Looking at it backwards

Tuesday insights ...

I spent the long weekend reading a new book. May long weekend lived up to its reputation - rain, rain, rain. So while everyone declared "movie day" and headed to the big screen in the basement, I got comfortable on the couch with the kindle reader on the ipad.

An interesting quote from Aristotle in this book stood out in my mind -

the mark of an educated mind is being able to entertain a thought without adopting it.

That thought adequately described this book. Lots of ideas to challenge the mind - perhaps a few to adopt.

For years I've been advising folks that the best place to get started is by just doing something - like the Nike moto, Just do it. The deeper meaning here is that you will discover a way to solve your problem by simply jumping in and working on it. Many get stuck in analysis paralysis and they never get to actually working on the problem.

Well, it turns out there is a "Do Something Principle". This principle says that action drives inspiration and inspiration drives motivation.

That sounds backwards. Most of us commit to action only if we feel a certain level of motivation. And we feel motivated only when we feel emotionally inspired. If you want to accomplish something, but you don't feel motivated or inspired, you're screwed.

Turns out that's just wrong. If you want to learn to play the piano, but are not inspired to take lessons or lack the motivation to practice, just play. The more you play, the more you become inspired to learn. And that inspiration motivates you to practice and take lessons.

If you're trying to write a book, but you have writers block, just start writing stuff. The simple act of writing will inspire great thoughts and motivate you to get to work on the book.

It seems counter intuitive - even backwards, but it works. And that is the premise in this book - that the reason we don't get to where we want to be is that we are working at the wrong stuff and looking at things the wrong way.

So just do it. Get started on what it is that you want to do. By getting started, you'll be inspired to create a way to make what you want a reality. It all starts with taking action.

Want more information about this? Send me an email and I'll tell you where to get this book I'm reading.

//Norm

Does Lean Not Work?

So I did this quick Google search "lean does not work" - 3.9 million results. It seems it is not working. Or at least people are talking about that.

When you dig deep, there are really only a few companies that can be considered lean. Many that embark on a lean journey seem to dabble with the tools, when it is convenient. The effort fades with time.



What most fail to recognize is that lean is a philosophy, not just a bunch of tools. And most leaders either do not understand its value or do not have the patience and discipline to implement it.

Slow, steady continuous improvement does not lead to immediate recognition, quick promotions or soaring share prices. It's no silver bullet solution. Successful implementation requires something that is very rare in both people and organizations: constancy of purpose.

Click to continue reading

Lean On Me

When I was a young boy, my Mom taught me how to ride a bike. At first I was terrified … "Don't let go".



She held the back of my seat and walked along beside me. Then, as time went on, she started letting go. Right before I would fall, she'd grab the bike to steady me.

Then one day, she just let me fall.

Here's Why ...

Norm
normbain.com