Category Archives: Thoughts On Change

Journey

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Thanks to the brilliant Andy Kefford for the above image

Journey. Treating every change we make in our lives as a journey allows us to enjoy change without the stress and anxiety of constantly thinking about the destination. We need to know where we are going, however the more we focus on the journey and not the destination the more we allow ourselves to enjoy the process of change.

There is a Chinese proverb that says ‘The journey is the reward’. This is something I keep in mind during times of change and more so when change is challenging.

Pinky, in the image above is at the start of his journey of change, he feels a little nervous as he is unable to see the destination. The best thing he can do is take the first step and make progress step by step allowing himself time and space to enjoy the journey even though he can’t see his final destination.

Are you slowing down long enough to enjoy each step along the journey of change?

Is your focus on the journey or the destination?

‘The journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.’ Lao Tzu

Want to read more?

Download your free e-book ‘The A-Z of Effective Change’ below.

Thanks for reading,

Siobhain

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Imagination

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Thanks to the brilliant Andy Kefford for the above image

Imagination. Walt Disney and the hugely successful brand he built is synonymous with the word imagination. It is in the imagination of Walt and those who followed in his footsteps that our favourite animated characters were dreamed of before they became a reality on our screens. Who ever would have thought a small mouse with a squeaky voice would be one of the most famous and most loved characters around the world for decades? It truly is amazing what the imagination can bring to life when we focus on possibilities and not obstacles!

All change means doing something that hasn’t been done before and in order to bring about change we must first engage our most precious creativity tool – our imaginations. Our imaginations are limitless, there is no end to what we can dream of, just as there are no limits to what can be achieved in the real world where dreams become reality.

We can use our imaginations to dream of the change we wish to see, use our imaginations to feel how we want to feel when the change is a reality and use our imaginations to ponder on the thought of how we are going to achieve the change.

One of my favourite books, ‘The Alchemist’ by Paulo Coelho, is one of the most widely read and successful books of all time. A parable about a young Andalusian shepherd, this remarkable book offers a wealth of wise lessons to us all about life, the possibilities that lie within each of us and the importance of using our imaginations and following our dreams. My favourite quote from this book and one I truly believe in is,

‘’And when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.”

Can you imagine that when we decide we want something – an entire universe will conspire to help us achieve it? We may find this hard to believe, however it is this belief that determines the success or failure of what it is we want to achieve.

We must first believe that what is in our imagination is capable of becoming a reality. As suggested by the above quote, the universe will then look after the finer details.

Do you believe an entire universe is conspiring to help you achieve what you want?

In the image above, Pinky dreams of being with his loved ones, on a sunny day. Our dreams don’t have to be grand visions but they do need to resonate totally with ourselves.

Is your imagination being used to its full potential?

Are you allowing your imagination to run wild?

Do you dream big about the changes you want to see in your life and business?

Are you dreaming bigger than you ever thought possible?

[tweetthis]‘Laughter is timeless, imagination has no age and dreams are forever.’ Walt Disney [/tweetthis]

***If you want to learn more about creating effective change in your life and/or business,* *download my free e-book ‘The A-Z of Effective Change’ below.***

Thanks for reading,

Siobhain

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Honesty

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Thanks to the brilliant Andy Kefford for the above image

Honesty. If we want to implement and sustain change of any kind in our lives, we need to be honest with the world, our place in it and ourselves. This honesty requires us to look deep into ourselves to figure out who we are, what our values are, what we want from our lives, what type of lives we want to live, what direction we are going in and where we want our lives to go.

Along the journey of effective change, there are decisions to be made. In order to make the right decisions we need to be honest about why we are changing and exactly where we want from the change. This level of self-honesty takes continuous bravery and this bravery is a lifelong work in progress.

When we become completely honest with ourselves, we can become completely honest with the world. The path to effective change then becomes enjoyable and peaceful and will open doors for us to infinite possibilities.

Are you being honest with yourself with what you want from life?

[tweetthis]“Integrity is telling myself the truth. And honesty is telling the truth to other people.” Spencer Johnson[/tweetthis]

If you want to learn more about creating effective change in your life and/or business, download my free e-book ‘The A-Z of Effective Change’ below.

