Success through Kaizen teaches us that changing your life isn’t an overnight process. How do you go about it? The answer, hopefully, is obviously a resounding “no!” The philosophy underscores the significance of gradual and continuous improvement, emphasizing the power of consistent, small steps over time.
Changing even a single aspect of your life takes time, dedication, and effort. Humans are creatures of habit, and once those habits have become deeply ingrained in our psyche, a physical phenomenon can actually be witnessed within the brain. We’ll get to that later in this book.
Despite many of us intuitively knowing all this, we still seem to think that we can make huge changes to our lives on a whim. If you’ve ever told yourself that you are going to “start a new training program tomorrow” that involves going to the gym four times a week and eating half your current caloric intake, well then, you’re guilty.
There is a better solution. It’s called Kaizen. This is the Sino-Japanese word for “improvement,” and it has adapted to represent a specific approach to improvement: one where you make tiny improvements, take tiny steps toward the goal that you are working towards.
As the old saying goes, even the longest journey starts with a single step. And what is a thousand-mile hike other than lots of single steps?
When you look at challenges this way, anything becomes achievable.
In this article, you will learn how to take this concept and squeeze it for everything it is worth, whether it’s your relationships, your fitness, your health, your business, or anything else you are looking to improve. Kaizen will help you get there.
Get ready to change your life for the better, starting with just a single step.
Why We Need Kaizen
Before delving into the details of Kaizen and its effectiveness, consider the alternative, a common yet misguided approach to self-improvement: attempting to change everything at once. Many can relate to the scenario of starting an ambitious training program, like working out four times a week and drastically cutting caloric intake. Have you found yourself in a similar situation? However, this approach misunderstands human psychology and our daily realities. If you’re currently out of shape, it’s likely due to insufficient exercise and poor eating habits. Why? Probably because you’re too tired and demotivated.
Imagine coming home in the evening, feeling exhausted, lacking the energy or willpower to exercise—a situation anyone can understand. Do you expect to suddenly summon the energy to transition from zero workouts to four times a week?
Consider the logistics for a moment: driving to the gym, showering, changing, then driving home, and preparing for the next workout. That one workout now takes about two hours, dedicating a new 8 hour block to your routine. Realize that’s a full working day, including lunch. Going from nothing to eight hours—can you see the problem?
You’re also expecting to endure the cold, stay organized, run and sweat in front of strangers, and sacrifice your favorite TV time. Rather than learning one new habit, you’re attempting to acquire multiple habits while unlearning others.
And that’s not all—burning 8 extra hours of energy while planning to consume 500 fewer calories? Working twice as hard with half the energy intake—it’s quite a plan.
The Neuroscience
As if the challenge weren’t daunting enough, what you may not realize is the significant influence of your neuroscience working against you in such situations.
Our brains are highly plastic, meaning they can adapt and physically restructure based on our behaviors. While this adaptability seems beneficial for forming new habits or breaking old ones, it presents a challenge. The brain strongly adapts to repeated stimuli, following the rule that neurons firing together wire together. Repetitive actions become linked in the brain over time.
With each repetition, these connections strengthen and become myelinated, making signals travel faster. The associations become automatic, requiring minimal conscious thought. Changing such deeply ingrained connections is a monumental task, often approaching impossibility.
Attempting a wholesale change across multiple habits simultaneously is, in essence, futile.
Enter Kaizen, a powerful and transformative tool addressing this challenge.
How it Happens
Now, you might be wondering how this phenomenon occurs. When laid out, it becomes evident that making colossal changes to your routine is unlikely to be effective. If that’s the case, why do we persist in declaring that we’ll “change our lives starting tomorrow”?
Several reasons contribute to this. First and foremost, it’s more appealing. The prospect of hard work or a time-consuming process is unattractive. On the contrary, the idea that “everything can change” in a single day is immensely satisfying, leading us to get caught up in this notion.
Another factor is the influence of the media. Advertising agencies have a vested interest in promoting a one-and-done approach to self-transformation. Gyms, for example, want to sell memberships, advocating for an all-in commitment. They encourage us to invest in workout equipment, expensive protein shakes, and year-long memberships. The subsequent guilt we feel as money is deducted from our accounts every month doesn’t align with improved fitness or strength.
Kaizen in its Original Context: Business
Transitioning from its origins as a business term, Kaizen has become widely embraced by the self-improvement community, appealing to those aspiring to increased happiness, fitness, wealth, and wisdom. Understanding its roots in the business realm provides valuable insights, aiding in the application of this concept to personal growth.
