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L. Ron Hubbard is perhaps best known as an author and the
Founder of the religion of Scientology, his works published
in 52 languages and hundreds of millions of copies in print.
Yet he is also remembered by millions as a great humanitarian
who, after more than half a century of research into methods
to better the human condition, left a legacy that improves
men's lives in innumerable ways. This legacy is recorded in
an immense body of work that literally comprises tens of millions
of words.
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“Activities, organizations,
companies, governments and even man’s civilization
depend upon having the TECHNOLOGY of ADMINISTRATION and
the knowledge and APPLICATION of it.”
L. Ron Hubbard
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Born in Tilden, Nebraska, on March 13, 1911, Mr. Hubbard spent
his early years in what was then still the frontier territory of
Montana. Possessed of a rare curiosity, one that motivated his ethnological
examinations of 21 races and cultures and encouraged him while still
in his teens to trek across a then remote China that few Westerners
would ever see, he logged more than a quarter of a million miles
by the time he reached the age of 19—without the benefit of
commercial air transportation.
By the time he enrolled in George Washington University in 1930 to study
engineering, it was obvious that he had already embarked upon his
life's work—a search for solutions to man's most perplexing problems,
and the creation of workable technologies that would improve all facets
of life.
While the full array of his accomplishments could fill a book,
there are some it would be particularly fitting to mention here.
His interest in education and the problems associated with passing
on knowledge began early. At the age of 15, he was teaching Chamorro
children in Guam, utilizing unique methods he developed—a harbinger
of breakthroughs he would make in the field of education and study.
Then, while in the U.S. Navy during World War II, Mr. Hubbard trained
ship crews, developed some of the techniques of pre-battle conditioning
still used today, and turned incomprehensible technical manuals
into effective course materials to train servicemen in navigation.
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By 1950, he noted that "Today's children will become tomorrow's
civilization," and warned of a society that was destroying itself
by its own educational systems, a prediction that has proven nightmarishly
accurate. No armchair philosopher, however, Mr. Hubbard worked to
resolve these problems as they escalated into crises through the years.
His accomplishments included a considerable body of work which
became known as his Study Technology. It contains his discoveries
of the basic reasons why students fail to grasp a subject and of
the barriers to full comprehension of what one is studying. And
he developed methods by which anyone can improve his ability to
learn and apply what he has studied. Today, his Study Technology
is used in schools throughout the world—and is a major factor
in the success of the Hubbard College of Administration, which utilizes
it fully in all of its courses to the benefit of its students.
Likewise in 1950, realizing that what passed for administration at
the time was inconsistent and arbitrary, Mr. Hubbard turned his attention
to that area. His first book on the subject, How to Live Though
an Executive, published in 1953, recognized that the true role
of an executive in any organisation was to plan and supervise, and
detailed a communication system for any office or organisation. Indeed,
the book was a communication manual appropriate for any organisation
of any size. Three years later, his book The Problems of Work
isolated the problems encountered on the job by everyone, from worker
to chief executive officer, and presented methods anyone could use
to regain his or her enthusiasm for work.
In 1965, after years of continuing research into the forms and
functions of organisation, Mr. Hubbard announced his development
of the seven-division organizing board, a major breakthrough that
presented the most successful administrative pattern of operation
for any group of any size. These seven divisions, which are each
divided into departments, encompass all the actions that are performed
or should be performed in any organisation. Indeed, this organisational
breakthrough, when applied, ensures the continued success and stable
expansion of any organisation.
The full body of his work in this area can be found in nine encyclopedia-sized
volumes, including an index volume, comprising The Organisation
Executive Course, and the three Management Series volumes.
Contained in these twelve volumes is technology that guarantees
the survival and growth of groups from small to enormous, as has
been proven by thousands upon thousands of companies and groups
in countries throughout the world in recent decades.
After completing his work, L. Ron Hubbard departed this
life on January 24, 1986. He accomplished all he had set out to do
and his legacy continues to impact on the lives of millions. Mr. Hubbard
once said, "I like to help others and count it as my greatest
pleasure in life to see a person free himself of the shadows which
darken his days."
Today, millions in many fields utilize Mr. Hubbard's principles
to rid themselves of those shadows and better their lives.
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