Thanks for reading,

Siobhain

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Gratitude

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Thanks to the brilliant Andy Kefford for the above image

Gratitude. One of my favourite quotes is by Jim Rohn, ‘Enjoy all you have while pursuing all you want’.

While pursuing all we want it is really important to be aware of and immensely grateful for all we have in this present moment. It is crucial to take stock of and be grateful for the blessings we have in our lives, everything we are, those who share our lives, where we are and where we are going. In all aspects of life being grateful for where we are will bring peace to any situation and will ensure our eye stays on the future goal but that we remain present and content in our current situation.

Tony Robbins, in his book ‘Master The Game’ suggests that real wealth comes from gratitude, how can we be happy with more if we are not happy with what we already have? In her hugely successful book ‘The Secret’, Rhonda Byrne tells us that ‘feeling gratitude is the fastest way to change every single thing in your life.’ The more grateful we are the more peaceful a situation becomes and the smoother the path of change.

[tweetthis]‘As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.’ John F. Kennedy[/tweetthis]

If you want to learn more about creating effective change in your life and/or business, download my free e-book ‘The A-Z of Effective Change’ below.

Thanks for reading,

Siobhain

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The Change Curve

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Image Credit: Madhuri Gupta

The Kubler-Ross model was first introduced to the world by Swiss American psychiatrist Elizabeth Kubler-Ross in her 1969 book ‘Death and Dying’. The Kubler-Ross model initially explained the 5 stages of loss a person goes through when faced with a terminal illness or the loss of a loved one. In her posthumous published book, Kubler-Ross extended her model to include any form of loss such as loss of a job, loss of income, loss of health, loss of a relationship, basically loss of anything that has meaning to us. In this book a 6th stage was suggested which is the stage of Meaning.

The 6 stages of the Kubler-Ross model then became Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, Acceptance and Meaning.

Through the years, the model has been widely accepted and adopted as emotions we feel not just when loss is experienced but when we go through significant change of any kind, – positive or challenging, wanted or unwanted, planned or unplanned.

The model, in various forms is widely used in business as a support system to successfully navigate organisational change. The model can also be used in terms of any personal change to understand why we feel what we feel during times of change.

Below are the 6 stages of the Kubler-Ross model in relation to the Covid-19 pandemic that we are all currently living through, by far the biggest change the world has ever seen on such a global scale in our lifetimes. In terms of the Covid-19 pandemic we are at the beginning of the changes that this virus has made and will make to our world. As the future for us all is so uncertain this a perfect time to utilise the Kubler-Ross model to understand the feelings we may be experiencing, based on the changes the pandemic has caused and will cause to our lives.

Stage 1 – Denial

The collective loss from Covid-19 has been on an epic scale and has affected every single person in the world and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.

As the world continues to be in varying degrees of lockdown, social distancing and cocooning, feelings of denial may surface. The losses have been different for everyone – some people have lost their lives, of which there is no greater loss. On publishing this post, the death toll worldwide is over 200,000. This means 200,000 families have lost a loved one to Covid-19.

This loss of life is on an unimaginable scale and truly heartbreaking.

Kubler-Ross in her model explained that this first stage is one of shock and denial where time is needed to process the loss/change. It is normal at this time to feel that this is not happening, that somehow there has been a mistake, that what we are experiencing is not true. It is also normal to feel low energy and lack of motivation for anything. This can be a short lived stage moving on to the next stage quickly or people can remain in this stage for a long time making it harder to move to the next stage.

At this relatively early stage of Covid-19, a lot of people have lost jobs, incomes, businesses and we have all lost some element of freedom and miss spending precious time with our loved ones. In this stage it is not uncommon for people to lay blame with someone/something and cling to a false, preferred reality. Whatever loss you have experienced due to Covid-19 or anything else in life, do know that feelings of denial are normal and a natural part of the process we need to go through to accept and ultimately thrive in a new reality.

