What is a Good Life?

By Pascal Dennis (bio)

Plato, Socrates and Aristotle asked this question 2,500 years ago. Both eastern and western philosophy is largely the search for an answer.

Clayton Christensen, author of The Innovator's Dilemma, Harvard professor, and classic hyper-achiever is raising the same question.

(Quite a conversion, no? Master of the universe to philosopher. Good on you, Clayton.)

In a recent interview, Dr. Christensen remarks that he is struck by how badly the lives of his fellow hyper-achievers have turned out.

Messy divorces, estranged kids, and even, in some cases, fraud and imprisonment.

Can Lean principles help to answer this most important question? I believe it can.

Lean thinking is anchored in standards -- images of how things should be.

Values are standards. Integrity entails adherence to one's personal standards.

Those of you kind enough to read my books may have noted an emphasis on the Cardinal Virtues.

Prudence, Temperance, Courage and Justice, are, of course, standards of behavior.

Low-down, miserable, tricky, treacherous beings such as us have a hard time living up to them.

But we have to try, and in doing so we partially succeed -- and that makes all difference.

So what is a good life? I'd say a good life entails having good values, and trying to live up to them.

Thanks Dr C. for raising the question.

Best regards,

Pascal




In case you missed our last few blogs... please feel free to have another look…

All Systems Must Support Humanity – Including Lean
To Learn Corporate Strategy, Study the Military Masters
Reflections on Deploying Improvement Strategies
Hubris and Ethics

What is Courage & How does it relate to True North?

By Pascal Dennis (bio)

Let me build on my earlier blog on Lean, Leadership & Ethics

The ancients defined Four Cardinal Virtues:

Prudence, Temperance, Justice and Courage.

Courage -- the capacity to overcome fear -- is perhaps the most admired.

In Getting the Right Things Done, I defined True North, our strategic and philosophical purpose, as follows:

"Something for the head, something for the heart..."

How does courage relate to True North?

Breakthrough -- transcendent, enduring achievement -- requires all the Cardinal Virtues, and courage most of all.

Courage, like True North, entails head and heart. Courage without the head is simply foolhardiness.

Courage means you understand the risks, and do it anyway.

Is courage a virtue under any circumstance? I'd say not. (Is a courageous terrorist admirable?)

Courage is admirable when exercised in the service of others, of a greater good, of True North.

In summary, achieving True North requires all the cardinal virtues and none more than courage.

In fact, all the virtues depend on courage.
Best regards,

Pascal




In case you missed our last few blogs... please feel free to have another look…

Lean, Leadership & Ethics, Part 1
The Work of Leaders
Why is Lean So Hard? – Organizational Elements
The Trouble with Corporate Clichés

What is Courage & What’s It Mean for Strategy?

By Pascal Dennis (bio)

Strategy entails answering two questions: 1) Where are we going?, and 2) How are we going to get there?

Last time I talked about how we might create a pull for achievement, and thereby transcend the limitations of the carrot & stick.

Today I’d like to talk about how we stay the course. Achievement is hard, achievement hurts. How do we sustain our drive in the face of hurtles, hassles and hammerheads?

The ancients defined Four Cardinal Virtues: Prudence, Temperance, Justice and Courage.

Courage is the most admired, and rightly so. (Marcus Aurelius called in Fortitude). Breakthrough – transcendent, enduring achievement – requires all the Cardinal Virtues, and courage most of all. In fact, Courage makes the other virtues possible.

So what is Courage? It is not fearlessness. Courage is the capacity to overcome fear.

Courage, like True North, entails head and heart. [Getting the Right Things Done]

Courage without the head is simply foolhardiness. Courage means you understand the risks, and do it anyway.

Is courage a virtue under any circumstance? I'd say not. Is a courageous terrorist admirable?

Courage is only admirable when exercised in the service of others, of the greater good, of True North.

So what does this all mean for the practicing manager? Define & communicate Purpose clearly. Seek to develop Courage in yourself and your team.

Courage is our fuel. Understand that achievement hurts, and that you will fall down many times.

‘Fall down seven times, get up eight times…’

Best regards,

Pascal




In case you missed our last few blogs... please feel free to have another look…

"How Will You Motivate Your Team, Pascal-san?"
What is a Good Life?
To Learn Corporate Strategy, Study the Military Masters
Why is laughter important in business?

