tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27605103942846781732024-11-01T01:00:52.781-07:00This is a personal blog, mostly about Goldratt's Theory of Constraints, life and managemnt. * * * Disclaimer: I am affiliated with Amazon and may get paid a commission for purchases made there.* * *Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger65125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-17436601631574170252015-10-22T04:56:00.001-07:002015-10-26T09:58:53.229-07:00

I'm a great admirer of JRM so I got he's OK to share this with you. "Update: The Machine (it's here!) Orion Can you believe it? After many years of toil, The Machine is finally available for purchase! You can get it on Amazon (hardcover or Kindle) and in all Barnes and Noble stores (physical and online), as well as in most US bookstores (including many airport booksellers). Here's

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-26375706173431726052015-10-19T02:03:00.000-07:002015-10-19T02:05:55.891-07:00

So, I've already written several posts about the learning that went on in Cape Town this past September (see here, here and here) and I guess it's time to move on. Still I want to leave you with a real taste for more and hopefully next time you'll come join us (see the TOCICO calendar for upcoming events near you). This review did not include my sessions and I will share some of that

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-83434376248954970802015-10-12T23:51:00.000-07:002015-10-21T00:31:49.240-07:00

Every TOC event I go to blesses me with a lot of new knowledge and ideas. It also adds some 1-liners and catch phrases. When I capture them here, in the blog, not only can you all enjoy them with me, I can also recall them years later and put them to use (like the ones here). So, here are some of the things I collected during the 2015 Annual TOCICO conference: "War Room" - don't talk about

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-23641940809881741872015-10-05T09:01:00.000-07:002015-10-05T09:01:43.907-07:00

In the first part of my thinking backwards exercise I figured out what will make for a successful TOC Odyssey training. So the next step should be to keep working backwards and highlight the actions that need to be taken for these results to unfold.Logical, right? Well, yes and no. If you recall, I left the plan hanging at: My first inclination was to go backwards to: Then I got thinking

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-38858742996241783382015-09-29T10:10:00.002-07:002015-10-05T09:04:09.324-07:00

So, if you remember my last post I suggested we need to prepare our mental muscles for the hard labour of TP and one of the exercises I suggested was thinking backwards. Now, this is not the TP's transition tree, which is also constructed backwards. It is also not the usual managerial focus of let's plan with the end in mind, which usually ends up being a forward construciton exercise. It's

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-56850442784806929132015-09-23T10:09:00.000-07:002015-10-03T12:51:45.856-07:00

After my presentation on the 6 Questions of Technology (yes, I will share more on this) at the TOCICO Conference, one of the people in the audience came up to me and said how happy he was with the work model we suggested, until the trees came out. They are so hard to construct, he said. I could hear the despair. I could also understand it and relate to it. The TOC TP are a set of highly potent

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-64715578850661627512015-09-20T12:06:00.000-07:002015-10-03T12:49:46.268-07:00

This is the second post in a series. For the first post - go here. A main theme in the conference was Anti-Fragility, becoming anti-fragile as individuals and a community and helping companies become anti-fragile. I have heard the term before but this time I feel I got a much better grasp of it. Here's what I can share: Definitions: Fragile: Sign on the box will say "Handle With Care"

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0Cape Town, South Africa-33.9248685 18.424055299999964-34.7681915 17.133161799999964 -33.081545500000004 19.714948799999963tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-62042358015031393032015-09-18T02:12:00.001-07:002015-10-03T12:41:01.926-07:00

Almost finished reading this book. I like it, though I can't think of anyone I'd recommend it to. For the begginers it is way all over the place and would not be a good starting place. For the advanced it is way too simplistic. Still, SKI is very personable and does a good job selling himself. I liked some of his tips, especialy the idea of making lists from the end goal backwards. I was also

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-88348084456793255162015-09-18T00:35:00.000-07:002015-10-19T02:06:37.954-07:00

I've just returned from Cape Town a week ago and I think it's a great time to share some of my conference highlights with those who could not make it this year. Some Conference Participants (can you spot me?) First off - join me in sending love and support to Marcia Hutchinson, TOCICO's General Manager, who broke her arm on the first night and needed an operation. Marcia's proffesional

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0Cape Town, South Africa-33.9248685 18.424055299999964-34.7681915 17.133161799999964 -33.081545500000004 19.714948799999963tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-64196101265131876962013-12-04T12:17:00.000-08:002013-12-04T12:17:19.190-08:00

A few days ago I noticed, again, that my unread count in Gmail is far greater than I would like. Noting that the count was only for my Inbox, not including the unread mails in the Social, Promotions and the other tabs I was using I knew the situation was much worse. Still, this was not the main problem. the main problem was that I was starring important To-Do items and then letting them slip as

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-35610869639954869972013-10-24T12:30:00.000-07:002013-10-24T12:30:43.411-07:00

So I wasn't planning to write an update on my Logical Thinking class just yet, the next lesson will be tomorrow. Then tonight at dinner something great happened. My younger son, who is soon to be 9 years old and takes my class, saw me preparing the handout he asked for, the one with the logic tree we made last week (as I reported here). So he decided to make his own logic tree. Later I figured

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-65804462597113972682013-10-24T02:56:00.000-07:002013-10-24T02:56:07.284-07:00

Have you ever asked yourself how can it be that the small changes TOC calls for can create such a significant reaction, I think I found the answer. Now, don't get me wrong, I know those changes are extremely hard, but how can you call a change that costs no money and can be done in less than a week, such as changing priorities on the shop floor, anything but a small change? All the TOC

