Interested in long term improvement? Want to know sure fire way to improve over time? Sceptic? Want some evidence?
Kaizen is what Japanese apply when they want to improve and become more productive.
by lenaibojcdruz
Kaizen (??, Japanese for "improvement") is a Japanese philosophy that focuses on continuous improvement throughout all aspects of life.
5 strategies
There are only few simple principles for Kaizen implementation. They are referred as 5S’s. This is how Masaaki Imai outlines it in his book Gemba Kaizen: A Commonsense, Low-Cost Approach to Management:
- Sort – Separate everything unnecessary and get rid of it. Put a red tag on unnecessary items (for example, unused machines), then remove them.
- Straighten – Put key items in order so they can be found readily. Straighten logically, so items can be located with a minimum of wasted effort.
- Scrub – Tools and workplaces should be clean. Dirt and foreign particles can cause machinery to malfunction.
- Systematize – Make a schedule for cleaning and for checking that all is in order. This ensures that housekeeping is maintained constantly.
- Standardize – Make the preceding steps part of a regular process.
Does it work?
Yeah! Does it really work? Let’s see.
- Toyota. This company is kind of success, right? Here is what they do:
The Toyota Production System is known for kaizen, where all line personnel are expected to stop their moving production line in case of any abnormality and, along with their supervisor, suggest an improvement to resolve the abnormality which may initiate a kaizen.
- Myself. I think I am success. I am no millionaire. I am regular corporate worker. Then why I count myself for successful one? I like John Wooden’s definition for success and that is why I feel I am successful:
"Success is peace of mind which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you made the effort to become the best of which you are capable" - John Wooden.
What Kaizen does have to do with me and my success? Let’s see:
- Sort – Separate everything unnecessary and get rid of it. I practice Covey’s Important/Urgent quadrant to get rid of noise.
- Straighten – Put key items in order so they can be found readily. I am a big fan of pipeline processing.
- Scrub – Tools and workplaces should be clean. I am on tools diet. I just love utilizing familiar tools for different tasks, here are few examples:
- Effective Time Management With Vista Sidebar
- On Writing - John Lennon, Gerald M. Weinberg, Me, You, And Outlook 2007
- Security .Net Code Inspection Using Outlook 2007
- Systematize – Make a schedule for cleaning and for checking that all is in order. I am a big fan of checklists. Here is the whole blueprint.
- Standardize – Make the preceding steps part of a regular process. How about the whole lifecycle?
It seems I’ve been doing Kaizen all that time unconsciously. That is fine. I am only happy it worked great for me, only now I am even more confident in continuing doing it – continuous improvement, Kaizen.
Self Test
- Do you separate important from noise? What’s your technique?
- Are you processing your work in ordered manner? How do you order your work items?
- Are you over-tooled, over-engineered? Do you have the tools to make your job done? Do you have more tools? Do you really need them?
- Do you check yourself periodically? Daily, weekly, monthly, annually?
- Do you have lifecycle plan of your work? Do you have lifecycle plan of your life? No? Then how do you know you are on track?
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“If you can’t beat them join them”, right?
Wrong.
It is completely wrong, unless you are joining them to beat them. Beat them either harder or smarter. Better both.
by TOMOYOSHI
You are not a quitter. But sometimes you get to the point where you want to give up on your dream. You feed yourself with ton of excuses why you can’t do it. You want to quit and move on.
Do not quit, you can beat them. You can beat them all.
Struggle is the meaning
When I was reading Tim Ferriss’ The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich 
I stumbled on a very motivational quote:
If you don’t make mistakes, you’re not working on hard enough problems. And that’s a big mistake. – Frank Wilczek, 2004 Nobel Prize winner in physics.
It really made an impact on me and every time I feel down, this one helps me to get up and move forward toward what I believe, The Dream.
It takes time to win
I am a big fan of “Fail Fast” approach. In a nutshell it means that investing in something must gain fast results. If the investment does not gain any results, if it fails – stop doing it, change the approach. It helps avoiding Pyrrhic Victory. However, never give up on the bigger goal, The Dream.
It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer. -Albert Einstein
Struggle is your source of energy
In the The Power of Full Engagement: Managing Energy, Not Time, is the Key to High Performance and Personal Renewal the authors identify 4 Dimensions Of Personal Power: Physical, Emotional, Mental, Spiritual. Their approach is based on tens of years of research and applied practice – they actually Practice This ;). Their take is that our Physical, Emotional, Mental, and Spiritual muscles must be periodically stretched in order to refill our personal power reservoirs. Keep fighting to be stronger.
What’s not killing me only makes me stronger - Friedrich Nietzsche
Beating smarter
How do I become a smarter fighter?
Try applying ancient proven patterns & practices of martial arts – take, for example, Judo – my favorite sport :
The word "judo" … may mean "gentleness", "softness", "suppleness", and even "easy", depending on its context
The soft method is characterized by the indirect application of force to defeat an opponent. More specifically, it is the principle of using one’s opponent’s strength against him and adapting well to changing circumstances
Here is another great source of techniques to beating them smarter – The Thirty Six Strategies:
Whereas other Chinese military texts such as Sun Tzu The Art of War focus on military organization, leadership, and battlefield tactics, the Thirty Six Strategies are more suitably applied in the fields of politics, diplomacy, and espionage.
Take, fore example, this one:
19. Remove the firewood under the cooking pot.
When faced with an enemy too powerful to engage directly you must first weaken him by undermining his foundation and attacking his source of power.
The foundation
My take is that the foundation to becoming a smarter fighter is Emotional Intelligence.
Emotion Is Your Enemy – coach John Wooden.
Fight your enemy, become Emotionally Intelligent:
Self test
- Do you have a Dream?
- Have you ever gave up on your Dream? How did you feel? Drained?
- Have you ever fulfilled your dream? How did you feel? Empowered, ready for another fight?
- Do you want to become a smarter fighter?
- Do you want to win you Dream?
The new Leadership Development Carnival #1 is up and running at Great Leadership, hosted by Dan McCarthy. This month’s Carnival is presenting a leadership development advice and commentary from over 30 leadership blogs, including my own article, Is Becoming A Leader Actionable And Attainable For All?.
There will be a brand new Leadership Development Carnival every month. If you’d like to submit an article, use the carnival submission form.
Enjoy the festivities!
