Kaizen for your Life - Change for the Better

Nelson dreaming of continuously improving his life as we cruise the Hudson River

Six sigma is a business management strategy used to improve business processes, eliminate waste, and diminish variation. As a six sigma professional I was pondering a term we in the industry use very often: Kaizen.

The Japanese word Kaizen can be literally translated to "continuous improvement" or "change for the better." In business we identify a problem with a process or service and in some instances call for a 'Kaizen Event'. This is usually a 3-4 day event that cranks out a direct solution to a specific problem. Several individuals who have a stake in the process come together and work through solutions and leave the event with an implementation plan to see these changes come to fruition. At the end of a Kaizen event, one thing that is stressed is that no solution is perfect and that we should continue to improve upon this process once our solution is implemented.

This continuous improvement notion is critical to never settle for a current state snapshot of a process. Why should our lives be any different? 

How often do people really improve themselves? I don't mean improving their careers with degrees and certifications or improving their wealth with homes and cars and savings accounts. What do you do each day to improve yourself? 

Do you work on your physical self, pushing your body, practicing your favorite hobby or sport? Do you improve your spiritual self by conversing with your God, helping others, or volunteering? Do you expand your mind each day? Do you challenge yourself to see things from another persons view? Try something that would typically scare you? These are ways to improve yourself. 

Are you on track to find your happiness? Or are you happy being unhappy?

If you are not happy, do something about it! Going down your Facebook feed you can see people complaining about their life, "oh woe is me." If they are miserable enough to put it on Facebook for all to see, you know they are spewing negative rhetoric to all those around them. Nothing is outside your reach. Only YOU have the power to change your situation. Life is far too short to be miserable.

When people ask Nelson and I why we are traveling, we tell them its for personal growth. Its to expand our minds and our spirits. To test ourselves. To go outside that comfort zone, to challenge ourselves, and to get a different perception of life and of the world around us. As I laid in bed the other night thinking of our upcoming trip, I thought, "I can't believe this far out crazy idea is just a few weeks away from becoming a reality!" We took an idea and made it come true. Many of us have ideas that we don't act on. Start acting!

Go for your dreams, make your life a happy one, and from time to time remember to hold a personal Kaizen event. Make some "changes for the better" and act on them. In a few months revisit your improvement plans and improve again. Repeat until true happiness is found.