Stage 2 – Anger

When the loss or change is finally realised and denial is no longer an option, anger sets in. Anger at the loss, anger at the unknown future that lies ahead and anger at the entire situation. This is a stage of anger at oneself, anger at others and anger with life in general. People can be irritated, frustrated, negative, short tempered and can feel like they are a victim during this stage. Usually during this stage the future is most uncertain.

In terms of the Covid-19 pandemic this is very true, no-one knows what will happen with the virus and no-one knows what the future holds for our lives, our jobs, our economy, our families and what level of ‘normal life’ we will return to.

Kubler-Ross in her studies (supported by subsequent findings) noted that some people can alternate between denial and anger for some time which makes sense in the current Covid-19 situation as the future is so unknown. Anger is a well recognised emotion of loss/change and is an important part of the human emotional spectrum. When managed effectively, anger can support us and help us to move to the next stage of the Kubler-Ross model.

Stage 3 – Bargaining

In the third stage of the Kubler-Ross model there is a hope that there could be another outcome to the reality of what is happening. For example in terms of job/income loss one might bargain by saying ‘I’ll never take my job/income for granted again’. In terms of a business/relationship loss one might bargain by saying ‘I’ll spend more time on my business/relationship in the future’. Bargaining can take the form of many guises – anything that takes away the pain of the loss/change and in some way makes the loss/change seem less real.

In this stage we look for a better, more positive outcome because we do not want to accept or deal with reality.

Stage 4 – Depression

During this stage many negative emotions are felt – immense sadness, fear, regret, worry, doubt, confusion, orientation, causing low mood and low energy. People may become indifferent and reclusive, push people away and have no interest in or excitement about life itself or anything else that once gave meaning to their lives.

This is a stage of despair where there seems to be little or no light at the end of the tunnel.

Awareness of this stage goes a long way to working through these emotions to move to the next stage. If you find yourself in this stage, reach out for help. There is so much support available to help you understand these feelings and work through this stage.

Stage 5 – Acceptance

In the penultimate stage there is a realisation that denial of, being angry at, bargaining with and being depressed about the loss/change will not make the situation any different. It is here in this stage that we stop resisting the situation and accept it completely. We may not be happy with the new situation but we accept it nonetheless which is crucial to enable us to move forward.

The new situation we find ourselves in becomes the ‘new normal’, routines are rebuilt, everything starts to become second nature and there seems to be not just light but happiness, contentment, fulfillment and optimism for the future at the end of the tunnel.

Previous feelings of sadness, fear, regret, worry, doubt, confusion, orientation and low energy diminish and are replaced by forward thinking, confidence, excitement, engagement, optimism with high energy and hope for the future. As positive as this stage may sound, there is still work to be done as planning for the new future can cause worry, doubt and confusion.

By learning about and and using the Kubler-Ross model we may want to skip all of the previous stages and get to the acceptance stage as it seems like a nicer, more pleasant, easier place to be. However this is not possible, every stage of the Kubler-Ross model fulfills a purpose that ultimately allows acceptance. No matter how dark the tunnel may seem, there is always light and much more than you can imagine at the other end.

In terms of Covid-19, we don’t know what the future holds and so all we can do is accept the current situation which is different for all of us at the moment.

‘We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude…I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it. And so it is with you…we are in charge of our attitudes.‘

Charles Swindoll

Stage 6 – Meaning

In this final stage, the loss/change has been accepted, the ‘new normal’ created has been accepted and this ‘new normal’ starts to take on meaning. Life starts to feel normal again and plans start to take shape for the future. As the ‘new normal’ becomes more enjoyable and has more meaning, people can start to look back at the journey of loss/change that they have come through. Learnings from this change cycle can be evaluated and understood that will support us when the next wave of change comes our way. We evolve and grow from every change in our lives, how much we evolve and grow is very much in our control.

If you want to learn more about having meaning in life, I highly recommend Viktor Frankl’s book ‘Man’s Search For Meaning’.

This book is absolutely life changing and gives meaning to meaning!!!!

Viktor E. Frankl was professor of neurology and psychiatry at the University of Vienna medical School until his death in 1997. His 32 books have been translated into 26 languages. During World War II he spent 3 years in Auschwitz, Dachau and other concentration camps.

