Robin Sharma has a new post (http://rndt.ca/t/52/) that's worth sharing:
20 Best Quotes for High Achievement

Norm www.normanbain.com

Random Thoughts

When I was a young software designer, I ran across a great program for capturing random thoughts. It was a way to put sticky notes on your desk and recall them by keyword. It was pretty awesome, but was not available when I was not at my desk. When I traded up my computer I lost the software and have not found a comparable product.

When I became a manager, by mentor showed me the power of a bring forward file. He was relentless in following up on commitments, suggestions and directives as his BF file kept everyone on track.

When I became a consultant, my secret was to remain one step ahead of the client. Study was the game. I read more books in my first year as a consultant than I did in a lifetime of high school.

I found a great book by David Allen. It was definitely a winner. Getting Things Done is a national best seller about stress free productivity. In it is a flow chart that shows how to  get stuff done. It suggests that we ask ourselves a few simple questions about everything that comes into our life and then define some actions that keep us moving toward to get results. It’s solid gold. I’ve thought about it for years and finally figured out how to apply it practically. I’m not a strapped to a desk guy. I see young folks tied to their cell phones sharing their world on-line. Blink – a light went on. Lets take facebook and twitter to a new level.

Random thoughts + the power of the internet + a system to get things done + social media. Sounds like a winner.

Here’s the system; David Allen’s book says that stuff that comes into your world should be examined to determine if it is actionable. If not, it should be trashed unless you think that it may be useful some day, in which case it should be filed for easy retrieval. If it is actionable, you need to determine what the next action would be to move this toward completion. If that action can be done in less that a few minutes, then do it! Otherwise, delegate it or defer it to the appropriate time. If you delegate it, you better have a BF file to follow up. If you defer it, set up a reminder to tell you when to take care of it. That’s a pretty awesome model.

If you want to learn the nuts and bolts of the system, you can buythe book on Amazon.

If you want to learn how to apply it in real life, check this web site. Never forget that random thought and use a great system to make it happen!

The site is not yet compete. One thing I’ve learned is not to hold a good idea back while you perfect it. Let it evolve. So here it is. Feel free to give it a try!

Norm Bain

www.normanbain.com

Norm www.normanbain.com

Visual Management Meets the check sheet

Having grown up in the maintenance arena, checklists are a way of life. Mobile equipment requires a walk-around check prior to use. There are periodic inspections on dozers, trucks, graders and loaders with 250 hour, 500 hour and 1000 hour intervals. Fire extinguishers and equipment need to be inspected. This creates a mound of paper to be filed and tracked.

When I went to work in automotive, visual management was king. Cards describing each of the tasks performed in station hang on a peg board and appear RED at the start. As each task is completed, the cards are flipped to the GREEN side. Walking past the station, we have a clear visual indication from the board of the status of the build – just by observing how many RED cards had turned GREEN at a glance. At the completion of all the tasks, a new unit arrives in station and the process is repeated.

This RED/GREEN indication can be carried forward to a monthly calendar that shows the status of defects as the month progresses. Good days are GREEN and not so good days are RED. This visual indicator has been the starting trigger for many valuable discussions and learnings in the Gemba (where the work is done).

In the restaurant industry, I wondered how an opening and closing checklist could be created using this philosophy. In the hotel industry, could room housekeeping checks be verified on a tablet and recorded using this RED/GREEN visual indication? Could the daily liquor counts be verified the same way?

The world is full of check lists – how can we simplify the process. Can we combine hand held technology with visual management and create a checklist application?

If your world is as full of checklists as mine, have a look at www.thechecklist.ca

Any other apps that you've run across to manage check lists?

Norm www.normanbain.com