One Small Step Can Change Your Life by Robert Maurer
What is Kaizen?
Kaizen is a Japanese term meaning "change for the better" or "continuous improvement."
It is a Japanese business philosophy regarding the processes that continuously improve operations and involve all employees.
Kaizen sees improvement in productivity as a gradual and methodical process.
Robert Maurer describes the power of Kaizen in a personal environment.
Common Beliefs About Change
Change is hard
The size of the step determines the size of the result, so take big steps for big results
Kaizen is slow, innovation is quicker
There are two elements of the spirit, or purpose, in which kaizen plays an essential role:
Service
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"Service is even an essential aspect of the business applications of kaizen. Each employee in a kaizen culture is asked to look each day for ways to improve the process or product, always in the service of costumer."
Gratitude
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"Gratitude is often considered an element of spirit or purpose. But what are we expected to be grateful for? Innovation calls for financial gains, promotions, and possessions to stoke the fires of gratitude. But Kaizen invites us to be grateful for health, for our next breath, for the moments with a friend or colleague."
All changes, even positive ones, are scary.
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Why? The answer lies in the way our brains are built. Brain consist of at least three parts: the brainstem, the midbrain (amygdala) and the cerebral. -The brainstem is the automatic pilot of our body, which takes care of functions like breathing and sleeping. -The midbrain (amygdala) is our survival instinct, our fight of flight response. --The third part, the cerebral, includes our creative abilities. Each part of the brain has different response times. The brainstem will response the fastest, followed by the midbrain, and only after that, the cerebral will respond to outside stimulus.This means our creativity can only be accessed when the stimulus does not bring out fear in our midbrain. By implementing small changes at a time, the flight response, which blocks creativity, can be circumvented.
Attempts to reach goals through radical or revolutionary means often fail because they heighten fear.
the small steps of kaizen disarm the brain’s fear response, stimulating rational thought and creative play.
When you are afraid, the brain is programmed either to run or attack—not always the most practical options.
Small actions satisfy your brain’s need to do something and soothe its distress.
“As you experience success in applying kaizen to clear goals like weight loss or career advancement, remember to hold on to its essence: an optimistic belief in our potential for continuous improvement.”
Quality Questions
If you are unhappy but aren’t sure why, try asking yourself this: If I were guaranteed not to fail, what would I be doing differently?”
“If you are trying to reach a specific goal, ask yourself every day: What is one small step I could take toward reaching my goal?”
“What is one small step I could take to improve my health (or relationships, or career, or any other area)?”
“Is there a person at work or in my personal life whose voice and input I haven’t heard in a long time? What small question could I ask this person?”
If somebody’s annoying you, ask yourself, “What’s one good thing about this person?”
“What is one small thing that is special about me (or my spouse, or my organization)?”
Six techniques to apply Kaizen in your personal life
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The six strategies of Kaizen all focus on continuously making small efforts to change behavior by circumventing our natural flight response. These strategies work at work and at home and for anyone.
Asking small questions
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Asking questions helps to overcome fear, and therefore the flight response. One should not be anxious about finding the answers though, a creative answer pops up automatically after a day or two, or even after just a good night sleep.
Thinking small thoughts
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By simply thinking about your response in a certain situation beforehand, you can prevent the flight mode in an unexpected difficult situation.
Taking small actions
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Starting a new routine can be done with starting only one minute per day, which familiarizes your brain with the new activity.
Solving small problems
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Don´t wait with solving a problem until it has become a real problem, but learn how to recognize small things that can lead to problems in the future. Small irritations today could lead to huge irritations in the future. It might be easier to act on that today, than it is in the future.
Bestowing small rewards
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Small rewards can motivate to continue new learned behavior. The best rewards are free, like spending time on a hobby. Should fit with your goal and should fit the person who receives it.
Identifying small moments
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The small moments are the moments that bring happiness to one´s life. Live in the present and focus on small gestures. It is one´s task in life to find happiness and significance in every moment. Children are the perfect example. They play, learn and grow in the moment, without worrying about the future or regretting the past.
“When life gets scary and difficult, we tend to look for solutions in places where it is easy or at least familiar to do so, and not in the dark, uncomfortable places where real solutions might lie.”
