Although I’ve sensed for more than 40 years that it’s been difficult for me to separate egg yolks from white…
- it’s hard to break the egg at the first hit
- shell parts mix with egg white or yolk
- the variation that happens tossing the yolk back and forth from one shell half to the other
- the variation that happens with spots of egg yolk in egg white
… it wasn’t until recently that I acknowledged how these variations (mura) and overburden (muri) had wasted eggs, not to mention my time (muda).
What does all of this have to do with Lean? Here’s the teaching.
We must be prepared to deal with these three evils (variation, overburden, and waste) and how they interact with each other in every area of our lives, 24/7/365. We must acknowledge variations in results and time spent and know that there’s overburden associated with this variation. And we must identify waste and find ways to lower it.
If you’re curious, here’s the “how-to” on separating egg whites from yolks.
Now, let’s think of this problem in terms of an opportunity/challenge. Next time you break an egg:
- acknowledge the mura you’re dealing with (mura = parts of shell in white or yolk)
- acknowledge the overburden when it happens (muri = what a challenge it is to break an egg shell in only two parts, doing this right the first time, every time)
- try to get rid of waste/muda (muda = time you spend removing shell parts in egg yolk or egg white)
Have any ideas for breaking an egg shell in exactly two half parts, without mixing yolk and white, doing it right the first time, every time? How are you dealing with mura, muri, and muda in your work?
