The Toyota Production System is known for kaizen, where all line personnel are expected to stop their moving production line in case of any abnormality, and, along with their supervisor, suggest an improvement to resolve the abnormality which may initiate a kaizen. This feature is called Jidoka or "autonomation". This book is regarding how the Kaizen way of life has changed the author's life in general and how it is applicable to our lives as well. Hanebuth, D. (2002). Rethinking Kaizen: An empirical approach to the employee perspective. In J. Felfe (Ed.), Organizational Development and Leadership (Vol. 11, pp. 59-85). Frankfurt a. M.: Peter Lang. ISBN 978-3-631-38624-8.

Jorgensen, F., Boer, H., Gertsen, F.: Jump-starting continuous improvement through self-assessment. Int. J. Oper. Prod. Manag. 23(10), 1260–1278 (2003)What impact do our continuous improvement efforts create? Individuals tend to give up on implementing kaizen because they do not instantly see or feel the difference their seemingly small actions make in the whole company. The A3 report or 8D report are ideal documents to share with employees because it monitors the performance and measures the effectiveness of implemented changes and is proven to effectively communicate the impact of kaizen initiatives. As a general rule, continuous improvement done right leads to positive, lasting results that significantly add value to the entire organization. Keep the most impactful solutions in mind to know which actions the company needs to stop, start, and continue. It may be helpful to break up the category of your career into parts – such as research, administration, or networking – and write down what you love or hate about each. Kniha mě rozhodně motivovala a s prvním zlepšováním jsem již začala. Po přečtení mám pocit, že bych potřebovala začít ve všech výše zmíněných oblastech, ale jak se dočtete, vše hezky pozvolna a pomalu, ať si na změny můžeme zvyknout. Věřím, že tentokrát se mi podaří svůj zvyk udržet a vytrvat.

Prashar, A.: Redesigning an assembly line through Lean-Kaizen: an Indian case. TQM J. 26(5), 475–498 (2014)

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For example, in the first section of Kaizen, Blinkist uses this metaphor for how powerful the Japanese productivity philosophy can be.

Of all the virtues we can learn, no trait is more useful, more essential for survival, and more likely to improve the quality of life than the ability to transform adversity into an enjoyable challenge.” The first stage of Kaizen begins by making an inventory of your habits. Make a list of the significant sections of your life on a piece of paper. You should then examine all areas of your life to see if you are doing all you can to enjoy them. There will be different priorities in everyone’s life, but categories can include home health, career, and relationships. Ask yourself whether you’re doing everything possible to achieve happiness in each area. Ma, J., Lin, Z., Lau, C.K.: Prioritising the enablers for the successful implementation of Kaizen in China: a fuzzy AHP study. Int. J. Qual. Reliab. Manag. 34(4), 549–568 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1108/IJQRM-12-2015-0173When your goals are properly aligned, there is much joy to be had in any challenge you choose to conquer. This book isn’t strictly about kaizen, but it is about self-improvement and taking little steps towards achieving your goals — or choosing yourself, As James calls it. Maintaining momentum and ensuring continuous improvement is essential in Kaizen. Organisations should establish mechanisms to sustain the practice, such as regular review meetings, performance evaluations, and sharing success stories. Encouraging a culture of learning, celebrating achievements, and recognising employee contributions can foster a sense of ownership and motivation to continuously improve. There is nothing that can’t be done. If you can’t make something, it’s because you haven’t tried hard enough.” Sakichi Toyoda, Inventor of the world’s first non-stop shuttle change automatic loom A Starting Point for Continuous Improvement

Suárez-Barraza, M.F., Dahlgaard-Park, S., Ramis-Pujol, J., Estrada-Robles, M.: Applying Gemba-Kaizen in a multinational food company: a process innovation framework. Int. J. Qual. Serv. Sci. 4(1), 27–50 (2012) Dinero, Donald (2005). Training Within Industry: The Foundation of. Productivity Press. ISBN 1-56327-307-1. To do things kaizen you make incremental changes, e.g. 1% steps of improvement at a time. In other words, no drastic changes. Kaizen is almost a philosophical method where processes that you focus on grow naturally with intention. Intention is the key. What you focus on improves and you should declutter and get rid of objects and thoughts that drain you of energy.

What is Kaizen?

Leite, H., Gruber, T., Hodgkinson, I.R.: Flattening the infection curve – understanding the role of telehealth in managing COVID-19. Leadersh. Health Serv. 33(2), 221–226 (2019) Business leaders can use Kaizen to improve customer and staff satisfaction. If you listen to the needs of both the people who work for you and those who buy your products then you’ll have happier staff and customers. This can also lower some business costs as you won’t waste time on things that aren’t important – and time is money!