What is a Good Life?

By Pascal Dennis (bio)

Plato, Socrates and Aristotle asked this question 2,500 years ago. Both eastern and western philosophy is largely the search for an answer.

Clayton Christensen, author of The Innovator's Dilemma, Harvard professor, and classic hyper-achiever is raising the same question.

(Quite a conversion, no? Master of the universe to philosopher. Good on you, Clayton.)

In a recent interview, Dr. Christensen remarks that he is struck by how badly the lives of his fellow hyper-achievers have turned out.

Messy divorces, estranged kids, and even, in some cases, fraud and imprisonment.

Can Lean principles help to answer this most important question? I believe it can.

Lean thinking is anchored in standards -- images of how things should be.

Values are standards. Integrity entails adherence to one's personal standards.

Those of you kind enough to read my books may have noted an emphasis on the Cardinal Virtues.

Prudence, Temperance, Courage and Justice, are, of course, standards of behavior.

Low-down, miserable, tricky, treacherous beings such as us have a hard time living up to them.

But we have to try, and in doing so we partially succeed -- and that makes all difference.

So what is a good life? I'd say a good life entails having good values, and trying to live up to them.

Thanks Dr C. for raising the question.

Best regards,

Pascal




In case you missed our last few blogs... please feel free to have another look…

To Learn Corporate Strategy, Study the Military Masters
Why is laughter important in business?
Practical Problem Solving – Proving Cause & Effect
Lean Means Don’t Be a Dumb-Ass

What is Courage & How does it relate to True North?

By Pascal Dennis (bio)

Let me build on my earlier blog on Lean, Leadership & Ethics

The ancients defined Four Cardinal Virtues:

Prudence, Temperance, Justice and Courage.

Courage -- the capacity to overcome fear -- is perhaps the most admired.

In Getting the Right Things Done, I defined True North, our strategic and philosophical purpose, as follows:

"Something for the head, something for the heart..."

How does courage relate to True North?

Breakthrough -- transcendent, enduring achievement -- requires all the Cardinal Virtues, and courage most of all.

Courage, like True North, entails head and heart. Courage without the head is simply foolhardiness.

Courage means you understand the risks, and do it anyway.

Is courage a virtue under any circumstance? I'd say not. (Is a courageous terrorist admirable?)

Courage is admirable when exercised in the service of others, of a greater good, of True North.

In summary, achieving True North requires all the cardinal virtues and none more than courage.

In fact, all the virtues depend on courage.

Best regards,

Pascal

What is a Good Life?

By Pascal Dennis (bio)

Plato, Socrates and Aristotle asked this question 2,500 years ago. Both eastern and western philosophy is largely the search for an answer.

Clayton Christensen, author of The Innovator's Dilemma, Harvard professor, and classic hyper-achiever is raising the same question.

(Quite a conversion, no? Master of the universe to philosopher. Good on you, Clayton.)

In a recent interview, Dr. Christensen remarks that he is struck by how badly the lives of his fellow hyper-achievers have turned out.

Messy divorces, estranged kids, and even, in some cases, fraud and imprisonment.

Can Lean principles help to answer this most important question? I believe it can.

Lean thinking is anchored in standards -- images of how things should be.

Values are standards. Integrity entails adherence to one's personal standards.

Those of you kind enough to read my books may have noted an emphasis on the Cardinal Virtues.

Prudence, Temperance, Courage and Justice, are, of course, standards of behavior.

Low-down, miserable, tricky, treacherous beings such as us have a hard time living up to them.

But we have to try, and in doing so we partially succeed -- and that makes all difference.

So what is a good life? I'd say a good life entails having good values, and trying to live up to them.

Thanks Dr C. for raising the question.

Best regards,

Pascal

What is Courage & What’s It Mean for Strategy?

By Pascal Dennis (bio)

Strategy entails answering two questions: 1) Where are we going?, and 2) How are we going to get there?

Last time I talked about how we might create a pull for achievement, and thereby transcend the limitations of the carrot & stick.

Today I’d like to talk about how we stay the course. Achievement is hard, achievement hurts. How do we sustain our drive in the face of hurtles, hassles and hammerheads?

