THE KAIZEN CULTURE
There is an ongoing argument about whether change is good or bad. Why modify things if they’re already doing what they need to do?
What is Kaizen?
The concept of kaizen argues against that. Originating in Japan, Kai means “change” and Zen means “good”. Kaizen is the ideology that things can be continuously improved. The main idea is simple: if you make ongoing, small modifications, then they will eventually add up to a big change, and always for the better.
But what does this all mean? It means that if things are continuously changing, there will never be a standard state of affairs, because things will always be improving. See? Change isn’t all that bad.
Kaizen Applied
Kaizen culture is often applied to businesses and other organisations. If all team members and/or employees are attentive to things that can be improved, gaps will always be bridged.
When I think about kaizen I imagine a staircase that is continuously having steps built up on it. Without everyone contributing a step, you can never rise up and get to where you want to go. However, when people continuously notice that there is a gap in the staircase, the next steps can then be built, and people can carry on with their journey.
Your Own Kaizen Lifestyle
While kaizen is largely used for improving organisations, it can easily be applied to your personal life. What are areas in your life that can be continuously be improved? The key is not to not make one big change every once in awhile, because then it will take a long time for more improvements to happen. However, if you evaluate different parts of your life and do little things to make them better every day, then it will eventually all add up to one big improvement.
The Little Things
Let’s say you have a messy bedroom. There are dirty clothes all over the floor, your bed is unmade, the clothes in your drawers are not folded, and your desk is full of clutter. Yes, you can clean all of it up, put the mess back in its place, and have a clean bedroom again. However, the room is just going to get messy again because you’re going to get lazy and just throw things on the floor.
When you apply kaizen to this situation, you would clean up your room, but you would also continuously improve how you put away the items in your room. If you remind yourself every day to put dirty clothes in the hamper, fold the clothes in your drawers, and keep your papers organised on your desk, then eventually you will stop having a messy room. However, as I said before, it is not about doing one individual clean up. It is about changing your habits for the long term, and this is done by making small changes every day.
How does this relate to shine+? Shine+’s functional ingredients have been shown to combat mental fatigue which will allow you kick start each day with confidence. To clear your head and see what changes you need to make in your life. When you experience mental fatigue, it can be easy to give up and stop making continuous improvements in your life. Remove negative energy from areas in your life that are cluttered, and this reorganisation will fuel positive energy. The improvements you make in your life will help prepare for when it’s your time to shine.
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Words by Sarah Saven