‘Man’s Search For Meaning’ is Frankl’s recollection of his time in the concentration camps where everything was taken from him yet he still managed to find meaning to his life. This book is not just a holocaust survivor story, it is a brilliant masterpiece of hope, resilience, survival and an insight into the depths of the human strength that we all carry within us. This book reminds us that no matter how hard life gets, no matter what gets thrown at us or taken from us, as long as we are still alive we can always choose to bring meaning to our lives.

We may not move through the Kubler-Ross model in a linear fashion or step by step, instead we may move through the model in a random order, going back and forth between each stage with each stage lasting a different length of time. We are all unique, we all live unique lives and so we all experience loss/change differently. The Kubler-Ross model is a support system that can help you move from stage to stage and reassure you that what you feel is completely normal.

There is and always will be light at the end of every tunnel.

I hope you and your families are safe and well and that your ‘Change Curve’ due to Covid-19 or anything else isn’t too steep,

Want to read more about change?

Download your free e-book ‘The A-Z of Effective Change’ below.

Thanks for reading,

Siobhain

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The Pomodoro Technique

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Image Credit: Madhuri Gupta

I have been using the Pomodoro Technique for many years and I find it keeps me focused, on track, organised and helps me to get things done efficiently and effectively.

So what is The Pomodoro technique and how does it work?

The Pomodoro Technique is a time management method developed by Francesco Cirillo in the late 1980s to help utilise time more effectively. Work is broken down into intervals usually 25 minutes in length, separated by short breaks.

Each interval is known as a ‘pomodoro’ (Italian word for ‘tomato’) named after the tomato-shaped kitchen timer that Cirillo used when he discovered the method.

For anyone who tends to procrastinate (which is more than likely most of us at some time) this is an excellent technique as it gives structure and urgency to tasks.

Below are a list of benefits from using the Pomodoro Technique,

Makes your work more organised and supports better planning of tasks as you need to plan out your work one pomodoro at a time

Gives urgency to tasks as you are very much aware of the amount of time you have to get tasks done

Ensures you take sufficient breaks – it is suggested to take short breaks (not exactly coffee breaks!) in between each pomodoro and a longer break at the end of 4 pomodoros – you can decide what timings work best for you

Increases focus and concentration by reducing interruptions – it’s best to turn off all distractions during pomodoros (e-mails/social media/phone etc)

Increases focus as the more you use pomodoros, the more you will realise how long it takes to get tasks done (we tend to underestimate how long it takes to get tasks done)

Increases focus as usually one pomodoro is used for one task which naturally helps us to prioritise

Increases motivation – we are motivated by getting things done and the Pomodoro Technique certainly supports getting things done

The more you use it, the more you will evolve and change it to suit your own working style

There are many apps and websites available that support the Pomodoro Technique, I use Pomodoro Tracker which is really easy to use.

Do you think the Pomodoro Technique could help you get more tasks done effectively and efficiently?

Do you use the Pomodoro Technique? If so, I’d love to hear your thoughts on it.

Want to read more about Positive Change?

Download your free e-book ‘The A-Z of Effective Change’ below

Thanks for reading,

Siobhain

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All Green is Red

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Following on from my blog post ‘Red is Good’, this post takes a look at the role the colour green plays in business in terms of Lean. The colour green is associated with all things positive – go, start, progress, energy, growth, environment, finance etc.

We use green in the Lean world to highlight when a target has been met, when something is on track, when a task has been completed, when we are happy with an outcome. As green is associated with positive outcomes, it would be normal to think that all green is good.

This is not always the case.

Problems exist in all processes and if all we are seeing is green then these problems are not visible. In this case then ‘All Green is Red!’. Problems will be invisible if your measures are too high level, too low level or if your measures are not the correct measures.

Taiichi Ohno’s well known saying ‘No problem is a problem’ is so true. If you are not seeing problems in your process than this is a problem.

How do you make problems visible in your workplace?

Does your culture support problem identification, discussion and solving?

