by Shawn | Apr 8, 2021 | Podcast
How do you rest?
In the midst of all that you’re dealing with, all that’s on your plate, all the responsibility, conflict, stresses, deadlines and frustrations… how do you recharge and renew?
Or, maybe a better question is “do you?”
Is it a priority for you?
If it’s not, maybe it needs to become one before you burn out.
No doubt, you probably ask a lot of yourself and you’re usually able to just push through, make things happen and not worry about resting.
I know I’ve been there. And I also know that it almost always catches up to me.
Maybe in the form of foggier thinking or a quicker temper. Tougher time making a decision or loss of focus.
Bottom line is that we were created to need rest.
It’s a natural part of how our bodies work.
This could mean sleep itself or just unplugging, doing something you love, getting energized.
There are a lot of ways you can get recharged. But they don’t just happen by accident.
Are you willing to be intentional and carve out time in your day or week to rest and recharge?
You’ll see so many benefits, personally and in your role in your business.
Thanks for listening to today’s episode. You can shoot me an email at shawn@shawnwashburn.com. Can’t wait to be back with you tomorrow. I’d love to connect: website / LinkedIn / Facebook / Instagram / Twitter
by Shawn | Apr 7, 2021 | Podcast
“The Waiting is the hardest part”
Tom Petty was really on to something here when he wrote those words almost 30 years ago. Side note, wow, that makes me feel old. Other side note, Tom Petty was one of the first concerts I ever attended.
Anyway, back In episode 13, we introduced the concept of the 8 Wastes.
It’s used widely in the Lean Manufacturing arena but is something every business leader should become versed in. The idea is that one of our goals is the elimination of waste in our organization and that those wastes exist in various forms.
Today we’re going to be focusing on the waste of waiting.
When looking at the different types of waste, some are definitely more visible than others. While others lurk more quietly in the shadows.
Waiting is a shadow lurker.
In most businesses, waiting creeps quietly in the dark, while slowly sucking out all the efficiency and productivity.
The first problem with the waste of waiting is, honestly, being able to identify it and label it as waste.
It takes so many forms and is often just accepted as the norm.
Maybe it’s waiting for someone to respond to an email (that should have been a call or an in person conversation or a Slack message).
Maybe it’s waiting to get an answer to a question that could have been answered but the authority to make that call hadn’t been granted to the person doing the waiting.
Maybe it’s waiting on one team member to complete a 2 minute task so that the next team member can complete their 30 second task, when the tasks could have been split up more evenly.
Maybe it’s waiting to read through 500 word essay of an email that could have been summed up in a few lines or not sent out to as many people.
Maybe it’s waiting to hear back from a customer because communication and expectations weren’t nailed down clearly in the beginning or there could have been an easier way to stay in touch with the customer.
There is so much more to dig into with waiting, and I’m sure we will on later episodes.
But how can you start to look deeper at the waste of waiting in your organization today?
The first step is to be able to write down all the steps in a particular process, along with a ballpark for how long they take. Don’t skip a step. Catch everything… including the waiting.
Waiting doesn’t like to be named. It likes to stay anonymous.
The more you can identify waiting in your day-to-day, the more you can begin to question if there is a better way.
So start there today. Pick one workflow or process and map it out… including the time estimates.
When you see waiting time, circle it in red. Pin it down. And begin to reduce or eliminate it, one step at a time.
And then channel your inner Tom Petty, look waiting straight in the eye, and tell it “Don’t do me like that!”
Thanks for listening to today’s episode. You can shoot me an email at shawn@shawnwashburn.com. Can’t wait to be back with you tomorrow. I’d love to connect: website / LinkedIn / Facebook / Instagram / Twitter
by Shawn | Apr 5, 2021 | Podcast
Last week we talked about how asking more questions and getting outsider perspectives can help you find communication issues in your processes or workflows.
Today, we’re going to talk about another tip that is equally helpful.
Mistake proofing.
Whereas last week was about communication gaps or opportunities for instructions to be misinterpreted, today is about putting features in place to make it impossible (or seemingly impossible… people ARE creative after all) to do a step wrong.
In the Lean Manufacturing world there is a term for this: Poka Yoke.
Like with a lot of Lean Manufacturing terms (kanban, kaizen, gemba), it is a Japanese term born out of manufacturing techniques they developed years ago.
Even so, I like it because it’s fun to say. In fact, I’m going to say it again. Poka Yoke.
OK, so what does it mean exactly.
To Poka Yoke or mistake proof something is to basically look at any way that it could be done wrong.
Per our conversation last week, sometimes that can happen because the instructions aren’t defined clearly enough.
But if there is a physical step that must take place, Poka Yoke can look like adding something in to make sure that an item is oriented correctly.
In my realm in manufacturing, we see this all the time. If there is a part being put into a die (which is basically blocks of metal that will cut or form the part), if the part is symmetrical or there is otherwise a chance for it to be misoriented, we will try to add something to the die, the part or both to make sure that it can’t be put in wrong.
Another benefit of Poka Yoke, honestly, is efficiency.
Poka Yoke can allow you to take some mental work out of the equation and streamline your processes.
Imagine picking up a block and placing into a slot. It might be simple, but what if the block has to be oriented a certain way each time?
If, every time you pick up a new one and place it in, you have to look at it closely and orient it, you might be adding a ton of time over the course of a shift.
But what if you could add a feature to the block or the slot that would make it both impossible to put in wrong and also easier to identify when you picked it up. Then, you could grab it, know which way it goes without even looking and place it through.
