blog.
Using Lean to Save Time and Money
The Lean methodology is the most common sense approach for saving time and money. Taiichi Ohno, a Toyota executive in Japan in the 1940s and 1950s, developed Lean in the Toyota Production System. This system became the foundation for Lean manufacturing but quickly spread to other sectors. It is a valuable framework for businesses across various industries. Lean’s core concept is maximizing customer value while minimizing waste.
The Evolution of Ideas: Tracing Themes Across My Trilogy
Pursuing a fulfilling and purpose-driven life, I embarked on a transformative journey, writing three insightful books that have shaped my understanding of wealth, time, and productivity. Each book in the Beyond Success series—Considerations in Making Money, Acquiring Time, and Lean Productivity and Efficiency—has played a pivotal role in moulding my perspectives and influencing how I approach these crucial aspects of business and life.
Why Lean?
In some respects, saying businesses must adapt to constant change and evolving market dynamics sounds like a broken record. When haven’t businesses had to adapt to change to remain competitive? Change is inevitable.
However, the saying seems more relevant today because technological change seems unprecedented. Regardless of how you approach the saying, one thing is certain: businesses that don’t continuously adapt will not thrive. Thus, I am a big proponent of lean methodology because it makes sense.
Efficiency and Productivity - Why They Matter
My previous blog dealt with productivity, a vital concept in achieving goals and, ultimately, leading to a fulfilling life. However, it may surprise you that efficiency is also a paramount concept permeating nearly every aspect of our lives. From how we manage our time to how businesses operate and even how nations develop—it all hinges on efficiency. It represents the ability to accomplish tasks, processes, or objectives with minimal waste of resources, be it time, energy, or materials.
Productivity: What’s in it for You?
Productivity is a term that resonates deeply in personal and professional spheres of life. It is the key to achieving goals, realizing ambitions, and, ultimately, leading a fulfilling life. This article delves into why productivity is crucial for individuals and organizations. It explores three practical ways you and your organization can incorporate productivity into your daily routines.
The People Problem
Much has been written about good and bad leadership and, specifically, how good leaders build and promote thriving organizations, while bad leaders quickly kill any progress.
I recently had an experience with bad leadership (really bad leadership!) and saw firsthand how bad leadership was made worse by the organization’s own people – the very assets that organizations hold dear. While poor leadership is one thing – and there are ways to manage this issue – the organization’s assets – its people – can sometimes do more damage to the organization than its inept leaders.
In an organization where I was recently involved, here is what I observed about its people…
Learning at Work
How is your work day going? What have you learned from your job, from your peers? If you aren’t learning at work, how rewarding is your job, really? In addition to working to maintain a satisfactory standard of living, informal learning at work adds to an individual’s work satisfaction.
Drugs and Workplace Productivity
Productivity doesn’t just happen. It takes focus and sustained effort to accomplish work tasks. However, the amount of focus and effort varies, depending on the difficulty of the task.
The opposite is also true. That is, non-productivity does “just happen.” It is so easy to be non-productive – that’s why many of us can slide into a weekend of rest and relaxation without any effort!
But while at work, it is important to do our best to be as productive as possible. And in order to do that, it is equally important to respect our bodies and not use substances that can inhibit our work performance. Ever.
Capitalizing on Strengths
Do you feel “stuck” in a job? Even before the workday is done, can you hardly wait to get out of the office? If so, you may be in the wrong job.
Feeling stuck may be a sign that you are not using your strengths on the job. If you aren’t using your strengths, resentment builds and frustration ensues. Not only that, you are not being productive on the job – think “deadwood” and you’ll get the idea! Let me explain…
Best Time Efficiency Hacks for the Generations
How do you save time? This depends on who you speak to and their age. Each generation has an affinity for different efficiency tools and techniques.
Improving Productivity by Working from Home
Does working from home improve productivity? A Stanford University study of a Chinese travel agency concluded that it does.
Overpowering Boredom
Many people experience boredom, but did you know that there are different types of boredom? And that each of us usually experiences a specific “type” of boredom consistent with our personalities?
The Competitive Edge
What’s your competitive edge? What makes you or your business the “one” to beat?
If you’re like most businesses, you probably say that you’re good at what you do or that you’re better than anyone else in your craft. That’s all well and good, but why should clients care?
The Lightness of Black Friday
According to Kevin Roose of the Daily Intelligencer, Black Friday is “a nationwide experiment in consumer irrationality, dressed up as a cheerful holiday add-on.”
It's hard to disagree with Kevin's assertion!
Service - Now!
When you’re in line waiting for service, how long is too long?
Studies show that on average, waiting more than three minutes is too long. And customers that wait more than three minutes? There is a strong likelihood that they are dealing with the only available service provider. If customers have choices, they will leave.
This is not good news for providers of service.
Six Steps for Achieving Quality
We all intuitively understand quality. It’s that “something” that makes us appreciates a product or service; but describing that “something” can be difficult.
From a customer’s perspective, quality is what the customer is willing to pay for. From the organization’s perspective, quality relates to a product’s or service’s conformance to specifications. And these specifications are not only according to what the organization prescribes, but they also relate to the customer’s expectations.
Types of Clients
Let’s face it. There are clients and then there are clients. The great clients (or customers) are those that are ready, willing, and able to work with experts to achieve organizational efficiencies.
And then there are clients who fall short on anything from initial meeting to following through with an expert’s recommendations – these latter clients are wasting not only the expert’s time, but their own, as well.
As experts in our various fields of work, we have all run into a variety of clients. Here are some of the more common types – if you’re a client, maybe you see yourself in one or more of these descriptions:…
Value and Billable Hours
Why do companies and individuals still insist on billing for services “by the hour?” If you are tracking billable hours, you are not being efficient. And, even worse, you are not providing the best possible service to your customers.
When companies focus on billable hours, it may be to the exclusion of other important activities, like building capacity to better serve customers.
Government Spending: A Cause of Inefficiency
We often hear that government is inefficient:They spend too much, they take too much time to provide services, they do not provide quality services, they have too many checkpoints, and so on. But who or what is government? Are employees not the heart of any organization?
Contrary to popular belief, employee performance is not the problem when it comes to efficiency. There are many very industrious and efficient employees in any industry, including government.
The root of inefficiency in government relates to money. More specifically, because governments do not spend their own money, inefficiency can be a serious problem.
Open Office - Productivity Enabler or Slasher?
Today, about 70 percent of employees in the U.S. work in open offices. Despite this high number, you may be surprised to learn that the open office concept is not the be-all and end-all for everyone. Success depends on personal work styles and personalities and how well workers can adapt to the high level of distraction served up by open offices.