What is Continuous Coaching Commitment? | Toyota Kata

When you really think about what it takes to be successful in business or successful in life for that matter, it all comes down to a few basic tenants. Hard work, honoring an ethos or way of doing business, and filling a niche which need be filled are all key concepts in the business success train.

What about Continuity?

There is a certain glamour or hype over just doing “whatever-whenever” and letting the chips fall where they may. The current American political climate seems to bear out these kinds of “loose cannon” tactics. However, if anything has been learned over the last two millennia, it’s that you are not going to get anywhere without some type of adherence to a routine. You need to have a soundness of mind, a singularity of vision, and the intestinal fortitude to see assignments through to completion. This is something that anyone who’s been successful in anything for any length of time will espouse to you, regardless of their field.

One shining example of this adherence to a routine is the Toyota Kata. Kata is the structuring of routines such that they become second nature. “Kata” comes from the martial arts; it’s the path by which those practicing the arts are brought around to full mastery of the moves they are learning. Toyota and their assembly line of automobile manufacturing runs in lockstep with the Kata ethos.

So what does all this have to do with continuity and business? Well, plenty! If the automobile manufacturer or the martial artist has a happenstance way of doing things and there is no order, then they will both fail. A car with an engine made up of tire parts is not going to run; a martial artist who only goes for certain moves will be found out and quickly beaten. The same goes for a martial artist who telegraphs where they are going before they go there; you need to keep your opponents guessing so that you can achieve victory.

The same is true of the continuous coaching commitment. As a business leader, you need to be able to have confidence that your tasks will be seen through. You also need to know that your team will listen to and follow your instructions as you’ve outlined them. One of the most effective ways of ensuring this outcome is through a reliable level of continuity and routine.

If you ascribe to the continuous coaching philosophy, you have already demonstrated your commitment to the team you have put in place. That means you’re building the essential foundation for your success. It’s impossible to fully invest yourself in your business if you can’t rely on essential members of your management team and trust your employee base.

Continuous coaching has other benefits as well. One of these benefits, in particular, can save your business a lot of time and money. Continuous coaching can help weed out the bad seeds from your enterprise. If you have 50 employees and 48 of them are all singing your same tune, it’s going to be far easier to pick out the sour notes, show them how they’re off, and, if they don’t change, let them go.

Of course, you are the brains behind your own business and it’s up to you to do what’s best for your team. Imagine, though, for a moment – the glory of a unified chorus of voices from your team; all working for and supporting your vision for your business. Continuous coaching commitment is the best way to get your whole team vocalizing in a beautiful chorus!

 

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