FIVE
Zag Number 2—Adding Processes and Resources

I love the Taj Mahal. I’ve had the good fortune to visit this remarkable shrine several times, and neither words nor pictures can describe it. What adds to its magnificence is that I’ve always come straight from the chaos of India, where there is mayhem everywhere, and to walk into this peaceful grove is like walking into another world.

The Taj Mahal was built with a labor force of over twenty thousand workers who were recruited from all across northern India and other parts of the region. In addition to common laborers, the workforce included sculptors from Bukhara, calligraphers from Syria and Persia, inlayers from southern India, and stonecutters from Baluchistan. A team of 37 men formed the creative unit. Of these, one was a specialist in carving marble flowers and another was the best at building turrets. It took 20 years to complete the Taj Mahal. It was built by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his beloved third wife Mumtz Mahal. It is considered one of the most beautiful buildings in the world and is a symbol of eternal love.

Imagine for a moment the possibility of this emperor trying to build the Taj Mahal all by himself. He clearly had a vision of what it was to be. He was a very wealthy man, so he had the necessary cash. And likely he knew where to find the materials from which this edifice was constructed. Despite all that he had at his disposal, building the Taj Mahal would have been an impossible feat, even if Shah Jahan had had several lifetimes in which to complete the work.

Instead, he put together his beacon in the fog, fueled it with his passion, and then added resources—lots and lots of resources. And as he added those resources, he had to get everyone to catch the same vision so they could complete something that beautiful.