The ancients defined Four Cardinal Virtues: Prudence, Temperance, Justice and Courage.

Courage is the most admired, and rightly so. (Marcus Aurelius called in Fortitude). Breakthrough – transcendent, enduring achievement – requires all the Cardinal Virtues, and courage most of all. In fact, Courage makes the other virtues possible.

So what is Courage? It is not fearlessness. Courage is the capacity to overcome fear.

Courage, like True North, entails head and heart. [Getting the Right Things Done]

Courage without the head is simply foolhardiness. Courage means you understand the risks, and do it anyway.

Is courage a virtue under any circumstance? I'd say not. Is a courageous terrorist admirable?

Courage is only admirable when exercised in the service of others, of the greater good, of True North.

So what does this all mean for the practicing manager? Define & communicate Purpose clearly. Seek to develop Courage in yourself and your team.

Courage is our fuel. Understand that achievement hurts, and that you will fall down many times.

‘Fall down seven times, get up eight times…’

Best regards,

Pascal

Slow Down and Smell the Roses, Part 2

By Pascal Dennis

Trust you all have had a restful holiday season.

Last time I talked about the importance of Temperance.

Temperance is one of the Cardinal Virtues (and one of my weak points).

I mentioned that my Italian friends and colleagues seem to understand Temperance at a deeper level.

Here for your enjoyment is a piece from Reflections of a Business Nomad that I wrote in Italy. (LINK to PDF)

Best regards,

Pascal

Pascal Dennis Bio

Slow Down & Smell the Roses

By Pascal Dennis

Hi all,

Trust the year is winding down nicely for you all. Trust it’s been a healthy and happy year.

For those that have had difficulty, may 2016 bring you respite and comfort. Hopefully, as King Solomon said, ‘this too shall pass.’

Year-end is reflection time for yours truly – both business-wise and personally.

On the personal side, my reflection is it’s time to slow down and smell time roses.

My years at Toyota and all the years since then have taught me how to work ‘pedal to the metal’ for long stretches of time.

(I’m sure you all know what I mean.) One can achieve a great deal thereby – and we can get closer to our personal and team True North.

But sometimes you have to take your foot off the pedal. Efficiency does not always equal effectiveness.

Doing nothing is often best. The best music includes plenty of rests!

I’ve been lucky enough to work in Italy. My Italian friends and colleagues have a name for it – Temperanza – which we call Temperance.

So here’s to Temperanza in 2016.

Let’s slow down and smell the proverbial roses.

Have a happy holiday season and a blessed 2016.

Pascal

Pascal Dennis Bio

How Will You Motivate Your Team, Pascal-san?

By Pascal Dennis

Last time I shared the above question which a revered sensei posed long ago.

Thanks to Daniel Breston for asking, “So how have you answered the question?”

Here’s what I have learned.

To motivate people to pull together for a long time toward a shared Noble goal, and thereby achieve the extraordinary things:

1. Define a worthy Noble goal – and continually communicate it so people can relax about Purpose and work on the task at hand.


2. Define the ‘banks of the river’ (aka the ‘design space’, how we’ll play the game) and let the team figure out how to get to the sea.


3. Check in frequently and eliminate hassles for the team.


4. Do not launch any top-down ‘Initiatives’ – they are almost always worse than bad.


5. Define personal standards of behavior and try to live up to them

For me this means the Cardinal Virtues – Prudence, Temperance, Courage and Justice.

I hasten to add that, as a lazy tricky dysfunctional mortal being, I am not up to them. But I try anyhow.

6. See the humor in almost all things. Don’t take yourself too seriously. Manage with a ‘light touch’

See above.

7. Give people the benefit of the doubt. We’re all imperfect but most of us try to do the right thing

Remember Puck in ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’: “Lord, what fools these mortals be!”

People deserve a second chance.

8. Take a personal interest in each individual’s growth


9. Reflect regularly and frankly. Be honest with yourself and each team member.

Feedback is the proverbial ‘breakfast of champions’.

Best regards,

Pascal

Pascal Dennis Bio

What is Courage & How does it relate to True North?

By Pascal Dennis

Let me build on my earlier blog on Lean, Leadership & Ethics

The ancients defined Four Cardinal Virtues:

Prudence, Temperance, Justice and Courage.

