Wisdom

No organization — or individual — is immune to challenges in pursuit of its goals. We all face the struggle of finding ways to continuously improve. While we may be open to trying new ideas, how do we stay the course and actually achieve our goals? I’ve come to learn that to grow and reach our potential — to fulfill our purpose as individuals or an organization — we need to be willing to experiment, learn from our past experiences, and take the knowledge gained and turn it into action.

"Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge? Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?" — T.S. Eliot.

What comes to mind when you hear the word "wisdom?" For me, it’s an old wise woman (or man) huddled by the fire, telling stories of the past — of their history, of information learned, of knowledge discovered, and the lessons that have been learned and passed down through generation. Of course, not all wisdom is imparted over a crackling fire. Many times, it’s passed down from parent to child, leader to team member, friend to friend — with the intention to help others to continue to build upon lessons learned along the way.

Actionable Knowledge

Knowledge is what we gain from collecting information, studying facts, and analyzing data. Wisdom is how we take that knowledge and use it to help make solid and good decisions in the future. Wisdom is gained through actual experience and through putting our knowledge into practice.

This sharing of actionable knowledge — is the imparting of wisdom.

The Now vs. The How

Many times, we can become consumed in focusing on the facts that we need now to solve a particular problem in our lives or within our workplace. We tend to focus our energy on getting to the solution — ideally as quickly as possible because there are always more fires to put out — and spend less time passing down the knowledge of how to get there. We generate knowledge but move on without using it again in the future. We focus on the urgency of “now” and less on cultivating knowledge of the “how.”

“The only secret to Toyota is its attitude towards learning.” - Isao Yoshino

After years conversing with Isao Yoshino, a 40-year leader at Toyota, I've gained an insider’s glimpse into Toyota’s learning culture learned the nuances of the Toyota Way. Mr. Yoshino shared his wisdom with me — his knowledge of learning and leading developed over decades — in the spirit of helping me (and now you through the forthcoming book Learning to Lead, Leading to Learn) use this knowledge for our futures. I have been inspired by how “the only secret to Toyota is its attitude towards learning” (as Mr. Yoshino says) and how the organization creates actionable knowledge and passes on that wisdom over time. Mr. Yoshino’s stories have confirmed for me that the Toyota Way has always been about the “how” of improving ... the wisdom generated from the learning.

Mr. Yoshino’s stories illuminate how Toyota and its people spend time reflecting, learning, adjusting and continuing to try until they succeed. They are willing to experiment and embrace failure and bad news, and to see them as possible sources of learning. Their approach to learning is a constant reminder that wisdom is gained over time — through trials, tribulations and reflection — and can be passed down through a chain of learning.

 Continuous Improvement: Wisdom and Improvement

Toyota produced a document known as the Toyota Way 2001 as an internal effort to codify its culture. In the third article in this series titled Respect, I highlighted one of the two Toyota Way pillars — “Respect for People” — and how, though my conversations with Mr. Yoshino, I came to discover that the richness of its intended meaning has been lost in translation. Similarly, I have discovered that the other pillar of the Toyota Way 2001 — translated into English as “Continuous Improvement” — has also lost some depth of meaning.

We commonly translate the word “kaizen” to mean “continuous improvement.” However, “kaizen” itself means only “improvement.” In the Japanese version of The Toyota Way 2001, the pillar we know as “Continuous Improvement” is written as “Chie + Kaizen” (知恵 + 改善), which directly translates to “Wisdom and Improvement.” By dropping the word “wisdom” in exchange for “continuous,” I believe only some of the intended richness of "Wisdom + Improvement" is lost. Continuous improvement is about moving forward, constantly learning and getting better, and passing on that knowledge of the improvement. For me, wisdom goes much deeper. Wisdom is about reflecting on the process of learning which happens over time — and passing on the knowledge of how to learn and how to improve. Wisdom is the key to being able to continuously improve and make better decisions over generations.

As you think about your own organization — and your own leadership approach — how can you develop wisdom by championing a process of continuous learning, in addition to championing the practice of continuous improvement? Take a moment and reflect on these three approaches to helping your team — and yourself — learn how to generate (and pass on) wisdom.

• Welcome failure. Mr. Yoshino has continuously reminded me that a failure isn’t a failure if you have learned something from it that you couldn’t learn somewhere else. When you reflect on some of your greatest learning opportunities, they likely stem from moments where you have felt like you have failed the most. Instead of seeing an attempt that didn’t achieve your intended outcome as a failure, how can you use it as an opportunity to identify what worked and what didn’t? How can you support and empower your team to come up with creative ideas on ways to build upon their successes — and failures — and try new ideas? Failing only results in failure when either you stop learning or you stop trying altogether.
• Pass on the knowledge of how. Mr. Yoshino talks about the “chain of learning” that exists at Toyota. This is the concept of seeing a leader as a coach ... someone who passes down knowledge of the process of how to learn and think more deeply. We know this as the parable of “teaching someone to fish” versus always fishing for them. It’s about learning the process of learning and passing it down so that others can build upon their own learnings. This is "Leading to Learn." What actions can you take to create a culture within your team and organization that passes on the knowledge of how?
• Embrace the process of learning. The process of learning requires deep reflection and analysis. What were your assumptions? What did you expect to happen? What actually happened? Check-Adjust” is actually the start of the PDCA wheel. So often we start with “Plan-Do” and then get caught in a plan-do-plan-do cycle without having taken the time for reflection and adjustment. This is where learning happens and where wisdom is created. This is the continuous aspect of “continuous improvement.” Learning is also best done through actual experiences. As Mr. Yoshino reminds us, “going to gemba” (going to where the work occurs) is about going to see things for yourself — not just gathering the facts — but also seeing through the lens of others’ perspective. How can you cultivate a habit of reflection and adjustment (even if only for 10 minutes) in service of developing actionable knowledge? How can you “go see” and get the perspective of others so that you can better understand the complete situation? How can you check your assumptions? What will you adjust?

Wisdom is what helps you continuously improve and to build upon the knowledge of learning how to learn and how to lead. While wisdom evolves over time — through actual experience and deep reflection — it is essential in achieving any form of success in life, personal or professional. Wisdom is fundamentally about learning — and passing on from the knowledge you have learned. Wisdom — and its attitude towards learning — is Toyota’s secret.

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Authors Note: Special thank you to Michel Baudin for asking Mr. Yoshino at an event in San Francisco in April 2019 about the translation “Continuous Improvement” in the Toyota Way 2001. This question started my conversation with Mr. Yoshino about the meaning of “Continuous Improvement” and the concept of wisdom.

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Katie Anderson is the author of the book Learning to Lead, Leading to Learn Lessons from Toyota Leader Isao Yoshino on a Lifetime of Continuous Learning, now available paperback and Kindle eBook editions. For more information about Katie Anderson visit www.kbjanderson.com.

Katie has created a series of LinkedIn articles inspired by her conversations with Mr. Yoshino and her own life. These stories highlight just some of the many lessons fully explored in the book.

You can read all the articles in this series via the links below.

1. Perseverance
2. Intention
3. Respect
4. Wisdom
5. Humility
6. Direction
7. Nurture
8. Celebrate

#L2LBook #LearningtoLead #LeadingtoLearn