Hoshin is 5S for Your Head

Busy, busy days. It’s days like these that it becomes more important to avoid working harder, longer and instead take a precious moment out of your day to examine whether what you are doing is really adding value towards the ultimate goal, or not. Crisis creates focus, so long as panic is held at bay.
Someday I’ll write more on this idea, but it occurred to me that Hoshin is 5S for your head. Hoshin Kanri forces you to define your top long-term objectives (value to you) and then identify the bare minimum actions you need to achieve them (strategies). All other activities should be supporting strategies and tactics toward to top-level goal. At a micro level this is true for daily work, whether by executives or clerks.
Books have been written about getting more done, being more effective by forming 7 or 8 habits, etc. and 5S as Hoshin for your head is the same idea in a different skin. Sort out the things you don’t really need to do to achieve your personal or team Hoshin objectives, Straighten or put in order actions in sequence of need, Sweep away any clutter (interruptions, leaks in your attention) and then Sustain your focus. So perhaps Hoshin is 4S for your head.

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