Thanks for reading, you might like my previous post on ‘Red is Good’,

Siobhain

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Annual Review 2019

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In the Lean/Continuous Improvement world we carry out ‘Hansei’ which is Japanese for ‘Self-Reflection’. Hansei allows us to review & reflect on our goals (personal and professional) to evaluate what worked so we can build on the successes and evaluate what didn’t work so we can adjust and change direction.

I have been carrying out an ‘Annual Hansei/Review’ for many years and find it hard to believe this is the 7th year I have published this review online. See Annual Reviews from past years at the end of this blog post.

A large part of me didn’t want to do this year’s Annual Review as I would prefer to look forward to 2020 than to look back at 2019. Parts of 2019 were amazing, and parts were beyond sad. My uncle and one of my best friends passed away in Oct/Nov and everything else that happened in 2019 paled into insignificance.

Losing people you love is hard for many reasons and even if someone has been ill it is still so unexpected and completely unwelcome. It is an inevitable destination for us all but still yet so incomprehensible.

And so, with trepidation, here is my Annual Review for 2019. As always, Mike, my family and my friends are my reason for everything. and the source of most of my happiness.

Lean is a business philosophy that I follow at work & in my personal life and that I write about here on my blog.

I had 3 ‘Lean’ highlights this year,

1. I travelled to Riyadh in Saudi Arabia on two trips to teach (and learn) Lean Principles & Leadership to the 2018 & 2019 classes of Riyadh Airport Future Leaders. These groups of young and inspirational Future Leaders taught me more than I could ever teach them. I am grateful to all at daa International for this opportunity esp. my friends Debbie Kearns for looking after me so well and all of the Riyadh Airports Future Leaders for welcoming me to their beautiful country and sharing their knowledge with me.

2. I wrote an e-book on ‘Positive Change’ All going well I will be launching it early in 2020. The e-book is a compilation of blog posts from a blog series I wrote in 2019/2019, you can view the blog posts here ‘The A-Z Of Effective Change’

3. I am fascinated by Japan and all things Japanese and in 2020 I am finally getting to tick Japan off my ‘to visit’ list. I have booked a place on Katie Anderson’s ‘Lean Study Trip’ in May 2020 and will be sharing the journey with you here on my blog and through social media

Similar to 2018, in 2019 I became more aware of the power and necessity of a Lean Culture in business. Respect for & development of people is truly the only way to grow and sustain businesses. Lacking these people focused elements and treating people poorly will ensure your company is one that people cannot wait to leave and are in no hurry to join, leaving your company moral on a downward spiral with your profits following closely behind.

In terms of Travel and Photography, my friend’s Karin and Paula enjoyed a few days skiing in the Italian Alps in February. I’m not the best skier but the fresh air and the excellent company on the slopes was food for the soul!

I visited Riyadh with work twice in 2019. My blog post on ‘The Top 5 Reasons To Visit Saudi Arabia’ was my most viewed blog post of 2019. I cannot recommend Saudi Arabia highly enough as somewhere to visit and now that it has opened to tourism, there has never been a better time.

My Mom and I spent 2 fabulous weeks on the islands of Malta and Gozo in September. I would highly recommend both islands as places to visit, you can read more about them on my blog posts,

The Top 5 Things To Do in Malta

The Top 5 Things To Do in Gozo

I enjoyed working with my gorgeous family and friends on photo shoots this year, it is always a joy to work with those you love.

Like most things in life, the more I learn about social media the more I realise I don’t know. Social media changes every day and so there is always much to keep up to date with.

In 2019 I continued to post about Travel and Photography and Positive Change on my blogs,

‘The Photographer’s Guide To Travel’

‘The Art Of Positive Change’

Blog posts on ‘The Art Of Positive Change’ were categorised into 3 areas of interest,

Thoughts On Change – my thoughts on both personal and professional change
Tools Of The Change Trade – useful tools I recommend for personal/professional change
Book Reviews – reviews of books I love

Throughout 2019 I continued to post daily positive quotes to various social media platforms which helped me learn more about posting, scheduling and outsourcing on social media. I created ‘The Quotes Store’ on Flickr where you can download albums of these positive quotes for your own use.

