Kaizen is
the Japanese term for the technique of taking small and steady steps to achieve
big and lasting results.
A BRIEF HISTORY
Despite its
name, kaizen was first used in a systematic way during the Great Depression in America, though
it was not called kaizen, as the nation fought its way out of joblessness and
bank failures. Then World War II threw
the world into chaos, and American leaders realized how desperately the Allies
needed military equipment. The
government created training courses called Training Within Industries (TWI) and
offered them to corporate America. Rather than suggesting the corporations use
innovation, the TWI suggested managers use “continuous improvement.”
Managers
were encouraged to look for the many small things that needed improvement. Though some doubted that this “small
potatoes” technique could produce results, they soon saw that small changes and
improvements added up to big results.
This
philosophy was brought to Japan
following the war, when General MacArthur’s occupation forces started the
massive program of rebuilding the devastated country. Since then, Japanese businesses have used
this technique to achieve their business goals, making them a major player in
the world economic campus.
WHAT KAIZEN CAN MEAN TO YOU
Fine, you
say, but what does that have to do with writing a book? I’m not writing a Japanese philosophy book or
an American history book! Nor am I
writing a how-to book for corporations.
You
probably aren’t writing any of these books, but maybe you need to employ the
kaizen philosophy to finish the book you are writing.
Let’s talk
a bit about kaizen first, then we’ll get into how you can use the techniques to
start, write, and finish your book
When individuals
or businesses want to make a change, they typically look to innovation. After all, isn’t innovation, with its
sometimes shocking, even radical reform, the fastest and best way to shake
things up and get things done?
Not
necessarily.
Innovation
can be great. It can also be
intimidating to the many of us who resist huge changes and major disruptions in
our lives.
Kaizen is
the opposite of innovation. While
innovation is based upon widespread, even drastic change and vision, kaizen
builds upon the steady steps that, when put all together, end up in something
wonderful.
THE KAIZEN WAY:
1.
Decide what task you want to do (write a
book). Break this task down into small,
achievable steps. Decide what kind of
book you want to write—picture book, grade school reader, YA mystery, new
adult, romance, whatever. Decide upon
the name of the protagonist. Make a list
of other characters. Write down major
plot points. Take it one (small) step at
a time.
2.
Decide how much time you are willing to spend on
this task each day. Can you spend only
seconds a day on your book? Yes, I said
seconds. Kaizen is small steps,
remember? You will build on this,
turning seconds into minutes, then hours.
If you decide you can spend only sixty seconds on your book, then seize
that and rejoice in it. You can spend
those sixty seconds on asking your character questions. (See below.)
You can spend them on deciding upon your character’s name.
3.
Spend that amount of time every day working
toward your task, gradually building into longer amounts. Some of you may have read a previous article
of mine about writing a book one hundred words at a time. This is much the same principle. Do you remember the story of the tortoise and
the hare? The plodding tortoise
eventually won the race.
4.
Solve the small problems before they become big
problems. Do you have a problem with
children occasionally interrupting your writing time? Solve this before it becomes a daily or even
hourly interruption. Do you have a
problem with finding even sixty seconds in your day for your writing? Experiment with getting up a minute earlier
every day. That sounds ridiculous,
doesn’t it, that getting up a minute earlier every day will enable you to write
a book.
5.
Reward yourself for each step you take. Did you write an outline? Reward yourself. Did you spend the amount of time you set for
yourself on your writing for the day?
Reward yourself again. (I don’t
recommend rewarding yourself with chocolate on a frequent basis. It can be addictive, and the resulting pounds
are difficult to get off!)
6.
Recognize the small achievements, i.e. you wrote
an outline or synopsis; you wrote the opening sentence; you completed the first
scene; you completed the first chapter; you reached the halfway point. Notice how these small achievements are
gradually becoming bigger and bigger with every day. You have momentum on your side as well as the
feeling of satisfaction in meeting the small goals you’ve set yourself.
WRITING THE BOOK
Now that
you understand the basic premises of kaizen, start applying them to the actual
writing of your book.
Begin with
asking small questions. “What if I did
this? What if I did that? Small questions evolve into small thoughts
which evolve into small actions. Small
steps, if done in a steady but confident manner, can result in a huge reward.
What
questions can you ask yourself in starting a book?
Don’t start
with “What kind of character will appeal to my readers?” That’s far too sweeping and broad and
nebulous. You don’t want sweeping and
broad and nebulous. You want small and
concise and manageable. What about
asking yourself “What can my character do on the first page that will hook my
readers?” Or “What trait does my
character most dislike about herself?” Or “What word most accurately defines my
character?” Or “What person in my
character’s life had the most effect on him or her?” Find the right small questions to ask your
character to set you on the right track
What next?
Let’s
tackle small thoughts. Can your
character have a recurring problem with a negative self-image that, try as
might, he can’t shake? What thought
might be running through his mind? “I’m
a loser who will never amount to anything.”
This may lead you to ask questions of your character about his background.
(Questions lead to thoughts and thoughts lead to more questions.) What makes you think you’re a loser? Who told you that? Was it your parents? An older sibling? Classmates?
Friends who really weren’t friends at all? A mean-spirited teacher who didn’t recognize
the gifts inside you?
What is at
stake that his negative thoughts will keep him from achieving? (Note:
you are thinking in small, bite-sized chunks, but your character should
be dreaming big. Determining what is “big” to your character is distinctive to
him: his age, his background, his family
constellation, his dreams. Obviously
what is big to a three-year-old will not be big to a sixteen-year-old.)
What if he
wants to earn a full-ride scholarship to a prestigious college and his negative
self-image prevents him from asking his teacher for a letter of recommendation? What if he doesn’t have the confidence to
take the required test to apply for the scholarship? What if he is intimidated by his
high-achieving father and is too afraid to ask him to sign the permission slip
to take the test? Are you beginning to
see how the small questions you asked yourself at the beginning of the process
have lead to small thoughts which result in more questions and more thoughts.
Where do
these thoughts lead?
To
action! Small actions, that is.
What small
action can your protagonist take that will push her forward on her
journey? Can she decide that she wants
to try out for the cheerleading team?
Maybe her small step in that process is to take a gymnastics class. Maybe it’s to ask a friend to coach her in
the cheerleading moves? Can she decide
that she wants to change her boring look for a more up-to-date one? Maybe her small step is to buy a new lip gloss. Maybe it’s to get her hair cut. Maybe it’s to seek out her aunt who always
looks fabulous.
Keep using
the technique of asking small questions of your character, leading to small
thoughts, and resulting in small actions.
Don’t expect more of your character than you expect of yourself. Let her take the baby steps in achieving her
goal just as your are taking baby steps in achieving yours of writing a book.
IN CONCLUSION
When I
first learned of kaizen, I was immediately intrigued. As a person resistant to large changes, I
knew I could make small changes to become more productive, more creative in my
writing. (I’ve also started applying it
in other areas of my life.)
Knowing
that I don’t have to write 5,000 words in a day (yes, I know a writer who does
that) freed me into knowing I could write 500 words in a day.
Employing
kaizen techniques won’t change you or your writing overnight, but it can change
your life—one step at a time.
