PRINCIPLE 11：
Dramatize your ideas.
Charles Schwab had a mill manager whose people weren’tproducing their quota of work.
“How is it，” Schwab asked him， “that a manager as capable asyou can’t make this mill turn out what it should？”
“I don’t know，” the manager replied. “I’ve coaxed the men， I’vepushed them， I’ve sworn and cussed， I’ve threatened them withdamnation and being fired. But nothing works. They just won’tproduce.”
This conversation took place at the end of the day， just beforethe night shift came on. Schwab asked the manager for a piece ofchalk， then， turning to the nearest man， asked： “How many heatsdid your shift make today？”
“Six.”
Without another word， Schwab chalked a big figure six on thefloor， and walked away.
When the night shift came in， they saw the “6” and asked whatit meant.
“The big boss was in here today，” the day people said.
“He asked us how many heats we made， and we told him six.
He chalked it down on the floor.”
The next morning Schwab walked through the mill again. Thenight shift had rubbed out “6” and replaced it with a big “7.”
When the day shift reported for work the next morning， theysaw a big “7” chalked on the floor. So the night shift thoughtthey were better than the day shift did they？ Well， they would show the night shift a thing or two. The crew pitched in withenthusiasm， and when they quit that night， they left behind theman enormous， swaggering “10.” Things were stepping up.
Shortly this mill， which had been lagging way behind inproduction， was turning out more work than any other mill in theplant.
The principle？
Let Charles Schwab say it in his own words： “The way to getthings done，” say Schwab， “is to stimulate competition. I do notmean in a sordid， money-getting way， but in the desire to excel.”
Without a challenge， Theodore Roosevelt would never havebeen President of the United States. The Rough Rider， justback from Cuba， was picked for governor of New York State.
The opposition discovered he was no longer a legal resident ofthe state， and Roosevelt， frightened， wished to withdraw. ThenThomas Collier Platt， then U. S. Senator from New York， threwdown the challenge. Turning suddenly on Theodore Roosevelt， hecried in a ringing voice： “Is the hero of San Juan Hill a coward？”
Roosevelt stayed in the fight—and the rest is history. Achallenge not only changed his life； it had a real effect upon thefuture of his nation.
When Al Smith was governor of New York， he was up againstit. Sing Sing， at the time the most notorious penitentiary westof Devil’s Island， was without a warden. Scandals had beensweeping through the pristin walls， scandals and ugly rumors.
Smith needed a strong man to rule Sing Sing—an iron man. Butwho？ He sent for Lewis E. Lawes of New Hampton.
“How about going up to take charge of Sing Sing？” he saidjovially when Lawes stood before him. “They need a man up therewith experience.”
Lawes was flabbergasted. He knew the dangers of Sing Sing.
It was a political appointment， subject to the vagaries of political whims. Wardens had come and gone—one had lasted only threeweeks. He had a career to consider. Was it worth the risk？
Then Smith， who saw his hesitation， leaned back in his chairand smiled. “Young fellow，” he said， “I don’t blame you for beingscared. It’s a tough spot. It’ll take a big person to go up there andstay.”
So Smith was throwing down a challenge， was he？ Lawes likedthe idea of attempting a job that called for someone “big.”
So he went. And he stayed. He stayed， to become the mostfamous warden of his time. His book 20，000 Years in Sing Singsold into the hundred of thousands of copies. His broadcastson the air and his stories of prison life have inspired dozens ofmovies. His “humanizing” of criminals wrought miracles in theway of prison reform.
That is what every successful person loves： the game. Thechance for self-expression. The chance to prove his or her worth，to excel， to win. That is what makes foot-races and hog-callingand pie-eating contests. The desire to excel. The desire for afeeling of importance.