Using the gentle kaizen philosophy of taking small steps, to make improvements in your creative business, will boost your small business without overwhelm or burnout.

There is a before and after kaizen in my life. When this philosophy gets under your skin, I promise you, your life won’t be the same. For me, it was a case of discovering there is a different way than constantly beating myself over the head for not being good enough, not doing enough, not knowing enough, not being brave enough and the list goes on.

But understanding how my brain works and the fact that big changes scared me was a natural biological reaction, was a huge relief. I wasn’t incompetent, my brain simply reacted how brains do.

First of all, what is kaizen?

Kaizen is a Japanese philosophy and means continuous improvement with small steps. At the core of this approach is a philosophy working in harmony with our brain’s natural reaction to change. Building a creative business as a solopreneur is a big job, and it’s not always easy to know how to make improvements or which area to pay attention to.

In short, kaizen invites you to

• Ask small questions

• Think small thoughts

• Take small actions

• Solve small problems

Small, tiny steps = less resistance.

Less resistance = more likely to implement a new action

The more times you do a new action = the more new pathways are created in your brain.

More pathways = automated action = new habit build.

It sounds easier than it is, but this is actually how changes that seem difficult at first end up being easy. I’ve used it to build a daily creative work habit for myself, and I use the small-steps approach to just about anything in my life. From cleaning to building my business.

3 ways to kaizen boost your creative business

Boosting your creative business the kaizen way is working with an approach to your business that is the opposite of hustling, taking massive action, and working yourself to the ground.

Using Kaizen to make changes to your small business, invites you to take a step back, take a look at what areas need improvements, and then take small, intentional steps in the right direction. One at a time.

Kaizen examples for your website

• What is one small way you can improve your home page?

• Can you change one image of yourself on your About page that sends the right message?

• Spend 5 minutes checking your pages to see if you’re consistent with headlines.

Kaizen examples for your marketing

• What is one way you can share your work today on one social media platform?

• Create 3 pins for Pinterest and automate them.

• Spend 10 minutes brainstorming ideas for new blog posts

Kaizen your sales process

• Can you spend 10 minutes thinking of ways to improve your customer onboarding process?

• Read through the first email someone gets when signing up for your newsletter. Can you make it sound 1% more like you?
  

When to use kaizen?

There is nothing wrong with innovation as a way to create change. Innovation, as the word is described in business schools,  means a drastic process of change.

The problem is that many of us think massive change is the only way to create change and improvements. And that's when kaizen is a wonderful alternative.

If you want to take a big step or go all-in on something that fires you up, great! Do that. But in my experience, those big spurts of energy don’t come around often. And in the meantime, taking small steps will still move your small creative business forward.

Kaizen works also when the first enthusiasm has died and you rely only on willpower. It definitely doesn’t work for me to rely purely on my willpower. I’m pretty persistent and I get stubborn about things. If I want to finish something, I will. It might take a while, but I’ll do it. And how I finish things are by taking small actions, small steps once in a while. It’s a slow approach but it keeps me moving forward.

It’s easier also to create a new habit by using small steps than by simply trusting you’ll always “feel like it” because you won’t feel like it most of the time. The smaller steps you use, the less resistance you’ll feel about making improvements to your business.

Writing out the different areas of your business that need a boost, much like I did above, can be a gentle help. Then under each category, come up with small steps you can take to make small changes.

It’s those small continuous steps that add up to huge changes, often without you really noticing.

Setting aside half an hour a week for small improvements will boost your business, it will keep you moving forward and you won’t get stressed about your mile-long to-do list because you’re doing it. It’s a win-win-win :)

Want help with your own personal creative process?

Hop on over to my contact page and let me know in the form what you need help with. I’d love to help you build your own creative process.