Manufacturing Management Story - Ten

October 23, 2006  

Many of you have asked me to identify what I think is one of the most important characteristics of leadership. There are many; and "walk the talk" is at the top of my list.  

Consequently, I have chosen an appropriate "Take-a-Break" story for this week's bulletin, "The Sound of the Forest." It’s an old story and if you substitute 'leader for ruler' and 'team member' for citizens, you'll understand why this story presents the real secret to leadership.  

Have a nice day, keep the faith, and stay connected.  

Bill Gaw

Business Basics, LLC
bg@bbasicsllc.com
760-945-5596  

P.S. In the left column, I have included an "immediate" feedback survey to give you an opportunity to rank your company's chief executive's lean manufacturing leadership and then see how he/she compares with other executives.

  The Sound of the Forest

Back in the third century A.D., the King Ts’ao sent his son, Prince T’ai, to the temple to study under the great master Pan Ku. Because Prince T’ai was to succeed his father as king, Pan Ku was to teach the boy the basics of being a good ruler.  

When the prince arrived at the temple, the master sent him alone to the Ming-Li Forest. After one year, the prince was to return to the temple to describe the sound of the forest.

When Prince T’ai returned, Pam Ku asked the boy to describe all that he could hear. “Master,” replied the prince, “I could hear the cuckoos sing, the leaves rustle, the hummingbirds hum, the cricket chirp, the grass blow, the bees buzz, and the wind whisper and holler.”  

When the prince had finished, the master told him to go back to the forest to listen to what more he could hear. The prince was puzzled by the master’s request. Had he not discerned every sound already?  

For days and nights on end, the young prince sat alone in the forest listening. But he heard no sounds other then those he had already heard.  

Then one morning, as the prince sat silently beneath the trees, he started to discern faint sounds unlike those he had overheard before. The more acutely he listened, the clearer the sounds became.  

The feeling of enlightenment enveloped the boy, “These must be the sounds the master wished me to discern,” he reflected.  

When Prince T’ai returned to the temple, the master asked him what more he had heard. “Master,” responded the prince reverently, “when I listened most closely, I could hear the unheard... the sound of flowers opening, the sound of the sun warming the earth, and the sound of the grass drinking the morning dew.”  

The master nodded approvingly. “To hear the unheard,” remarked Pan Ku, “is a necessary discipline to be a good ruler. For only when a ruler has learned to listen closely to the people’s hearts, hearing their feelings not communicated, pains unexpressed, and complaints not spoken of, can he hope to inspire confidence in his people, understand when something is wrong, and meet the true needs of his citizens.  

The demise of states comes when leaders listen only to superficial words and do not penetrate deeply into the souls of the people to hear their true opinions, feeling, and desires.  

e-Learning for Winners 

In a recent survey of 5,000 employees at Fortune 500 companies, nearly half said they'd be enthusiastic if told they would be taught something online, and 19% admitted to preferring e-learning over any other method of instruction. People are now thinking, "I have to learn something…can I learn it online?" At more and more companies, the answer is yes.

If you're not yet convinced that e-learning is right for your company, here are 5-reasons why you should be using e-learning:

1. Reduce costs…Save thousands on travel expenses and lost productivity by training employees online---at their own pace and according to their own schedule.

2. Accelerate the learning process…With no travel days or scheduling conflicts, you can get all of your people up to speed in weeks instead of months.

3. Extend coverage…Using virtual classrooms you can train each employee in every department across the company at once---and make sure they're all learning the same things.

4. People empowerment…choose your pace…choose your place.

Education and training that you'll not find in the books 
at Amazon.com. Neither in the APICS Library 
nor the Harvard Business School Press.  

Business Basics, LLC
6003 Dassia Way, Oceanside, CA 92056
West Coast: 760-945-5596

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