are not in control. Anything that's not working can be ended immediately. What can't be stopped are successes.
q "There will be unforeseen consequences." Naturally there will be, because the new economy is nothing but unforeseen consequences -- which is why constant change is necessary.