For business owners, the relevance of these principles extends to practical utility.
The Origin of Kaizen
The Japanese term “kaizen” means “improvement” or “change for the better.” Specifically, it refers to continuous improvement through small changes.
Initially rooted in the business methodologies of Toyota, kaizen gained prominence in the corporate world. It has since been successfully adapted by various organizations and later embraced in the self-improvement field. The book “Toyota Way” delves into the detailed application of kaizen, contributing to its canonization.
However, in the realm of self-improvement, a bit of artistic license has been applied to the use of kaizen. Some self-help books oversimplify it, while others misinterpret core concepts.
Kaizen is fundamentally about focusing on the minutiae, making small changes that accumulate into significant differences. Contrary to some interpretations suggesting daily habits like flossing, this deviates from the original meaning.
While various forms of kaizen will be explored in this book, addressing its strictest business interpretation provides an understanding of the “official” version—a potent and often overlooked approach.
Types of Kaizen
In its original business context, Kaizen is often categorized into two terms: flow kaizen and process kaizen.
Flow kaizen involves analyzing the entire value stream or workflow to identify opportunities for improvement. While small changes at each stage may seem inconsequential individually, their cumulative impact can lead to significant results.
On the other hand, process kaizen focuses on the concentrated improvement of a single process. Constant small enhancements are made to optimize that particular step.
Kaizen is often described as “bottom-up,” starting with fundamental levels and making incremental changes. For instance, cleaning the floors may seem basic, but it can improve safety, staff morale, and operational efficiency. This, in turn, enhances customer satisfaction, contributes to more funds, boosts morale and research, resulting in better products and a stronger brand image.
Simplify and Eliminate Waste
Furthermore, Kaizen involves eliminating waste, a crucial aspect in optimizing processes.
In any given process, identifying and eliminating waste can significantly increase efficiency and bring about transformational changes for a business. For example, in the context of a daily article-writing workflow for a blog:
- Write the article.
- Upload it to WordPress.
- Read through and fix typos while formatting.
By combining steps and reducing redundancies, you save time and effort. Suppose this saves 10 minutes per article, and you upload 10 articles per day. That’s 100 minutes reclaimed, potentially allowing for an additional article and an extra $30 in daily earnings.
Kaizen is relentless, constantly seeking ways to remove waste and improve processes. This might involve writing directly into WordPress or batching proofing and formatting tasks to save even more time.
Kaizen practitioners look for various types of waste in a business, such as defects, excess processing, overproduction, waiting, inventory, transportation, moving, and non-utilized talent. While initially more applicable to business, these principles can be immensely powerful when applied to personal processes.
Kaizen Concepts to Consider
Kaizen gains further potency when coupled with two crucial business concepts: force multipliers and automation. This dynamic duo is not limited to business applications; we’ll explore their relevance in personal contexts shortly.
Force Multipliers: These tools enable achieving more in less time or with reduced effort. In business, examples include computers, software, or forklift trucks, significantly enhancing efficiency and output. Used wisely, they save costs and amplify productivity. However, caution is advised, as force multipliers also magnify potential errors. Kaizen becomes vital to optimize systems for scalability, ensuring sustainability as the business grows.
An analogy to throwing a ball illustrates the precision needed for optimal results. Thinking in terms of force multipliers allows increased productivity without escalating costs or time. Before hiring more staff, consider implementing systems to enhance the current team’s efficiency.
Automation: The logical progression from force multiplication, automation involves mechanizing aspects of business processes, from production to marketing. This often entails using software or manufacturing tools with minimal human intervention. However, automated processes carry the risk of magnifying errors. Rigorous monitoring and observation are crucial safeguards in the automation journey.
When expanding operations, incorporating automation into your service is a strategic move. A savvy entrepreneur should continually seek ways to render themselves obsolete, staying future-focused. Beyond increasing output, innovative automation can transform a service into a product, eliminating the need for human involvement.
WordPress exemplifies this concept. Matt Mullenweg and his team successfully automated website-building, turning a service into a product.
The 5S of Kaizen
In business, the 5S for Kaizen—Seiri (Sorting), Seiton (Systematic Arrangement), Seiso (Shining), Seiketsu (Standardizing), and Shitsuke (Sustaining)—have become a shorthand. These principles, initially designed for manufacturing, find application in various business sectors and personal aspects.