I continued to work with the brilliant cartoonist Andy Kefford who created the cartoons of ‘Pinky the Positive Pig’, the star of my 26 part blog post series ‘The Complete A-Z Of Effective Change’ of which my new e-book is based. I look forward to sharing our new writing project with you later in 2020!

I love writing on my blogs and I learned over the past couple of years is that not only do you need to build skills to write content, but you also need to find the time to think about, write, edit, publish and market this content. I struggled to find enough time for writing last year (as I did in 2018) and so this is a real focus area for me for 2020.

I have always been aware of the importance of physical and mental health. 2019, for many reasons, brought this awareness to another level.

Keeping our physical and mental health in peak shape is required for everything else in our lives to function. Working to look after our physical and mental health should be the top priority in our lives and a daily practice to ensure same.

I wish you and your loved ones excellent physical and mental health in 2020.

In 2019 I continued to improve my financial habits by learning from Tony Robbins book ‘Money Master the Game – 7 Simple Steps To Financial Freedom’. Tony is a master when it comes to finance and in this book he not only shares his own wisdom but also leverages the wisdom of many of the world’s finest financial advisors to share their advice, insights and experience. Tony’s book is written in an easy to understand format for all levels of financial understanding which is why I like it so much.

Like all habits, my financial habits are a work in progress.

It’s nice to give back. I have been supporting various charities for many years. Year on year I try to give more to each charity whether this is monetary support or volunteering my time. This is something I will continue with and build on in 2020.

That’s it, 2019 in review, albeit a little less detailed than previous years.

Here’s to 2020, may the New Year (and the new decade) bring you and your loved ones health, happiness and prosperity,

Thanks for reading,

Siobhain

x x x

Note: The system I use for my Annual Review is a work in progress and evolves year on year. When I first carried out my Annual Review I started with a template used by Chris Guillebeau. If you are interested in starting your own Annual Review, here is Chris’s guidelines on How To Conduct your own Annual Review and his Annual Review Template.

My previous Annual Reviews can be found below,

Annual Review 2013 Annual Review 2014 Annual Review 2015

Annual Review 2016 Annual Review 2017

Annual Review 2018

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Red is Good

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Photo Credit: Olav Ahmen Rotne (Unsplash)

The colour red is associated with energy, passion, action and feelings of warmth, vibrancy and intensity. Red is also associated with danger and most warning signs we see on our roads and in our workplaces are red for this reason.

In a Lean culture red usually means something has failed, that there has been a deviation from standard, that a target has not been met – in short there is a problem of some kind.

A company that does not have a healthy culture of problem-solving assigns blame to those who find problems, which in turn drives employees to remain silent and not speak up about problems with their processes and work environment. This fear of speaking out and associated silence has a detrimental effect on companies and their employees as not only do the problems get worse and more frequent, the employees get frustrated, disengaged, disillusioned and spend more time covering up problems than solving them.

In this culture, the colour red associated with problems becomes a colour of danger, a colour to be avoided, a colour that no-one wants to be associated with.

In stark contrast, a company with a healthy Lean culture of systematic problem solving encourages problem identification, discussion and investigation into why problems occur and implementation of sustainable solutions. Blame does not exist in this company as everyone is aware of and understands that problems are caused by ineffective, outdated, broken, unsuitable, non-standardised processes. This culture ensures that processes are monitored and improved, and people are developed and rewarded – two of the key principles of Lean.

[tweetthis]’Problems are treasures, reward the messenger’ Pascal Dennis [/tweetthis]

In a Lean culture of systematic problem solving when we see red we,

Know we have a problem
Have open and honest conversations about what the problem is
Investigate how the problem occurred
Brainstorm solutions to solve the problem
Work together to implement sustainable solutions to ensure the problem does not reoccur
Monitor and continuously improve the process
Reward and recognise excellent problem solving and teamwork

How is red perceived where you work? Is red a colour that is welcomed or does it mean danger?

I hope you are lucky enough to have a culture where ‘Red is Good’!

Thanks for reading,

Siobhain

x x x

Not sure what Lean is?

Check out my previous blog post ‘Meeting Art and Understanding Lean’ where I share Art Byrne’s keynote speech that I attended at the 2013 Lean Enterprise Academy Summit.

