The road to continuous improvement explained with a simple example by Carlo Scodanibbio http://www.scodanibbio.com the home improver If you consider your house more than just a shelter and a place in which you eat and sleep, in other words if you consider your house a "home", a cosy, warm nest for yourself and your family, probably you will take great care of it, and you will gladly dedicate time, efforts and money to make it even warmer, cosier, more functional and better looking. In fact, you will not just maintain it in its present state, but you will try to render it better and better: you will renew plumbing and electrics in due time; you will paint or polish regularly doors and windows; but you will also add new pieces of furniture or replace some unsuited ones..... and you will shop around with your half to find some nice pieces of soft furnishing, or wall pictures, or antiques... and you will place flowerpots and ornamental plants here and there..... and if you really love your home, this will be an endless process: even when you believe that your house is very nice indeed, still, you will not feel totally satisfied, and you will carry on forever making changes, and adding, and replacing, and moving things around.... and bettering, and refurbishing, and improving.... Your home becomes your pride, represents yourself, is part of you, and you are part of your home. And if you have just a minor tendency to perfectionism, you will never be totally happy with your house, and you will carry on year after year with this never ending improvement process. kairyo and kaizen The process you are doing to your house is a Kaizen process...... To continue reading this article and/or free-download and all "Lean" articles written by Carlo Scodanibbio go to http://www.scodanibbio.com/site/articles.html#kaizen