Seiri (Sorting): Keep work in designated areas, maintaining organization.
Seiton (Systematic Arrangement): Optimize item arrangement for efficient retrieval, crucial for logistics and storage businesses.
Seiso (Shining): Clean the workplace and equipment to reduce errors.
Seiketsu (Standardizing): Implement standardized processes for repeatability, testing, and improvement.
Shitsuke (Sustaining): Maintain adherence to the previous four S principles, applicable across diverse business types and personal endeavors.
The Opposite of Kaizen: Kaikaku
While Kaizen proves immensely powerful in suitable situations, it’s not a one-size-fits-all solution. Occasionally, processes or flows reach a point beyond salvage—this is when Kaikaku, or drastic change, becomes necessary.
Throwing the old process out and starting anew may face psychological resistance, but sticking to a process should be based on practical reasons, not nostalgia. For instance, if a website worked on for five years fails to gain traction, it’s crucial to rethink the strategy or even consider starting fresh.
Persisting with a failing project drains energy, money, and resources. Successful kaizen involves recognizing the difference: knowing when it’s time for Kaikaku and when it’s time for Kaizen.
Kaizen for Getting Into Shape – Health and Fitness
Having delved into the theory of Kaizen, particularly its applications in business and manufacturing, it’s now time to explore how it can be applied to our personal lives. Let’s start by examining Kaizen in the context of working out.
Microworkouts
The most apparent way to implement the concept of “small changes every day” in health and fitness is to embrace the idea of the “microworkout.” This involves exercising for just a few minutes each day initially. The advantages are significant: it reduces the intimidation factor of workouts, involves committing to a smaller challenge when energy levels are low, and aids in forming a new habit.
Instead of the daunting task of going to the gym four times a week and cutting 500 calories daily, consider committing to 20 press-ups every morning and skipping your morning latte.
Engaging in a brief daily exercise routine offers benefits such as improved blood circulation and slight muscle toning. Moreover, it kickstarts the formation of a new habit.
Transitioning to the formation of habits, it’s worth noting that contrary to the common belief that it takes 30 days to establish a habit, recent research, including a study in the European Journal of Social Psychology, suggests it takes closer to 66 days. Individuals varied in the time it took, ranging from 18-254 days for habits to solidify.
Regardless of the exact duration, the key is that once a behavior has been sustained for an extended period—say, 66 days—it becomes easier to build upon. For instance, transitioning from 20 to 50 press-ups is more achievable after establishing the initial habit. Similarly, adapting to a 50-calorie reduction in your latte makes it more feasible to cut calories from other aspects of your life.
True Kaizen and Getting Into Shape
Is this true Kaizen? Not quite. While the concept of the microworkout has merit, and cutting calories here and there is beneficial, genuine Kaizen for fitness involves scrutinizing your entire routine.
Starting with cutting that latte is a good beginning, but true Kaizen means seeking other small changes to reduce caloric intake. Beyond that, assess your entire lifestyle to identify elements hindering your training or healthy eating habits. Treat your entire routine as one comprehensive “flow” or “process” and strive for improvements.
To shape up, if motivation eludes you, it’s likely a psychological, not physical, challenge. The key is identifying and eliminating psychological and situational blocks. This approach extends beyond fitness and can be applied to various aspects of life.
Recognize that energy and time are finite resources. To enhance health, make your day more efficient to create opportunities for health improvement.
Powerful Changes for Improving Fitness:
What Can Go? Assess your routine and identify areas to cut out, freeing up energy. It could be as simple as skipping a Sunday pub visit or negotiating a work-from-home day.
Where to Fit It In? Consider the best time for exercise, factoring in showering. Efficiently align exercise with your schedule, eliminating the need for extra time.
More Small Fixes: Examine your daily calorie burn and make small, efficient changes. Incorporate movement into your routine, such as walking to the bus stop or using a standing desk. These additions may seem small but lead to significant effects, prompting body adaptations while seamlessly fitting into your day.
The Takehome
The key takeaway is this: your current state of being out of shape likely stems from an overly busy and stressful routine. This signals an inefficient lifestyle with opportunities to reclaim time, energy, and vigor. Finding smarter ways to integrate new activities is a more effective approach to fitness.
Kaizen for Personal Finance
One area well-suited for the Kaizen approach is personal finance. To accumulate wealth, adopt the Kaizen method by making numerous process fixes to your spending habits. Rather than randomly cutting out lattes, begin by creating an accurate and dispassionate budget that reflects your available cash and savings/spending goals.
