Peter Drucker had a reputation as the world’s greatest consultant and was immensely successful in that single occupation. He never built a large consulting organization or attempted to do so, however, and when he did not teach at Claremont Graduate University, he worked from his modest home in Claremont with no secretary.
He had success in other careers too and he recommended having more than one career to his students. He even told us a story in class of a distinguished Egyptologist, who on his death had two large groups at his funeral, one of them having nothing to do with Egyptology. The same was true for Drucker who was engaged in other activities alongside his consulting career. He was also a newspaper writer and wrote for general interest magazines too.
His first book in English, The End of Economic Man, was a bestseller on politics and was reviewed favorably by Winston Churchill. Drucker also authored a study which was written in German and banned by the Nazis, titled The Jewish Question in Germany.
Both works were written long before his books and hundreds of articles on management. He established the first accredited PhD program with his Claremont Graduate School dean Paul Albrecht primarily for senior executives who had the potential for top management and gave seminars worldwide.
Drucker’s success methods were neither difficult nor complicated and he managed his many careers successfully and in a natural way, helped by his earlier life experiences. Drucker’s father encouraged him to participate in adult conversations with visitors in the family home when he was young, one of them being Sigmund Freud. Advantages like this, or lack thereof, frequently make no difference but it all depends on how the individual reacts.
This article outlines five pieces of advice from Drucker's life and teachings.
You may not want to build a large, powerful organization
You do not need to build a large organization to do a lot of good, gain fame or become wealthy. If Drucker answered his own phone at the height of his fame, showing there is no reason to build a large organization unless that is what you need or want to do.
Steve Jobs succeeded with what was a small organization and a handful of employees. Still, early in his career he competed with major corporations like IBM which had thousands of employees and hundreds of PhDs.
Contrary to what ’everyone knows’, Jobs not only did not have an undergraduate degree, but in the early days he could not even build a computer by himself. It was his friend Steve Wozniak who designed and built the computers. Jobs’ significant contribution was the idea for a personal desktop computer which could be designed, built and marketed.
You can decide the resources and the strategy you need to follow to achieve what you want. If you lack something, you can figure out how to get it or make it irrelevant and you can still succeed against stronger competitors.
Related content: The dangers of accepting the truth of ‘common knowledge’
Complete honesty and personal integrity is the only policy that should be followed
We often see big names in every field who fail at maintaining their integrity frequently after having achieved various successes. Even though it may appear to be easier to tell small lies at the time, you must say and do what you mean and mean and do what you say for permanent success. Drucker said that integrity in practice was not only important but was also essential for successful leadership in any organization.
Obstacles will always appear
After Drucker got his doctorate, he wanted a position at the University of Cologne and planned on getting help from a relative who was already associated with that school. Drucker had to shelve this goal for about fifteen years when Hitler came to power in Germany and he had nowhere else to go.
He did what he needed to do and eventually he reached his goal after coming to the US. What he taught about overcoming obstacles can help us in our own efforts at success.
Related content: Drucker’s advice on accomplishing the impossible
Do not depend on anyone else to ensure the education you need
I have heard of rising managers, who say that their companies would eventually pay for their advanced education or send them to the right courses or seminars at the appropriate time. Do not depend on it. Drucker did not even depend on his parents who wanted him to go to college. Instead, he took an apprenticeship and spent an enormous amount of time reading and educating himself while he went to night school, worked full time and got a law degree.
Drucker was not superhuman, he just calculated what he was going to have to do under the circumstances to succeed in his future and took the actions necessary. He did not wait for help from his parents, his company, a corporation or the government to decide what knowledge he needed or when. Drucker analyzed the situation, decided and acted.
Writing a book will not guarantee success, but it can help
If your timing is good and you are lucky, writing can help you in any profession. The WWII flying ace, Robert L. Scott was a member of the ’Flying Tigers’ in China and had shot down several enemy aircraft early during WWII. Scott was sent back to the US for savings bond tours to make speeches to raise civilian morale. After several months, it was clear that this was going to be a long, if not permanent assignment.
Scott wanted to continue fighting in China and decided to write a book which would substitute for his speeches and allow his absence. He called his book God is My Co-Pilot, based on a question his audience asked on being successful without a co-pilot. It had the desired effect and Scott’s superiors allowed him to return to China.
The book became very popular and was made into a movie by Warner Brothers starring Dennis Morgan. Although Scott was sometimes controversial and most air aces do not necessarily become generals, he did. Eighty years later, even after Scott’s death, the book still sells.
Drucker did not shoot down any enemy planes and he had to learn to write in English after leaving Germany in 1933. He encountered both failure and rejection along the way but ultimately his writings boosted his reputation in management, business and academia.
What to do about luck and serendipity
Some things occur simply by chance and luck, good or bad. Serendipity can certainly help, though you need to manage and encourage these unexpected occurrences. If you can do only one thing every day in support of a goal, serendipitous happenings will somehow always come your way to help you reach your goal. Try it yourself, you will be amazed at the results.
Drucker accomplished many amazing things in his life and you can use his methods to reach success in your own career or careers.
What would your best advice be for achieving success? Let us know in the comments below.