Do you want to make lasting changes in your life or business? Do you feel overwhelmed by the prospect and wonder where to start?
Kaizen, the Japanese philosophy of continuous improvement, offers a solution. By focusing on small, manageable steps, you can achieve remarkable results over time. Robert Maurer’s book One Small Step Can Change Your Life outlines six strategies for how to implement Kaizen effectively.
Read more to discover how to make tiny actions lead to big transformations.
Implementing Kaizen
Maurer covers why small actions are key to implementing change, and then he explores how to apply them to your goals. He organizes his advice on how to implement Kaizen into six strategies: question what to do next, visualize your success, act incrementally, resolve minor issues, reward your efforts, and notice subtle details. Let’s look at what each of these Kaizen implementation strategies entails.
Strategy #1: Question What to Do Next
Regularly ask yourself non-threatening questions that lead to solutions. According to Maurer, questions catalyze change by engaging the problem-solving regions of your brain. When you pose a question, your brain takes it as a cue to seek out answers, which shifts your attention away from reasons not to change and toward potential ways you can make change happen. (Shortform note: The problem-solving process Maurer describes aligns with what’s widely known as instinctive elaboration. Simply put, asking a question creates a gap in your understanding. In response, your brain feels compelled to fill this void with an answer and initiates a process to find solutions.)
To apply this strategy, Maurer recommends that you integrate questions into your daily routine. After formulating a question, commit to asking it every day—perhaps as part of your morning routine.
Maurer identifies several areas where non-threatening questions can be particularly effective in daily life, including:
- Overcoming self-criticism: Challenge negative self-talk by asking questions that acknowledge your achievements. For example, if you’re questioning your value at work, shift your perspective by asking, “What’s one contribution I made today?”
- Sparking creativity: Stimulate your imagination by focusing on small, specific aspects of your creative projects. For example, if you’re experiencing writer’s block with a piece of fiction, ask yourself, “What’s one character trait I can explore further?”
- Pursuing happiness: Identify what brings you joy by reflecting on daily activities. For example, if you’re unsure how to enhance your happiness, ask yourself, “What’s one simple thing that brought me joy today?”
- Achieving goals: Break down your goals into actionable steps with targeted questions. For example, if you want to eat healthier, ask, “What’s one vegetable I can add to my meals this week?”
- Resolving conflicts: Shift your perspective in conflicts by seeking to understand the other person’s point of view. For example, if you’re at odds with someone, ask yourself, “What’s one positive intention behind their actions?”
Strategy #2: Visualize Your Success
Asking non-threatening questions will generate ideas for implementing change. But what if you’re hesitant to act on these ideas? Maurer suggests that you mentally prepare yourself to move forward by visualizing the steps you want to take.
Maurer suggests that the key to effective visualization is repetition and gradual progression. He recommends the following process for integrating visualization into your routine:
- Select a task that you feel nervous about and allocate a few seconds each day to visualization.
- During each session, close your eyes and imagine yourself performing the task. Engage all of your senses—see, hear, smell, touch, and feel emotions just as if you were acting in real life.
- Imagine positive outcomes, such as successfully completing the task or receiving a favorable response from others.
- As you grow more comfortable, gradually increase the duration of your sessions. Then, start to weave in challenges, such as potential obstacles or worst-case scenarios, and visualize yourself managing them effectively.
Strategy #3: Act Incrementally
Once you’ve primed your brain for action, it’s time to take steps to make your desired changes a reality. Maurer says that the best way to move forward is to take actions that are so minute and effortless that they seem too trivial to count as progress.
Maurer suggests that asking non-threatening questions (Strategy #1) uncovers specific actions you can take to facilitate the changes you want. To illustrate how small these actions should be, let’s look at examples of initial actions you might take:
- Overcoming self-criticism: After asking yourself “What’s one contribution I made at work today?”, you realize that you contributed valuable insights during a team meeting. You write down this contribution on a sticky note, so you can see and remember it later.
- Sparking creativity: Guided by the question “What’s one character trait I can explore further in my fiction writing?”, you discover an underdeveloped aspect of your character’s Irish heritage. You open up a playlist of traditional Irish ballads for inspiration.
- Pursuing happiness: Reflecting on the question “What’s one simple thing that brought me joy today?” helps you remember how much you enjoyed a quiet cup of coffee in the morning. You set your alarm for five minutes earlier so that you can savor your coffee in peace.
- Achieving goals: Upon considering “What’s one vegetable I can add to my meals this week?”, the enjoyable crunch of broccoli comes to mind. You add broccoli to your shopping list.
- Resolving conflicts: Pondering the question “What’s one positive intention behind their actions?” helps you understand that the other person might be trying to uphold a high standard of work. You note down one positive aspect of their work ethic.
