The Kaizen Mentality

written by JOSH GESSNER | The Learning Engine

Today at a Glance:

• Kaizen

• Toyota implementing Kaizen

• What does kaizen teach us?

A Japanese Philosophy for Exponential Improvement in Life...

The Kaizen Mentality:

Kaizen (改善) is a Japanese word meaning ‘improvement’.

It's the idea of letting micro improvements compound, leading to significant progress over time.

In the 1950's, Toyota struggled to compete with established automakers.

Japan was recovering from WWII, and had limited:

• Resources

• Experience

• Technology

But they were determined to improve.

Taiichi Ohno, an engineer at Toyota implements Kaizen to optimize their manufacturing process.

They call it the Toyota Production System.

This is how it goes down:

Each time an issue occurs in their production system:

The whole staff goes through a "Hansei-kai" (reflection meeting).

In this meeting, employees are encouraged to:

• Identify inefficiencies

• Suggest improvements

• Aggressively implement change

This culture of continuous improvement transformed Toyota into an automotive powerhouse.

As @naval says:

"All the benefits in life come from compound interest - relationship, money, habits - anything of importance."

Adapting the Kaizen mentality allows for the compound effect to blossom.

How do we implement Kaizen into our lives?

Tool 1): Stay in the game.

Chris Williamson (Modern Wisdom) recently hit 2 million subscribers on Youtube.

It took him 5 years and 600 episodes to hit 1 million.

To get his next million, it took only 9 months and 120 episodes.

Stay in the game long enough for compounding to take over.

Tool 2): Practice Consistency.

What Chris Williamson attributes his success to?

Consistency.

"Consistency is even rarer than talent or enthusiasm"

Tool 3): 2 mental models to stay consistent and motivated:

1. Minimal Viable Progress

2. Negative Visualization

Minimal Viable Progress):

Just get something done - no matter how small.

5 mins of work, reading, or writing goes a long way.

Anything above 0 compounds.

Negative Visualization):

For a boost of motivation, visualize the negative.

Studies have shown the impact negative visualization has over positive visualization.

Think of the negative consequences of not taking action, to spark motivation.

These tools help us to implement Kaizen into our lives.

Kaizen teaches us:

1) Long term success is a result of daily improvements.

2) Patience is necessary to see significant progress.

3) Consistency over intensity.

Thanks for reading!