Creating a More Efficient Budget
Every year, or even every few months, you likely create a budget with the intention of regaining control over your finances. You set spending limits for food, going out, and personal indulgences, but within a few days, unexpected expenses arise, and your budget falls by the wayside. This pattern is not uncommon, but it’s a problem that needs solving. Here are some tips to create a budget you can actually stick to.
Monitor and Improve
When setting a budget, don’t arbitrarily choose spending limits. Instead, track your spending to determine how much you realistically need and identify areas where you can cut costs. Rather than saying you’ll spend $20 less on groceries per week, strategize on how to achieve this, such as buying cheaper items or dining out less frequently. Working toward a specific goal allows for honest assessment of your finances and enables informed decisions to make impactful changes. A clear visualization of your income and expenses is essential for identifying opportunities for savings.
Plan for the Unexpected
Budgets often fall short in addressing unexpected expenses like losing a rail card or misplacing money. A simple solution is to anticipate these unforeseen situations by incorporating a buffer of around $20 into each budget. Over time, assess the average amount lost to such unexpected incidents to refine and optimize your budget effectively.
Limit Your Cash Flow
To prevent overspending, limit the funds in your primary account by setting up a standing order. Transfer a specific portion of your paycheck to a separate account with no overdraft, designated for discretionary spending. This amount aligns with your budget, and any surplus can be carried over to the next month. The process eliminates the need to meticulously track every expense while providing a clear spending limit—exceeding it triggers your card to stop working. While this method illustrates automation, it’s crucial to refine your financial system before automating transfers to avoid potential errors.
Make Rewards
Incorporate rewards into your budget to enhance motivation and consistency. By setting goals, such as saving for a desired gadget, and linking rewards to successful budgeting, you create a continuous incentive. This ongoing motivation increases the likelihood of sticking to your budget. The enjoyable aspect of monetary rewards adds a fun element to the process.
Use Apps
Take advantage of apps like Emma for iOS to gain comprehensive insights into your spending across various accounts. These apps offer smart advice and categorize expenditures, facilitating effective budget tracking. With features covering major banks, creditors, and even PayPal, these tools help set realistic targets and identify areas for micro-improvements. By promptly recognizing spending patterns and receiving warnings when exceeding your budget, you gain better control over your finances.
The Takehome
Kaizen means making smart, small changes to your routine—efficiency and waste reduction are key in managing your finances effectively!
Kaizen for Productivity and Business
It is initially developed for manufacturing. It is a powerful tool for enhancing business productivity. Rather than offering specific changes (as they vary for each person), let’s discuss how to assess and improve your current workflow.
Find the Sticking Points
To enhance your daily productivity, start by noting routine tasks and their time consumption, from computer boot-up to core work activities. Evaluate each task’s duration and identify areas for improvement. Even small adjustments, like speeding up your computer boot time or streamlining tea-making, can collectively save significant time—potentially granting you an extra five hours per day.
Sticking to Your New Rules and Avoiding Errors With Checklists and Flow Charts
To maintain newfound productivity rules and prevent errors, consider implementing checklists and flow charts. Research in healthcare found that doctors, even the most experienced, made fewer mistakes when using precise checklists. Similarly, flow charts efficiently outline situations and offer optimal solutions. Managers and business owners can systemize operations and reduce their integral role in the workflow by incorporating these tools, enabling teams to follow established processes.
Flow Charts for Dealing With Problems
Consider a car repair business as an example. Instead of relying on a mental flow chart to diagnose and solve car problems, document it as an actual flow chart. This empowers less experienced staff to reach the same conclusions as you would. Checklists complement the process, helping them avoid small mistakes as they work on the problem.
By systemizing the workflow, you free up time to focus on your business rather than getting bogged down in the details. The result is consistent and exceptional customer service for every client. If flow charts and checklists fall short, address the problem directly. Otherwise, your business will run smoothly with minimal interruptions.
Life Hacks and Biohacks
Kaizen aligns seamlessly with the concept of “life hacks” or “biohacks” — small lifestyle changes that can lead to significant improvements. While some biohacks may be overhyped or lack real benefits, our aim is to identify and integrate those proven to enhance well-being into our routines. When you feel better, your performance across all aspects of life improves.
