Tim Autrey's Posts on Practicing Perfection®
Archive for July, 2008
It’s not my job
Jul 30th
I was traveling to Toronto this afternoon.
The direct flight from Bradley to Pearson International on the de Havilland Dash 8 (yes…it’s small) drops you off at the satellite terminal, requiring you to take a shuttle bus to the main terminal.
During my trip on that shuttle this afternoon we were rounding a rather ‘blind’ turn, with chain link fencing on one side and concrete barriers on the other, and came upon a large ladder lying in the middle of the roadway.
Our bus driver scooted past it without [apparently] giving it much thought. There was a van behind us. He didn’t stop either. Two pickup trucks passed us going in the opposite direction, each swerving slightly to avoid the ladder. Nobody stopped to get the ladder out of the road. Apparently, it wasn’t their job.
It looked like quite a safety hazard to me. I was thinking (to myself of course), “SOMEBODY needs to stop and get the FREAKIN’ ladder out of the road!” But at the moment, I was apparently the only one.
So whose job is it to eliminate safety hazards anyway?
Whose job is it to identify and get rid of traps, and waste, and latent organizational weaknesses (what I like to call ’landmines’)?
It’s yours. It’s mine. It’s ours.
It’s evening now as I write this. I hope it was SOMEBODY’S job to get that ladder out of the road before it got completely dark!
For freedom from error,
Tim
The Future of Human Performance: Viral Accountability
Jul 28th
Today’s video introduces the future of human error reduction, safety improvement, and lean / six sigma breakthrough success. It’s forum will be HU-2.0. It’s essence, the “crux of the biscuit” if you will, is…Viral Accountability™
Having watched the video, I hope you now have a feel for where things are headed in the world of human performance, safety in the workplace, and performance improvement initiatives (such as lean).
What should you do now?
First, grab a copy of Leandro Herrero’s book, Viral Change
Second, download the Code of Honor Exercise Guide by clicking here.
Third, if you want to know more about Viral Accountability™, reserve your copy here: Viral Accountability™: When ‘Good Enough’ is NOT an Option.
Fourth, TAKE ACTION. In this HU-2.0 intro video series, you’ve been given some incredibly powerful insights and tools that you can put to use immediately. But the greatest knowledge and most powerful tools are useless if not put to use.
As performance improvement and safety professionals, we have a wonderful opportunity to [literally] make the world a better and safer place.
Let me know your thoughts, questions, and comments using the COMMENTS Section below.
For freedom from error,
-Tim
P.S. Be watching your email and this blog for info on the official release of HU-2.0.
P.P.S If you’d like a page with links to this entire HU-2.0 Intro Series (including links for all of the downloads), click here.
Gray Elephants (How to Change the Culture of Your Organization)
Jul 23rd
QUESTION: How do you get people to do what they should be doing when no one else is watching?
ANSWER: It must come from within. Ultimately, the individual must WANT to do it.
QUESTION: So then, how can you get people to WANT to do it?
ANSWER: By impacting their mindset and perceptions about what “it” is.
QUESTION: How do you do that?
ANSWER: Watch the video.
QUESTION: What does this have to do with changing the culture?
ANSWER: EVERYTHING
***
Here’s the “Cliff’s Notes” Version:
- Within each and every person, thoughts generate feelings and feelings manifest as behaviors.
- Behaviors determine WHAT a person does and HOW he or she does it.
- The way to influence a person’s behaviors is ultimately by influencing their thoughts.
- Your opportunity for influencing a person’s thoughts is through impacting their mindset and perceptions.
- The only effective mechanism for impacting mindset and perception is through the EXPERIENCES you provide to the individual.
So- onto Culture…
- If you take the cumulative behaviors of the individuals who make up your team, department, organization, etc., this creates its CULTURE
- CULTURE DETERMINES RESULTS
In Summary…
- The EXPERIENCES you are providing to the members of your organization are determining their BEHAVIORS.
- These combined BEHAVIORS determine your CULTURE
- Your CULTURE determines your RESULTS
Want more details on three recent SUCCESS STORIES we received from organizations who are Practicing Perfection? Grab them here.
HU-2.0 is on it’s way, and it’s going to change EVERYTHING about how we approach human performance, error reduction, safety improvement, and quality.
In the next couple of days, I’m going to be introducing a whole new piece entitled, “HU Sigma.”
Until then, here’s a great thought ( a quote from John Wesley):
“Do all the good you can,
By all the means you can,
In all the ways you can,
In all the places you can,
At all the times you can,
To all the people you can,
As long as ever you can.”
This is a GREAT business to be part of, isn’t it?
For freedom from error,
P.S. You can view the entire HU-2.0 Introductory Series (thus far), including links to all of the downloads by clicking here.
