“Improvement begins with I.” Arnold H Glasow
A ritual has been created between myself and my 8 year old that we are both starting to treasure. Each week, when my 6 year old goes to art class, me and Liam go for milkshakes and table tennis while we wait.
In 5 weeks we have got our table tennis rallies up from a dismal 2 to a convincing 12. We now have a goal to get them up to 24 by the end of term. (No, I won’t be giving up the day job…..)
It’s rare to start something from complete scratch as an adult, not so much for a kid, and in doing so I’ve been starkly reminded how progress happens with consistent and continuous effort.
All athletes know this of course – every day their training will consist of experimentation, tweaking, practice, research and analysis. Bit by bit, step by step, they keep improving on a constant upward trajectory.
In the workplace, the idea of constant improvement can be more accidental than deliberate. Performance expectations continue to rise, yet the investment of time or effort in personal and professional improvement can be haphazard.
If you don’t already, why not build into your routine daily research or reflection time, weekly brainstorming sessions, monthly off-site development days, quarterly conferences? Routines and rituals like these can become something that people look forward to, and even cherish.
And for you, what rituals could you start to create those moments during the week you feel at the height of connection and fulfilment? What do you currently do that you could do more of? It’s the small things being done consistently that makes the big difference over time.
To read more on the concept of Kaizen, click here. To read more on table tennis, click here. 🙂