Strategy #4: Resolve Minor Issues
Now that we’ve explored how to identify, prepare for, and initiate small actions, let’s move on to another strategy for implementing change: Resolve minor issues. Maurer recommends three exercises for identifying and addressing minor issues in daily life:
1) Reflect on past difficulties. This will help you detect and respond to current issues that might hint at future challenges. To reflect effectively, start by recalling a major challenge you faced. Then identify any small issues that forecasted the challenge and, based on those issues, consider any steps you could have taken to avert it. For example, if your business failed, one early warning sign might have been a slight increase in product returns. Adjusting your business strategy based on this feedback might have kept your business afloat.
(Shortform note: If you feel tempted to criticize yourself at any point during this step, remember that the goal isn’t to berate yourself for failing to address certain issues, but to increase your awareness of current issues that you can solve. Annie Duke (Thinking in Bets) suggests that you’re more likely to fall into the trap of self-recrimination when you’re under the influence of hindsight bias. This occurs when you know the outcome of a decision, and you’re prone to thinking it was obvious and that you should’ve predicted it. Remember that at the time, the outcome wasn’t clear. It’s only with hindsight that the outcome became clear.)
2) Identify minor mistakes: This will help you address your mistakes, which, in turn, will prevent larger problems from developing. To identify mistakes, think about a recent misstep you made. Consider whether this error indicates a broader problem or has the potential to become a larger issue if left unchecked. For example, perhaps you missed a work deadline, which might indicate bigger issues such as poor time management skills or procrastination habits.
3) Pay attention to warning signs: This will help you anticipate and prevent future challenges. To do this, think of a small annoyance or concern. Consider if it’s an early indicator of a larger problem that you might be able to avoid. For example, during a first date, your partner might continuously interrupt you, indicating a lack of respect. You may decide not to go on a second date to avoid more significant relationship issues down the line.
Strategy #5: Reward Your Efforts
Maurer says that you’ll find it easier to consistently practice the preceding strategies if you use small rewards to fuel your motivation.
He emphasizes that small rewards are more effective than large ones: Large rewards often spark intense pressure to do something really impressive to earn them. This pressure can misdirect your motivation, driving you to focus solely on earning the reward. As a result, once you have the reward, you don’t feel motivated to keep going.
Maurer offers four suggestions for integrating small rewards into your routine:
1) Reward your efforts and your results to stay invested in the process of working toward your goal. For example, if you want to write a book, reward yourself each time you complete a writing session, as well as each time you complete a chapter. (Shortform note: Robbins (Awaken the Giant Within) adds that rewarding yourself immediately after you take action creates a pleasurable association with the action itself, motivating you to continue taking that action.)
2) Keep rewards quick and simple so that you can immediately reward yourself after each step, which will reinforce the connection between the action and the positive feedback. For example, take a five-minute break or have a small treat after you complete the action. (Shortform note: Clear (Atomic Habits) suggests an approach for implementing quick and simple rewards: Schedule your steps in between activities you already find rewarding. By doing so, you’ll effortlessly integrate the reward process into your existing routine.)
3) Ensure the rewards align with your goal. For example, if you aim to save money, rewarding your prudent spending with a lavish shopping spree would be counterproductive. On the other hand, spending an evening with a favorite book or movie would support your efforts. (Shortform note: While Maurer’s advice may seem obvious, many people engage in counterproductive behaviors, otherwise known as self-sabotage. Positive psychology research indicates that people may self-sabotage when they get close to achieving something they want due to their fear of failure.)
4) Personalize the rewards to motivate others to change. For example, if you want to reward your children for keeping their bedrooms clean, you’re more likely to encourage them to continue by thinking about what makes them feel appreciated, such as earning extra playtime. (Shortform note: One way to meaningfully personalize rewards for others is to consider their love language. Gary Chapman (The 5 Love Languages) explains that people understand and express affection and appreciation in one of five ways (words of affirmation, quality time, gifts, acts of service, and physical touch)—and they need to receive appreciation in their own “love language” to truly feel it.)
Strategy #6: Notice Subtle Details
Maurer’s final strategy—notice small details—encourages you to be more mindful of day-to-day moments. Maurer explains that this attentiveness furthers your progression toward your goal by helping you to uncover opportunities for improvement, enjoy the process, and maintain a positive outlook.
Maurer identifies three areas where noticing small details in daily life can benefit you:
- Your peace of mind: If you struggle with anxiety, noticing small details to appreciate can divert your attention and ease your apprehension. For example, if you’re feeling overwhelmed about a looming deadline, noticing the warmth of the sunlight through your window can provide a comforting contrast to your worries.
- Your relationships: If you feel like your loved ones are neglecting you or being distant, noticing the small ways they show care or affection can foster a sense of appreciation and connection. For example, acknowledging your partner’s effort to cook your favorite meal or a friend’s quick text to check on you can reinforce the supportive bonds you share.
- Your career: If you’re aiming to improve professionally or creatively, noticing small details can help you fine-tune nuances that enhance the quality of your work. For example, paying attention to subtle reactions from your clients can lead to crucial insights about their preferences.
