every day, no matter how small. These contributions would surely lift the group
and company over time. David came to understand how strongly this philos-
ophy ties to Toyota’s philosophy of long-term thinking and planning. They are
clearly in it for the long haul. They understand that a tortoise who methodi-
cally moves forward will not only finish the race, but also can beat the speedier,
inconsistent hare.
Another lesson also became clear. It’s necessary to take a first step up the
stairs before it’s possible to see the next step, or to see the potential benefit of
moving forward. We’ve said this before, but it bears repeating: Imagine that you
are standing on the stairs. If you look straight ahead, you only see the visible
step. As you take a step up, new opportunities become visible (Figure 20-8).
Chapter 20. Leading the Change 463Figure 20-7. Then, over time, we up!
Figure 20-8. Continuous improvement never ends
“Until you take the first step, it will not be possible to see
the next step.”“Every day, little up”