Posted by Sten Westgard, MSIn the iconic western film, The Magnificent Seven, there is a famous scene about marksmanship. [Quick set up: The Magnificent Seven are - you guessed it, seven - gunmen hired to protect a peasant village from a much larger group of bandits] Early in the film, the heroic gunmen detect three bandit scouts and want to capture them. In an abrupt exchange of gunfire, two bandits are killed, but the third bandit mounts his horse and attempts to escape. As the bandit flees, one of the gunmen, Britt, steadies his pistol and takes aim. The escaping bandit gallops farther and farther away. But just as he is about to disappear behind a hill, Britt shoots, hitting the bandit square in the back, killing him. The youngest of the gunmen, Chico, shouts: Chico: (in awe) That was the greatest shot I've ever seen! Britt: (sternly) The worst! I was aiming at the horse.This scene reminds us that even when what one person thinks is great performance may not be acceptable by
another person's standards. Indeed, what appears like an accomplishment may actually be an error.And what, you may ask, does this have to do with Six Sigma?
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