seen from China
seen from China
seen from Australia
seen from United States
seen from China
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from Norway
seen from France
seen from United Kingdom
seen from Chile
seen from Chile
seen from Germany
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from Netherlands
seen from China
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from Malaysia
Brakes That Don't Slow You Down
Brakes That Don’t Slow You Down
As an engineering student I was impressed by the intricate harmony of development processes. It was probably the same part of me that loved the uniformity and audacity that is xml.
These days I use JSON 100 times more often than xml. I’ve similarly fallen out of love with process. But there’s still a grudging respect there. Like an old lover that done you wrong, but is a sort of evil superhero so…
View On WordPress
Why Why Why... Results
What do the Toyota Production System, Lynn Grabhorn, and Danielle LaPorte have in common? "WHY?" Yes, the need for WHY and the practical application for using WHY to manifest results. (Owners, managers, and bosses - You need to ask and understand WHY if a Happy, Stable, Profitable business is what you are after.)
Toyota adopted Sakichi Toyoda's technique of 5-Whys into their Toyota Production System. By asking "Why?" as least five times, the intention is to get to the root of the problem or failure. An example is: The car will not start.
Why? - The battery is dead. (first why)
Why? - The alternator is not functioning. (second why)
Why? - The alternator belt has broken. (third why)
Why? - The alternator belt is faulty. (fourth why)
Why? - We did not pick the best supplier for this part. (fifth why, a root cause)
Why? - We thought a lower parts price (quality) would be more profitable. (sixth why, optional footnote)
Lynn Grabhorn uses multiple "whys" to get at the essence of personal "wants". In Excuse Me Your Life Is Waiting, she recounts the story of a woman's wanting a summer cottage by the ocean. Lynn continuously asks, "Why?" until they get to the essence of the "Want". In this case, the idea of the cottage connected her to intense feelings of childhood freedom and creativity. Now with a clear emotional connection to the ideal outcome, she is on the path to creating her summer cottage by the ocean.
Danielle LaPorte suggests a "relentless search for why" to uncover motivations, demystify success and failure, and to create inter-personal connections. Indeed, asking "Why?" gives you the opportunity to objectively analyze as well as subjectively participate. The point is - Dig in! Look for the reasons and give people an opportunity to share what's real. Great point, Danielle.
In our work at Punchlist Perspective, when working through personal or business breakdowns, we like to add the question,"Is that acceptable?" We find that it stimulates a curiosity based on integrity. It gets people involved. For instance: That meeting didn't have the intended outcome. Is that acceptable; Yes or No? No. OK, why? Now people are considering the intended outcome and WHY it is/was important. They reconnect to their emotional stake in the outcome and can then create a new plan.
Owners, managers, and bosses - Ask and understand WHY to foster a Happy, Stable, Profitable business.
.
Quick Fix v Root Cause... Restaurant Impossible Again
Restaurant Impossible really brings out the essence of smart people who need help, yet can't seem to get out of their own way when that help shows up!
Last night's episode was a great look at how when the help shows up, we most often want the quick fix and will resist, with every ounce of energy, uncovering the root causes to breakdown. In the episode, the flailing restaurant owner walks out on Chef Robert, in a fury, as Chef is showing him all that's in need of correction. The owner is being given a 48-hour road map to go from failure to success and he walks out!
Of course the episode goes on, the owner comes to see his own complacency and his need for new integrity. He then re-commits to his own success and surrenders to Robert Irvine's sage direction. From there all the dominoes fall...his broken family comes back together, they all put in the hard work to get the job done, and a transformed restaurant opens to the public's delight.
Very rarely can a major breakdown be turned around with a quick fix. Instead, stop the action, re-align with your original intent through the process of 5-Whys, find the root issues, then re-engage with a plan of action.