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-84985599742651956832013-10-20T03:22:00.000-07:002015-11-02T12:15:09.955-08:00

It's been ages since I've blogged here, I got caught up by a wicked current in the stream of life.... I'm hoping for a smoother sail in the coming future. Still, I had to share this with the people I knew would understand the most, my faithful readers. I've started teaching a class about the Thinking Processes in my boys' school. It is a democratic school and the children choose which classes

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-21253376967915035562013-05-13T13:48:00.000-07:002013-05-19T07:05:03.692-07:00

I'm staying with the "Cake Boss" theme, as there is one more point I'd like to make with the help of the Carlo's Bakery team, before I move on. First, if you haven't read my other post about the bakery, please read in now, so you know what I'm referring to here. Cakes Parade During the show you can see Buddy and other members of his family and team refer to the "Carlo's

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-66435779456953048992013-05-07T11:40:00.000-07:002013-05-08T01:09:33.264-07:00

Lately I've been watching old episodes of Cake Boss on YouTube. I'm enjoying it because I like cake decorations (I've already fessed up to that), and the show is funny and genuine. For those who have no clue what I'm talking about, Cake Boss is a TLC reality TV show following day-to-day life in Carlo's Bakery, a Hobolen NJ landmark establishment. Of course I also look at the situations from

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-36820152821986336322013-05-05T00:58:00.000-07:002013-05-05T00:58:21.203-07:00

Theory of constraints is based heavily, if not completely, on the premises of logical thinking. The generic solutions are the result of logical thinking done by thought leaders with regard to wide spread phenomena. The Thinking Process is a toolkit designed to help users apply the same logic to specific cases and to new situations.  Logical thinking, and specifically

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-89405066893043790352013-05-04T13:43:00.000-07:002013-05-13T11:26:24.278-07:00

In a post about avoiding change I shared my experience and presented the concept of the "siren". I then recalled a much older post about Satisficing. At first there seemed to be a contradiction. I mean, how can I tell you not to fall for the spell of the siren while I'm the one telling you to be a satisficer? Seems like double standard, but it isn't. So, I figured

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-28791617329386867492013-04-29T04:30:00.000-07:002013-05-01T02:18:46.399-07:00

My younger son, who is eight, and I sat in a coffee shop for breakfast today. As we were waiting for our food, I figured I might as well make some use of the time we had together. I had wanted to start working on logical thinking with him for quite some time but I never got around to it. My plan, of course, was to do something structured, maybe use the children's' workbooks I got at the Goldratt

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-73991072609469894022013-04-27T08:57:00.000-07:002013-05-05T11:07:29.432-07:00

I've always wanted a mentor. You could say I have a father figure issue and I'd be the first to agree but it's not relevant. I've recently figured out that in the Theory of Constraints you may learn from the past but other than that you basically let it be gone. It doesn't make much difference how you got to where you are, the thing that's really relevant is how to get to where you're going. So,

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-24239848678414919962013-04-05T03:50:00.000-07:002013-04-27T22:48:22.261-07:00

[Disclaimer - this post does not address SEO how to. To learn SEO - follow my affiliate link and view the offer there] Intro (skip this paragraph if you'd like to get right to business, it's the background story) It's funny how things roll about. I am a bit obsessive about this blog's statistics (I'm an Industrial Engineer by nature - I obsess about all my 

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-59999113877837760222013-04-03T02:49:00.000-07:002013-04-03T02:49:30.231-07:00

I'm planning to do a bit of research before my next post so it might be a few days in the making. Until then I just wanted to point out the total abundance of interesting resources I have been finding on Amazon. As you can see in the disclaimer above, I have decided to join their "associates" program and create my own focused store. In the past, all my Amazon searches were very focused. This

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-52468796859371375432013-03-31T13:07:00.000-07:002013-04-03T02:33:15.610-07:00

A few months ago Rajeev Athavale sent out a call for articles in some of the TOC groups I'm a member on. He informed us he was self publishing an eBook by collecting these to create more TOC resources. I saw that call and thought what he was doing was a great thing and that I'd probably want that eBook once published. A few days later I got a mail from him asking me to contribute to

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-45808662260431544222013-03-30T15:54:00.000-07:002013-04-27T23:55:24.654-07:00

Everywhere we go people are talking about the need for a change, be it a small, local change like finally maintaining a healthy weight or having a better environment at the office or a big, global change like reducing poverty or illiteracy. Sometimes this talk translates into action - we go on a diet, the boss sends out an email with a new policy, people take to the streets to demonstrate....

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-84315428544042760682013-03-28T12:38:00.000-07:002013-04-03T02:32:29.145-07:00

I't seems I've stirred a kettle of bees (is this the right phrase?) with this post, and especially the not so subtle (or appropriate) header I used to promote it in the LinkedIn TOC Learning Network group. The ensuing discussion made me think about a few examples of the need and use of examples.... So, first off - why do we need examples? Examples help us make the shift from the

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760510394284678173.post-4077029754917171172013-03-25T16:45:00.000-07:002013-04-27T23:56:57.205-07:00

It has been over a year since I last wrote in this blog and while I have plenty of excuses, I'll be the first to admit most of it was just inertia. The other part, the thing that veered me in the wrong direction in the first place, was another round of disillusionment. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not finger pointing, it is totally my fault that I let this disillusionment take over, but

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1