"My grandmother once gave me some advice: in difficult times, take small steps... do what you have to do, but little by little. Don't think about the future or what might happen tomorrow. Wash the dishes, remove the dust, write a letter, make soup. You know what I mean? You take one step at a time... take one step and stop... rest... congratulate yourself... take another step... then another. You won't notice it, but your steps will get bigger and bigger. And the moment will come when you'll be able to think about the future without crying" E. Miklalkova.

Did you know that fear is an emotion that delivers a language of protection?

Yes, but often this fear freezes us, preventing us from moving forward and realising our dreams. By protecting ourselves, we stop living and daring to do new things.

And why is that?

We have a reflex zone in our brain. Since the birth of man on earth, this part of the brain has been protecting us from danger by reflex, and fortunately so! Without this function, we would not have fled from a predator. The problem is that we very often use this part, without calling on another part that allows us to think, anticipate and create. We react too much in the "reflex zone", very often remaining in this "uncomfortable" comfort zone of what we know, which prevents us from being afraid by denying us the opportunity to experiment and see opportunities.

It's this comfort zone that prevents us from exploring life, the world and our projects. We remain convinced that what we know is the truth and our fate.

How can we overcome these fears?

It's not easy to explore a new path, one that's different from what we've encountered up to now and that allows us to do unexpected things, to explore unknown lands, while facing up to our paralysing fear.

Born in Japan and established after the Second World War, the Kaizen way is a philosophy that enables us to develop our goals.

The word "KAIZEN" is a fusion of two words (in Japanese) meaning "change and better". So it's a philosophy of continuous improvement.

To illustrate this, we could talk about climbing a ladder, without looking up, but focusing on each rung. If you focus on the success or finality of your project, you could trigger fear, which prevents you from leaving your comfort zone with the belief that "I've never done it and I never will". And you stay at the bottom of the ladder.

The kaizen way suggests that you climb each rung, making the most of each step and knowing that you'll end up at the top anyway.

So you think thoughts like these: what small steps can I take to get closer to my dream? What have I achieved today? What can I congratulate myself on?

The best thing is to value each stage, each moment and to focus on each pleasure. We succeed when we have pleasure, and we have the power to put pleasure into each step. These are two beliefs that enable us to move forward.

A method that develops self-confidence because each rung on the ladder brings you success and brings you closer to your goal. This very calming method has proved its worth and companies use it as a team management model. Not to mention the fact that it develops creativity: at each step, you look for small, easy solutions, and move out of the fear zone into the discovery and learning zone.

It brings simplicity, pleasure, peace and success. It can be applied in all areas of our lives. Happy Kaizen to you.

Sophie Mercier