Temperature May Be The Key To Good Sleep
Contrary to the common belief that ambient light significantly affects sleep quality, recent research challenges this assumption. Indigenous tribes, untouched by artificial lighting, demonstrate varying sleep patterns, often staying awake after dark. Surprisingly, their consistent waking cue is linked to temperature changes rather than light exposure. Consequently, adjusting your thermostat or opening a window slightly may be a crucial element in enhancing sleep quality, leading to a fresher start to your day and increased productivity.
How To Wake Up On Time Every Time
To achieve more in your life, consider waking up 30 minutes earlier. This simple change grants you an extra 3.5 hours per week for activities like exercise and learning. The key is not to sacrifice sleep but to eliminate the wasted time spent on snoozing.
Contrary to common advice, the hack here involves picking up your phone when the alarm sounds. Disregarding claims about negative hormonal effects and a reactive state of mind, you can turn off notifications and avoid checking emails. Instead, use the bright screen to trigger cortisol production, aiding the waking process. The emotional pull to grab your phone can override tiredness, providing an easier first step toward getting up.
Set your alarm 15 minutes earlier than your desired wake-up time. When it rings, reach for your phone or tablet to read the news. This small, enjoyable step can help you transition out of bed, ensuring you’re ready to start your day in just 15 minutes.
The Best Supplements
Supplements, essential for overall health, fill nutritional gaps often present in our diets. While optimal nutrition is ideal, practical constraints can lead to deficiencies. These supplements offer benefits such as increased alertness, heightened energy levels, and improved health. Incorporating them enhances morning wakefulness, reduces susceptibility to illness, sharpens cognitive function, and improves sleep. This positive shift makes subsequent changes more effective in various activities.
Consider this supplement “stack” to boost mood, brain health, and energy:
- Vitamin D: Morning
- Omega-3
- Magnesium Threonate: Night
- Ashwagandha
- Inositol
- Creatine
- Lutein
- Curcumin
Inspiration Hacks
Lacking inspiration? Struggling to focus on important tasks? Boost your creativity with audio books during chores or walks. Engaging content enhances focus and creativity, unlike mindless TV or Facebook browsing. Be mindful of how you invest your time for a more productive mindset.
Dress to Impress
Dress impacts your life more than you think. Opt for smart clothes to boost productivity and professionalism. When you dress casually, you feel less productive and others may not take you seriously. Invest a little extra time getting ready; it’s a small upfront cost for long-term gains. This simple life hack, exemplifying the concept of Kaizen, transforms the way you feel and how others respond to you.
Intermittent Fasting
Intermittent fasting offers diverse benefits. It aids weight loss and may extend life through autophagy. Additionally, it enhances energy and focus by keeping the body in an alert state. Notably, it saves time spent on breakfast preparation.
Finding Balance
Kaizen focuses on optimizing your workflow and lifestyle for greater efficiency and productivity. However, constantly seeking efficiency may lead to missing out on simple pleasures, like relaxing or socializing. Some self-help advice advocates cutting out such activities, emphasizing continuous grind. We, on the other hand, advocate finding balance for kaizen to truly work.
Input and Output
Balance is key to maintaining inspiration and creativity. Consider yourself an ‘input/output’ machine; films and games aren’t time wasted but sources of inspiration. Taking breaks is essential for recharging—your energy is finite. Socializing is a valuable skill, contributing to success in today’s world focused on ‘soft skills.’ Switching off is a crucial survival skill; the best work often follows a few days off.
Staying Positive
Positivity, persistence, and self-confidence are vital for those pursuing distant goals. Building a supportive network and enjoying hobbies facilitate resilience. Spending time with friends nourishes the soul, fostering optimism and courage to persevere. Without a balanced life, setbacks in business, training, or art can be devastating, risking complete abandonment of your pursuits.
Make the Most of Now
Life is unpredictable, and the future is uncertain. While many strive for a distant vision of success, it’s essential to find balance and enjoy the present. Working towards a goal provides purpose, and the journey is often more fulfilling than the destination. Traditional success can hinder relationships and personal pursuits. Take a moment to appreciate your achievements now; it’s as crucial to your mission as the mission itself. So, don’t feel guilty about taking time off for family or indulging in simple pleasures—these moments are integral to a meaningful life.
Conclusion
To conclude, success through Kaizen is a formidable journey towards personal transformation. Kaizen, when used correctly, it can completely transform your life by helping you to stop wasting time and energy on small things. You can improve your budget, your health, your physique, and your productivity. But remember to take the evening off every now and then too!
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