As you look at your own business, I’m sure you already have a ton of Poka Yoke items in place, but you’ve maybe just never thought of them in this way.
But as you find errors happening or mistakes popping up, that’s a great first place to invest some time and see if you can add some mistake proofing into the mix.
Thanks for listening to today’s episode. I’d love to know what you find out about your mistake proofing. You can shoot me an email at shawn@shawnwashburn.com. Can’t wait to be back with you tomorrow. I’d love to connect: website / LinkedIn / Facebook / Instagram / Twitter
by Shawn | Mar 29, 2021 | Podcast
How Can You Really Get To Know Your Team Members on a Deeper Level?
I’ve talked in the past about how I love digging into how each of us has been designed. Our strengths, love languages, interests, communication styles and more.
And there are a ton of assessments out there that can help you discover more about yourself in these areas.
Today, I wanted to focus on personality types.
Now, I know I’ve taken some pretty extensive and complicated assessments in personality and other areas, but one of my favorites was actually a lot simpler.
It involved four animal types: Lion, Otter, Beaver and Golden Retriever.
I remember learning about it from Dr. Gary Smalley several years ago but you can also find it online now as published by Dr. John Trent from Focus on the Family. I’ll post a link to his article in the show notes. I encourage you to check out the article and then take the assessment for your self, although you may already be able to tell where you land as I describe these.
(Here is the link: https://www.focusonthefamily.com/marriage/4-animals-personality-test/)
Like with many assessments, it is pretty eye-opening to not only learn about yourself but about others. And it also can help explain why certain people really mesh together while others can get on each other’s nerves.
I’ll tell you where I tend to fall with this test, but first let me lay out generally what the four types represent:
Lions are the take charge people, the natural leaders. Assertive, goal-driven.
Otters are the life of the party. They don’t plan, they do. They go with the flow.
Gold Retrievers are the feelers of the group. They tend to think and feel deeply.
Beavers are the detail oriented ones. They plan, are more risk-averse… keep people alive.
Like with any assessment, we are usually a mix of the results, with some being higher than others.
And also like with other results, there are generally strengths and weaknesses associated with any of the results.
So, where do I fall?
Well, to start with I’m a super high Golden Retriever. I’m wired to be more empathetic. I tend to think a lot about how something makes other people feel. I’m loyal, listener, caring, etc.
My second trait would be Otter. I love to be creative, to do new things, very verbal, etc.
Honestly, Lion and Beaver are in there somewhere but they’re a distant third and fourth.
One fascinating thing about these four is that each of them has another one that is like oil to it’s vinegar. They clash.
You can probably guess, but Lions and Retrievers can have difficulty together. As well, Beavers and Otters don’t play as well together as they might out in the wild (I have no idea, but I kind of imagine them being best buds in all kinds of river-related activities)
The Beaver will carefully plan out every detail of an event only to have the Otter show up right at the last minute, ignore the plans and say “he, let’s just wing it!”.
And while a Retriever is carefully thinking through people’s feelings and wondering which direction they should go, the Lion leaps past them, makes the decision and is basically like “hey, let’s get on with it”.
Bottom line is that each person is wired differently.
And in God’s creativity and design, each personality is needed in an organization or team to function effectively.
Got a room of all Beavers? Lots of plans. Not much fun.
Got a room of all Otters. Most won’t be alive for long.
Got a room of all Retrievers? The room will explode from all of the empathy flowing out of it… but not much action will take place.
Got a room of Lions… you can just imagine.
The first key is to understand yourself. Understand your own strengths and blind spots based on your personality.
The second step is to do the same with the people on your team.
So, what about you? As we’ve been talking about these different personalities, I’m guessing there were one or two that resonated with you.
Take a deeper dive into them. See what blind spots you might have been missing or where you’ve misunderstood others of had conflict because of the interaction of your respective personalities.
Ultimately, you want to be able to harness each person’s uniqueness and strengths to help your business thrive and grow.
Diversity is awesome.
Celebrate what makes us each unique and seek to understand those that are different.
Here’s a link to find out more: https://www.focusonthefamily.com/marriage/4-animals-personality-test/) Thanks for listening to today’s episode. I’d love to know what you find out about your personality. You can shoot me an email at shawn@shawnwashburn.com. Can’t wait to be back with you tomorrow.
by Shawn | Mar 26, 2021 | Podcast
Today, we’re going to continue on with our Ode to the Office series.
A few weeks back, in episode 11 we gave a shout out to the Sticky Note.
Today, we celebrate those brave heroes of the office… the ones willing to brew a new pot of coffee when the post has run dry.
Ode To The Coffee Brewer
If, while getting your coffee the pot has run dry
Please don’t run away… there’s no need to cry
For you have been chosen, right here on this spot
To make some more coffee to put in the pot
A nobler task would be hard to devise
For you’ll fuel tired bodies and open closed eyes
With this liquid that’s brewed over dark ground-up beans
You’ll power a workforce to do some great things
So go be that hero! Use bravery and skill
Grab beans and a filter, but try not to spill
Make sure to align well the pot with the basket
And push the brew button, that’s all that we’re askin’
Then fly off anew to do more super deeds
Because of your efforts, so many are pleased
All future brew-takers will collectively shout
“Thank you for brewing when the coffee ran out!”
If you’ve got an office or work topic you’d like me to do an ode on, just shoot me an email at shawn@shawnwashburn.com. I’d love to hear from you and see what we can create.
Thank you so much.
If you’ve been enjoying the podcast, I’d love it if you’d leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts at shawnwashburn.com/apple Thanks for listening to today’s episode.
