I believe in sharing mistakes to learn. Like everyone else, I’m far from perfect, and mistakes are part of my journey. Here’s a recent mistake I made that you might learn from, especially if you’re planning to visit Germany (or…
I’m doing another book giveaway contest — enter to win a signed paperback copy of my book The Mistakes That Make Us: Cultivating a Culture of Learning and Innovation. Because of high international shipping costs, I’ve limited previous contests to…
Yesterday morning, I drove to a local client to facilitate a lunch-and-learn workshop featuring the Deming “Red Bead Game” and “Process Behavior Charts.” Read more about those topics in my book, Measures of Success: React Less, Lead Better, Improve More.…
I was thrilled to be invited to join more than 100 other speakers for this day-long (24 hours) global event — the Lean Global Connection event presented by the Lean Global Network. It was free, and it looked to be…
I’ve played around with ChatGPT before (including in a few blog posts), but the advancements in A.I. technologies are pretty breathtaking. I recently tried out the new “Notebook LM” tool from Google. I uploaded a PDF of my latest book,…
When discussing mistakes, it’s common to hear terms like “stupid mistake” or “dumb mistake” thrown around, especially when reflecting on our own errors. However, labeling mistakes in this way is unproductive. In The Mistakes That Make Us, one of the…
Here’s a great opportunity for you to win TWO fantastic books–one for you and one for a young reader in your life! For the adults: You could win a signed copy of my latest book, The Mistakes That Make Us:…
In many organizations, moving away from a culture of punishment when mistakes are made is a significant leap forward. It signals a shift toward understanding, systems thinking, and improvement. But once you’ve made that change, what’s next? Do we need…
Learning from mistakes is not optional in healthcare–it’s essential for patient safety, staff engagement, and long-term performance. For years, I’ve written and spoken about how Lean leadership and Kaizen cultures treat mistakes not as failures to hide, but as signals…
In writing The Mistakes That Make Us: Cultivating a Culture of Learning and Innovation, I wanted to challenge the way we think about mistakes, leadership, and organizational culture. Throughout my career, I’ve seen firsthand how the traditional responses to mistakes–punishment,…
Thanks to a collaboration with the Leanpub team, AI-translated versions of my book The Mistakes That Make Us: Cultivating a Culture of Learning and Innovation will be available in many languages, including Portuguese for the Brazil market (and I’m traveling…
Karen Martin and Mark Graban discuss mistake proofing in lean management, why “zero harm” is a meaningful aspiration, and how building quality at the source reduces errors without blaming people. Scroll down for how to subscribe, transcript, and more My…
