Hindsight is
20/20. The time period “hindsight is 20/20” is usually used to explain the phenomenon
of having the ability to see issues extra clearly after they’ve occurred. This phrase
is derived from the concept that our imaginative and prescient is normally higher when trying
backward than forwards.
Regardless of many
believing we should always all the time look ahead as a substitute of reminiscing about our previous,
if performed proper, it will possibly turn out to be much less of a downer and extra of a optimistic. If we
solely look again to spotlight the success, quite than the errors, then that
reflection loses its worth. While it’s essential to have a good time the positives,
you’ll be able to solely study a lot from them. If you wish to constantly enhance then
it’s good to take into consideration, the negatives too. That’s the place the actual worth
lies.
For the previous
twenty-five years, I’ve helped to develop strategies for implementing lean
practices in factories and throughout provide chains. Some of the essential
issues I’ve discovered is that self-reflection is as related to lean practices as
steady enchancment. Actually, it’s an integral and important a part of it.
John Dewey, the
American thinker and psychologist, mentioned “We don’t study from expertise.
We study from reflecting on expertise.”
To develop, we
must construct on our expertise. Whether or not it’s to enhance our expertise and
skills, turn out to be extra competent, enhance our efficiency or open ourselves to
new concepts. However as Dewey noticed, we do that by means of reflection, both on our
personal or with others.
In Japan, when
somebody makes a mistake, they are going to profusely apologize, take duty,
and suggest an answer for the way they will stop the identical mistake from occurring
sooner or later. This course of is known as 反省 – or Hansei. Hansei is a core idea of Japanese tradition.
It’s not about disgrace or guilt. Relatively, it’s about admitting there may be room for
enchancment – and committing to that enchancment.
To paraphrase
my buddy, Jon Miller: “Han” means to alter, flip over, flip the other way up.
“Sei” is the simplified type of a personality which means to look again upon, evaluate,
look at oneself. As a local speaker of Japanese “hansei” strikes me as each an
mental and emotional train. With hansei there’s a sense of disgrace, if
that’s not too exhausting of a phrase. This will come from having been requested to do a
lot of hansei as a baby, being instructed “hanse shinasai!” which in English may
be “Study to behave!”
The purpose is,
whenever you do hansei it’s nearly by no means since you are “contemplating previous
expertise” as in the event that they had been pleased reminiscences. You might be confronting brutal info
about your actions and the impression they’d, in hopes that you could study from
this and alter your habits sooner or later.
Toyota is thought
as a studying group, and this is likely one of the the reason why Toyota has
turn out to be so profitable. Hansei has a powerful function in being a studying
group. In Toyota, hansei is usually considered as a precursor to kaizen, and a
pre-requisite to being a studying group. That is greatest defined as beneath
(taken from Toyota-International web site);
Hansei is
each an mental and emotional introspection. The person should acknowledge
the hole between the present state of affairs and the perfect, take duty for
discovering options, and decide to a plan of action. The examination includes a
evaluate of successes and failures, to find out what works and what must be
improved. Hansei results in concepts for kaizen and yokoten, the sharing of greatest
practices from one location to a different.
At every key
milestone in a venture, and at completion, the folks concerned meet to mirror
on their expertise of what occurred. Nonetheless, successes aren’t celebrated. In
true Japanese vogue, they’re handled with humility and modesty. As a substitute, the
focus is on the failures and what may have been higher.
It goes with out
saying, however to carry out hansei accurately it’s good to be sure you’re inspecting
the previous and what precisely went fallacious. Then you have to take into consideration the state of affairs
and the way it may have been improved or averted sooner or later. Be certain that
another person is liable for hansei, and it ought to all the time type a part of your
efficiency administration course of, whether or not it’s on completion of the venture or at
particular evaluate intervals.
The next
construction might be useful for following hansei:
- Pinpoint the issue – There’s no
such factor as being flawless, so determine what the primary concern is. - Settle for accountability – Be certain
the person holds themselves chargeable for what went fallacious. From this,
they will work on areas for enchancment. - Replicate on root causes – There
could possibly be extra to the issue than meets the attention, so dig deep and reveal
any perception methods, habits or assumptions that could be stopping success. - Construct an enchancment plan – Motion
all of the learnings, then you’ll be able to cease the identical downside from occurring
once more.
This isn’t
about pointing fingers, issuing blame or scoring factors. It helps to determine
when issues want to enhance and stop any of the errors that had been made. Above
all, it helps to instill the idea that there’s all the time room and all the time want
for additional enchancment.
Hansei is one
of the keys to kaizen, because the idea itself focuses on enchancment as opposed
to punishment. After we fail, we notice that we have now performed one thing fallacious. So,
it will be important that we are going to study classes from it, and discover strategies to forestall
its recurrence. It’s most essential to
take into account additionally how unhealthy we really feel after we harm others within the crew by not performing
to their expectations.
Why not take
this chance to follow some self-reflection? In what areas do it’s good to
enhance? How are you going to take possession of that want to enhance? What are you able to do
otherwise?
