Read the blog post: https://www.leanblog.org/2024/11/lost-iphone-japan-taxi-tokyo-kindness-culture/

I'm thrilled to be back in Japan for the first time in five years. Today is the start of Katie Anderson's Japan Study Trip (learn more about joining her in May 2025). It's great to be here for another week of learning and great experiences.

Little did I know, I'd kick off the trip by nearly losing my iPhone on the streets of Tokyo–a mistake that ended up teaching me a valuable lesson about Japan's culture of trust.

The blog post

Just over a week ago, I got back from Katie Anderson's Japan Study Trip. It was amazing! I have so much to write about and share.

But first, Facebook reminded me of something from exactly ten years ago–the second time I visited Japan with the Kaizen Institute.

I asked 2024 ChatGPT to translate this 2014 news story that's pictured below (with me sitting there and taking notes in the front row of the meeting room). See the English text below the image:

The blog post: https://www.leanblog.org/2024/11/surveying-the-lean-global-connection-audience-on-barriers-to-speaking-up/

At yesterday's Lean Global Connection event, I posed a straightforward yet revealing question to the audience:

“What keeps you from speaking up at work?”

The responses illustrated two of the common barriers. I posed the survey options based on the research of Prof. Ethan Burris, from the University of Texas at Austin, who has found that fear and futility are the top two reasons why people choose to stay quiet.

For some, fear stood in the way–the fear of reprisal, being judged, or being seen as a troublemaker.

For others, the obstacle wasn't fear but futility–the belief that speaking up wouldn't make a difference. Four people, sadly, said BOTH were barriers.

And yet, amidst these challenges, eight people shared that they felt no barriers at all, a testament to the environments they work in. That is the ideal we should all strive for.

The survey results line up with the Burris research that shows futility is actually the biggest reason, not fear.