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With all the hype surrounding the Sherlock Holmes the movie recently, I cannot resist the temptation to pick up the book and read. And what a pleasant surprise! From the first few pages of “A Study in Scarlet”, I got hooked right away. How come no one told me about this wonderful book before?

Sherlock Holmes is an interesting character created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and I can’t help but be intrigued by some of the traits that were built into this character. I say, hey, we definitely had lost or rather, never had it in us before but these are great skills and attributes that could help us to be better in carrying out our duties.

1. Observation and analyzing skills

Sherlock Holmes scanned a room of a murder scene in thirty minutes and able to tell you exactly what kind of people were there – the height and size, how many people exactly, what they were doing and the minute details such as the type of finger nails of the person that wrote on the wall in blood. Holmes is able to do that because he used all his senses, missing nothing. He sees the things that ordinary people won’t care to notice. And he believes in not making a judgment call before having all the facts. That was the mistake of the other two detectives, Gregson and Lestrate – a wrong speculation led them to the wrong track and needless to say, time was wasted.

Holmes quotations:

“It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data. Insensibly one begins to twist facts to suit theories, instead of theories to suit facts.”

“The temptation to form premature theories upon insufficient data is the bane of our profession.”

Making premature assumptions is a grave mistake and a lot of us do that. In the name of acting fast, we failed to act wisely. From Holmes, we learn it’s better not to be clouded by preconceived ideas. Rather, see things with fresh eyes and you can then maintain your objectivity. If you are doing research or holding a management position, it’s a skill that you cannot afford not to have.

After you had observed and collected your data, it’s time to put things together and analyze them accordingly. Each data on its own tells you different things but when put together, you get a big picture. Does the big picture makes any sense? “Together they have a cumulative force.”

2. Dedication to the job at hand

Sherlock Holmes “went on diet” for days if a case is not solved. And he does not mind getting his hands dirty when it’s necessary. That’s the passion and dedication that he has for his vocation.

How many of us are willing to stay late through the nights in the office just because a problem is not solved yet? Or get dirty and sweaty to ensure some work were done in accordance to safety standards not because you need to tick your checklist and said done, but rather ensuring your portion of work is important that could affect events and even lives of others in the future?

How many of us are willing to go the extra mile to help a customer after working hours, knowing it’s not your work to do so anymore but because of compassion? Rather, we often hear, “It’s past five o’clock now, maam. Can you come back the next day?”

3. Creativity goes a long way

Einstein used to say, “Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere.” And Holmes went further to refer the imagination as the author of truth. He would be detached to a secluded place like his bedroom and let his imagination freely explore all possibilities of the case at hand.

Corporations like to coin the word, “Innovative” and true enough, without an innovative mind, companies cannot grow and individuals that do not explore the unknown will never knew their full potential. Think creatively and you will marvel at what you can come out with. And you don’t have to be somebody important to come out with something new or interesting. But, that’s exactly the problem with most of us. I can’t help but recall a conversation with a junior executive telling me, “That’s not my job scope. My manager does all the thinking. For me, I just need to do my job well and that’s enough.”

It took a detective story to tell me some of the things we had missed out in our working world today. It stretched my mind on what I can do and improve on. You want to be inspired further? You know what to do next – get the book and read it!

May I leave you with this short excerpt…

Sherlock Holmes and Watson were on a camping/hiking trip. They had gone to bed and were lying there looking up at the sky.

Holmes said, “Watson, look up. What do you see?”

“Well, I see thousands of stars.”

“And what does that mean to you?”

“Well, I suppose it means that of all the planets and suns and moons in the universe, that we are truly the one most blessed with the reason to deduce theorems to make our way in this world of criminal enterprises and blind greed. It means that we are truly small in the eyes of God but struggle each day to be worthy of the senses and spirit we have been blessed with. And, I suppose, at the very least, in the meteorological sense, it means that it is most likely that we will have another nice day tomorrow. What does it mean to you, Holmes?”

“To me, it means someone has stolen our tent.”