Carnack the Magnificent-Johnny Carson's psychic persona on "The Tonight Show"-would pull an envelope from a jar, hold it to his forehead and answer the question sealed inside. Then he would open the envelope and read the question. Unfortunately, implementing lean is often done the same way-as a solution in searching for the right problem to solve. It was funny on "The Tonight Show"; it isn't funny when it leads your organization to failure.
The underlying problem is that we dramatically under appreciate the importance of deeply understanding our current reality. Whether changing a process or your entire business, it is not possible to overemphasize the importance of thoroughly understanding the current reality. Max DePree, former CEO of Herman Miller Inc. (Zeeland, Michigan), said "The first responsibility of a leader is to define current reality." We do not do well at defining the current reality. You've all heard examples of surveys, regardless of the topic, in which 90 percent of people believe they are above average. This highlights our lack of skill in defining current reality.