Aside from surrounding himself with the best people, Hughes had a secret weapon that allowed him to be more hands-on with his projects than many other entrepreneurs. What was it? Sneakers. Hughes had a habit of wearing sneakers, which would allow him to walk about very quietly and enter his work areas stealthily to monitor his staff without being detected.
With some of the best people in the industry working for him, Hughes could have chosen to distance himself from the goings on of his various enterprises. But, instead, Hughes chose to be hands-on, involving himself in even the smallest of details. While his diagnosis as having OCD often led him to go to extremes, he nonetheless demonstrated the importance of involving yourself in every aspect of your business. From budgeting to marketing to staffing decisions to the technical mechanics of a project, Hughes threw himself whole-heartedly into each and every project.
Not only did Hughes want to know what was going on, but also he gave himself the flexibility to be able to make whatever changes he saw as being necessary. Whether due solely to his fervent passion and dedication for his work or whether it was in part due to a good business sense, Hughes’ compulsion to control was one of his distinguishing features and a significant factor in what made him such a strong and powerful businessman.
Hughes was extremely hands-on in every film and every aviation innovation to which he devoted his time. He would personally test fly all the planes that he helped design. He often even put his own life at risk to involve himself and improve his product. The airplane crash on July 7, 1946 that forever changed Hughes’ life is a prime example. The XF-11 was a spy plane commissioned by the US army, with an experimental propeller design and a much larger wingspan than other similar planes. Hughes’ unusual design was meant to increase the plane’s performance and stability, but Hughes knew it could also increase the likelihood of mechanical difficulties.
Insisting on flying the plane himself for the first time, Hughes was nearly killed when the plane experienced mechanical problems and lost control. When the army cancelled the order for 100 of these planes, Hughes insisted on creating a second prototype to prove it could fly successfully. In less than one year, Hughes again chose to perform the test flight of the second model himself and was successful.
With the stubborn passion for which he was known, Hughes was not one for delegating tasks to others. His insistence on being hands-on was what allowed him to be extremely confident in standing behind his products. “If I have made a mistake in the design, then I’m the one who should pay for it,” said Hughes. “I certainly would not ask somebody else to fly a plane if I were afraid to do it myself.” He was also, for the most part, adored by his staff, who appreciated his hands-on approach and were inspired by his dedication and enthusiasm.
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