During my time studying I have experienced problems with planning my studies in a specific course, and have thus not been able to reach the goals that I sat up for myself.

The cause is that I have never been able to get an overview of the work load that I have had and therefore never been able to estimate how much time I needed to study and how I should allocate my time for the various courses.

With lean thinking (jit and jidoka), I have been able to create a visual overview of my studies and with thus been able to estimate how much time I need to spend on each of the courses to be able to reach the goal that I have set up for each course.

If you want inspiration to try to create something similar for the planning of you studies, you can take a look at my planning table. It is in Swedish [apologies for my English speaking readers] but I think you will understand the concept.

Applying lean on myself

There are two reasons why this concept is named LeanOnMyself . The first reason is very straightforward; it is a concept packaging knowledge and experience regarding how lean can be applied on your personal life. The term “lean” in this context comes from the original definition of lean production, which was coined in 1988 by John Krafcik in an article “Triumph of the Lean Production System” published in the Sloan Management Review. Krafcik used the term lean metaphorically (synonym to thin, slim, trim, etc) in order to contrast two types of production system towards each other; the robust vs. the lean. Ford had a robust production system with advanced machines and high levels of inventory where the intention was to maximize capacity utilization. In contrast, Toyota had a lean production system with simple machines and low level of inventory where the intention was to maximize process flow. I however think the “lean” term can be a little bit misleading – especially when applying lean in a service context – since the philosophy is not about being “lean” (thin, slim). It is about continuously keeping focus on what resources and activities that are needed in order effectively and efficiently to fulfil the need of the customer (process flow).

In conclusion, LeanOnMyself is about applying lean on myself, which means to continuously keep focus on what resources and activities that are needed in order effectively and efficiently to fulfil your personal needs.

Leaning on myself

The second reason why the concept is called LeanOnMyself is more philosophical and it represents the intention of the whole concept; to lean on yourself. To clarify, the concept is NOT about “lean on me” which would indicate that someone is leaning on you. It is neither about “lean on you”, which would indicate that you could lean on somebody else. LeanOnMyself is about leaning on yourself. To build and develop your inner strength. To continuously develop your  consciousness, awareness, confidence, competence, capability, etc. regarding how to manage your own life.  It is about always learning about your own needs and developing your inherent resources in order to fulfill that certain need.

In conclusion, LeanOnMyself is about leaning on youself, which means to develop personal resources that always deliver value to yourself.

Toyota is the largest car manufacturer in the world. It outperforms its competitors in terms of quality, profitability, efficiency, growth and environmental aspects. For decades, scholars around the world have tried to unlock the secret of Toyota’s success by describing its production system. A range of management concepts, such as Total Quality Management, Kaizen, Operational Excellence, World Class Manufacturing, Lean Production and the Toyota Way, have been developed with the aim of extracting and packaging Toyota’s manufacturing know-how.

Service-oriented concepts have also been launched, including lean service, lean healthcare, lean banking, lean accounting, lean management, lean administration, lean start-ups and lean retail. The common denominator among all these concepts is the combination of process efficiency and customer focus.

Toyota has always stated that the secret of its success is its culture: “We do not produce cars, we produce people”. Toyota argues that its “evolutionary learning capability” is at the heart of its philosophy. A central question is how this learning capability can be transferred into more dynamic and fast-moving industries in which operations are non-repetitive and customer needs are unpredictable. How “lean” can a service organization be? How can professional service organizations, such as law firms, management consulting firms and investment banks, adopt the lean philosophy and become learning organizations themselves? How quickly can a start-up develop a continuous learning capability?

A burgeoning research area is how Toyota’s know-how regarding efficiency, improvement, learning and growth can be applied to the behavioural patterns of individuals whose intention is to increase personal efficiency in combination with work-life balance. How can an individual achieve personal evolution and improve his or her productivity each day? How is it possible to apply lean to yourself?

LeanOnMyself.net is a platform on which individuals publish short articles exploring how lean can be applied to their everyday life. The intention is to generate knowledge about “how” personal productivity (minimizing input and/or maximizing output) can be increased within the following value-adding areas:

PROFESSIONAL AREAS:
- My work (earning money)
- My studies (education and training)
- My administration (e-mail and other admin)

PRIVATE AREAS:
- My home (shopping, cooking, cleaning, laundry, bills, errands, etc.)
- Me time (time for yourself and your interests)
- You time (time for family and friends)
- LOM time (Time for LeanOnMyself activities)

PERSONAL AREAS:
- My diet (eat, drink)
- My sleep (sleep, rest)
- My workout (physical exercise)
- My health (physical, phycological and mental health)

Welcome!

Niklas Modig
Stockholm School of Economics
niklas.modig@hhs.se
+46 (0)70-666 1991

http://www.hhs.se/se/Search/Person/Pages/Person.aspx?PersonID=1134