5S of Mind

What is 5S

Almost everyone involved in the Industry knows very well about the 5S concepts. 5S is a five-step methodology for creating a more organized and productive workspace and work place towards achieving organizational goals. (Safety, Quality, environment, Cost etc.)

1st S - Sort: Eliminate that which is not needed.

2nd S - Set in order: Organize what remains after sorting.

3rd S - Shine: Clean and inspect the work area.

4th S - Standardize: Write standards so that all practice it.

5th S - Sustain: Make it a habit to Consistently apply through self-discipline.

History

5S originated with Japanese inventor Sakichi Toyoda–the founder of Toyota who is also known as the “father of the Japanese industrial revolution. In the wake of World War II, Japan was rebuilding the country’s infrastructure and bolstering its new manufacturing systems. Japan was faced with severe financial and resource limitation and It was required to do the same with minimum cost and lead time.?Toyoda and his son Kiichiro, along with Toyota engineer Taiichi Ohno, spent the decades after the war exploring ways to trim the fat in manufacturing processes to produce goods with least cost , time and in only in quantity as required by end customer. The fundamental thinking to achieve this objective is to maximize the available resources (Men, material, floor space, Money and time etc.) and thus 5S became the mantra to start with.

While these concepts are now almost imbibed into many established organizations and industries through TPM, TPS and TQM but there are very little efforts gone into applying these concepts when it comes to 5S of human Mind.

For more details https://www.leanproduction.com/5s/#:~:text=THE%20BIG%20IDEA,lean%20production%20tools%20and%20processes.

https://www.fastcompany.com/90126285/why-designers-are-reviving-this-30-year-old-japanese-productivity-theory#.

In this article an attempt is being made to draw parallel to the ways of decluttering the human mind to enhance brain power for a happy and meaningful life.

MIND your MIND

Just like our cabinets and cupboards, our minds too need tidying up from time to time. Getting rid of all that non-essential mental baggage is crucial to stay focused, motivated, and productive.

Watch the TED video on decluttering of mind ?: https://youtu.be/ym6OYelD5fA.

Mental clutter refers to times when our mind has too many thoughts which makes it difficult to process and focus. A cluttered mind is disrupting, and it hinders our productivity, balance and even our mental health. Everyday more than five hundred thousand thoughts come into our mind and some of them remain and some of them go out and some come back again and again.

?If the 5S of the mind is not done, then it will be overwhelmed and overburdened with the thoughts and there is a danger of collapse which may result in mental illness.

Many of ancient and new generation leaders have realized the importance of 5S of our mind. Swamy Vivekanand says “We are what our thoughts have made us; so, take care of what you think. Words are secondary. Thoughts live; they travel far. “

Hence it becomes essential that we manage and control our thoughts for a more happy, purposeful, and meaningful life. The 5s of mind is explained as below.

1st S

Sort your thoughts –This Can be best done by jotting down the thoughts as productive / useful and Non-Productive/ useless. Useful and productive thoughts which bring happiness need to store inside mind and recalled for the next step. It’s always important to throw away Nonproductive and useless thoughts. Various tools which you use to sort thoughts are – (1) Meditation. (2) Reading aloud any content which makes oneself happy. (3) Listening to well known speakers on the art of thinking clearly and art of living with purpose. etc.

2nd S

Set priorities for the Useful thoughts – Prioritize thoughts based on Urgency, Importance, and potential for expansion. Prioritized thoughts to be listed for actions considering its potential impact with a timeline. For example If a task can be completed in a short time with least expense and effort, then execute on priority.

3rd S

Slow Down: It is said that in order to move quicker, we need to slow down.

Nobel laureate Daniel Kahneman who is the author of the book “Thinking fast and slow “clearly explains that each of us have two systems of thinking. ?Watch the excerpts of video interview of Daniel Kahneman https://youtu.be/PirFrDVRBo4.

System 1 - Thinking fast -which is highly intuitive, knee jerk, operates automatically and quickly, with little or no effort and no sense of voluntary control. System 2 - Thinking Slow - allocates attention to the effortful mental activities that demand it, including complex computations. The operations of System 2 are often associated with the subjective experience of agency, choice, and concentration. We need to make a conscious effort to thinking slow (slow down, pause, judge, and proceed) to help declutter our mind and be ready for actionable steps. Ask yourself and hear yourself to bring this change in thinking.

Ancient ways have emphasized the approach of Praying, meditating for cleansing one’s own mind and enhance the power of concentration for positive outcomes. Spend more time to Observe and Listen. Our elders often quote not to act in haste. A slow and steady thinking would enable you to complete the task right the first time.

4th S

Standardize: Its equivalent to Review and reflect on your thoughts and actions. Make daily notes of activities, decisions and events and categorize into relevant and useful versus irrelevant and useless ones. Compare it with your sorted useful thoughts and actions. Note down the type of thoughts and actions which lead to happiness. Practice the art and science of writing useful thoughts and actions. Such a habit will enhance the number of positive experiences and positive outcomes.

?5th S

Share your thoughts: It is often said that when thoughts are shared new ideas can be borrowed. Sharing your thoughts with others can also help you look at things from a fresh perspective which can help you think clearer and make better decisions. Its important that we are surrounded by family and friends who share similar viewpoint. Learn to “agree to disagree” and “disagree to agree”. Be accommodative of other viewpoints and analyze without prejudice. Practice ?techniques such as yoga , exercise ,mind training to sustain the gains.

Conclusion

It is true that there is a no Fixed order of 5S when it comes to decluttering one’s mind. One of the S can be input for the other S. Example when you try to share your thoughts , it may become more easy to sort of your thoughts based on feedback and similarly when you learn to slow down it may?help you to Set Priorities right . All of this depends on the situation and condition one is in.

It is important to understand the relevance of “mind over matter” and need to manage it for effectiveness. There is saying that "seeing is believing" but in reality we have often experienced that what we believe is what we would like to see ( "believing is seeing" ) and it takes disciplined approach to make the change towards a paradigm shift for a happy and purposeful life.

?Views and contents of the article are that of the author only and not of the organization represented by him/her.

20 Sept 2022