Courage -- the capacity to overcome fear -- is perhaps the most admired.

In Getting the Right Things Done, I defined True North, our strategic and philosophical purpose, as follows:

"Something for the head, something for the heart..."

How does courage relate to True North?

Breakthrough -- transcendent, enduring achievement -- requires all the Cardinal Virtues, and courage most of all.

Courage, like True North, entails head and heart. Courage without the head is simply foolhardiness.

Courage means you understand the risks, and do it anyway.

Is courage a virtue under any circumstance? I'd say not. (Is a courageous terrorist admirable?)

Courage is admirable when exercised in the service of others, of a greater good, of True North.

In summary, achieving True North requires all the cardinal virtues and none more than courage.

In fact, all the virtues depend on courage.
Best regards,

Pascal

Pascal Dennis Bio

Reflections on Leadership & Ethics

By Pascal Dennis

LPI Leadership & Ethics Series

Last time I gave y'all a home work assignment around the Cardinal Virtues -- Prudence, Temperance, Courage and Justice.

Today I'd like to zoom out..

How are Leadership & Ethics related? Why do they matter?

Some initial thoughts.

Can you have the former without the latter? Will people willingly follow swine for the long term?

Long-time readers will know where I stand.

The leader's job is to get business results -- by building capability & reinforcing values. (Tip of the hat to Peter Drucker.)

Thus, Ethics enables Leadership. Leaders represent what's best in us. We take part in their journey because we believe in what they stand for.

A bastard can be successful, rich, famous - but he's unlikely to be a leader, at least not for long.

(How bitter our disappointment, when a leader we admire turns out to be a fraud...)

What is Ethics? In my view, it's the study of right & wrong.

How do we know one from the other? By the application of Ethical standards.

The Cardinal Virtues are perhaps the best known example.

Temperance, Prudence, Courage, Justice -- all major religions & systems of philosophy contain them.

Lean practitioners will know that a standard is an image of "What Should be Happening" (WSBH).

Thereby, standards make problems visible. "Hey, we're not doing what we're supposed to be doing!"

Of course, we mere mortals are tricky, lazy, dishonest, and rarely live up to the Cardinal Virtues.

In business, following standards minimizes hassle & helps us achieve our goals. In life, doing so also helps reduce human suffering.

But by making the problem visible, they've done their job. At the very least, they blunt our excesses.

Leaders at all levels who lock them in are well on their way.

Next time, what to make of Martin Scorcese's latest -- The Wolf of Wall Street?

Best,

Pascal

LPI Leadership & Ethics Series - What is Courage? (Homework Contest)

By Pascal Dennis

HOMEWORK CONTEST - TOP THREE DRAWINGS WILL RECEIVE A FREE COPY OF PASCAL'S LATEST BOOK! (Details below)

In our recent Leadership & Ethics blog, I introduced the Cardinal Virtues.

Prudence, Temperance, Justice & Courage are enduring standards of ethical behavior recognized by all major religions & systems of philosophy.

Today I'd like to give you all some homework.

HOMEWORK CONTEST!

Here's your assignment.

Draw a picture in answer of the following:

What is Courage?

Have fun! Don't worry if you 'can't draw'.

Stick figures, arrows, circles are fine.

Please send your efforts to Holly Simmons at holly.simmons@leansystems.org

Deadline: January 31

Top three drawings will receive a free copy of Pascal's latest book.

Let's see what happens!

Best,

Pascal

What is a Good Leader?

By Pascal Dennis

One of history's great questions.

Here are some thoughts.

Good leaders define reality for their team, organization, country.

They paint pictures of what is - and what can be -- and these pictures pull us into the future.

Good leaders have deeply rooted values and try to live their lives by them.

Their values are in accord with the great religions. Our readers will be familiar with the Cardinal Virtues by now!

Prudence

Temperance

Courage

Justice

Good leaders have what the ancients called a "tragic" sense of life.

In other words, they understand life is hard, that we only partially succeed and then we die.

But nonetheless, we strive to get better every day because that's what it means to be human.

And yet, good leaders don't take themselves too seriously.

They practice the "light touch", which recognizes the comedy in all things.

Good leaders are tough - they can cut your head off with one sword stroke.

But they act with gentleness.

Best,

Pascal