This video sums up exactly what Lean is and how important it is to business. 6 years later I continue to refer to this video all the time – so much wisdom!!!

Photo Credit: Alana Harris (Unsplash)

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PDCA – Dr Deming’s Gift To The World

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Image Credit: Madhuri Gupta

William Edwards Deming (October 14, 1900 – December 20, 1993) was an American engineer, statistician, professor, author, lecturer, and management consultant.

Dr Deming’s philosophy below (thanks Wikipedia) will give you an insight into his profound wisdom and deep understanding of systems and operations and how they work efficiently, effectively and optimally.

‘Dr. W. Edwards Deming taught that by adopting appropriate principles of management, organisations can increase quality and simultaneously reduce costs (by reducing waste, rework, staff attrition and litigation while increasing customer loyalty). The key is to practice continual improvement and think of manufacturing as a system, not as bits and pieces.”

The above sentence sums up why all businesses would benefit from Lean and how Lean requires to be implemented through a series of systems that support the work and not as a stand alone philosophy.

See ‘Wikipedia’ for more information on Dr Deming and his great work.

The Plan, Do, Check, Act Cycle, or PDCA cycle, is a technique designed to facilitate continuous improvement in the workplace. It is also referred to as the Deming Cycle, as it was popularized under the instruction of Dr. W. Edwards Deming. Deming was introduced to the concept by Walter Shewart, a statistical quality control expert. PDCA has also been referred to as PDSA (Plan, Do Study, Act), PDSA (Plan, Do, Study, Adjust) and numerous variations in between.

Whichever version you decide to you the principles are the same.

Dr Deming’s PDCA cycle has completely changed how I work and how I live. Everything I do in relation to projects & work (personal and professional) now goes through this cycle or some variation of it. Let me give you an insight into how it works and the benefits it brings.

PLAN

(Develop a detailed plan )

This is the first step in the Deming cycle, and it is here you determine exactly what the opportunity for change is. In this first step, it is important to determine what problem you are solving, what is the goal, what will the measurements of success be and how will you implement this change.

It is here that you determine exactly what you need to achieve success and how you will know you are successful. The only way to know if something has improved is by measuring it and so it is critical to determine what metrics will give you this information and how you will collect these metrics.

When you are happy you have a detailed plan, know what metrics you will monitor (and how you will gather and monitor these), it’s time to move into the ‘Do’ phase.

The above sounds very simple but it’s not uncommon for people, departments and organisations to plough ahead with change without a detailed well thought out plan.

Spending most of your time in the Plan phase will set you up for success on the next stages of the PDCA cycle.

DO

(Implement the changes according to the plan)

Here it is time for action and time to use the plan developed above to put that action in place. The plan will serve as an excellent guide and reminder of exactly what it is you want to achieve. The metrics you will gather during the ‘Do’ phase will ensure you are continuously moving in the right direction towards success.

If you are leading a team, department or an organisation through change it should be very clear at all stages in the ‘Do’ phase where you are with the change and what the next steps are.

CHECK

(Reflect on and evaluate results)

This phase reduces rework and provides clarity.

This step is sometimes referred to as the study phase. Here we are reviewing and analysing the results of the improvements implemented in the Do phase.

In this phase you ‘Check’ if your initial goal from the ‘Plan’ phase has been reached and ‘Check’ if the metrics gathered support this goal achievement.

Did you reach your goal?

Do the metrics support this?

Are you happy that this initiative has been a success?

ACT

(What are the next steps?)

This step is our last in the where we ask 2 questions and act accordingly on the answers.

Did we reach our goal?

If the answer is Yes, we standardise, document and roll out the new process, training those who need to be trained. This is the new Standard Work on which we continuously improve.

If the answer is No, we may need to alter our methods of implementation, develop a new plan, or test our improvements on a larger scale.

As this is a cycle, the PDCA process never really ends.

It repeats itself providing the path to continuous improvement.

Do you use the PDCA cycle?

Could the PDCA cycle help you transform how you live and work?

Want to read more about change?

Download your free e-book ‘The A-Z of Effective Change’ below.

Thanks for reading,

Siobhain

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