My Next FREE Workshop at the Richmond Hill Library is on March 6, 2012

Lost your Job?  Hate your Job?

Discover what you want and go for it!

Have you been laid off once or multiple times? Are fearful that you may be laid off soon?  Do you feel stuck in your current career? Do you  want to change direction but don’t know how?  Are you ready to be proactive and make a plan for your life?

I can help! I provide a supportive and positive learning environment and empower people to achieve their full potential and realize their dreams. It is all about taking action and taking 100 % responsibility for your life and for your results!

Sometimes it's tough to stay positive considering all the fears and insecurities we have to deal with. However, I have learned from my own experience that attitude is everything and it is my goal to communicate to YOU how you can turn a positive outlook in your job search into action.

Come and join me! It's time to sign up.....

My commitment to you is to give you positive energy, a lot of new ideas and a fantastic workshop without any investment for you, except your time. If you give me your commitment to participate, please do not let anything prevent you from attending. It will be well worth your time and effort.

This attitude alone will separate you from others who are looking a job. I firmly believe, how you do anything is how you do everything!

"When one door closes, another opens. But we often look so regretfully upon the closed door that we don't see the one that has opened for us."

~ Helen Keller

When? March 6 from 6 pm - 8.45 pm

Where? Central Library, 1 Atkinson Street, Richmond Hill, L4C 0H5 (west/south corner of Major Mackenzie and Yonge)
Why? This is our contribution to serve the community

Please register @ the Library or via email at karin@karicosolutions.com.

Manufacturing Excellence - Inspire, Lead and Succeed with INNOVATION!

"There's a way to do it better—find it."
~ Thomas Edison

Yesterday I attended an event on innovation at the SME (Society of Manufacturing Engineers). It was very interesting to hear all the different insights and perspectives from people who work in the industry.

Innovation can happen on so many levels and that's the exciting part. The backbone of our economy in the future will certainly be innovative start-up companies with the drive to change the world as we know it. There were discussions around protecting IP (intellectual property) but also about the power of collaboration. Should we trust others with a great idea? I would like to think so but reality shows that many times you can't. There are simply too many people who would do anything to make a profit and easily forget about values such as honesty, integrity and ethics. 

Can it be that we need a lesson or two on character building and basic life skills?

From my perspective, I believe that the most overlooked and least understood concept of innovation lies within the development of great ideas from the shop floor. It's the subtle discipline of making small and effective changes on a continuous basis. At the SME event yesterday it was suggested that 90 % of businesses don't understand the stages from having an idea to the successful implementation of this idea. Isn't this mind-boggling?

What would it be like if the corporate culture would fully support employees to constantly look for better ways of doing things?

Where could we be if more people in management would show a sincere interest in engaging people's hearts and minds? 

What could be achieved if we looked at every single idea with the full intention to implement it or at least to make a partial use of this idea? 

What if we embraced ideas more readily? 

What if we looked at ideas as a new possibility instead of an increase of unnecessary workload?

What if we would delegate the responsibility of making it happen to the people who do the actual job?

Continuous improvement is a must if we want to succeed in our endeavours to compete in this global market. The only way to separate ourselves from the competition will be creativity and innovation and this will require encouragement from the top. Standardized processes can hold people back from asking themselves if there is a better way. While standards are important, we shouldn’t forget that standards require regular review and improvement.

The ability to preserve what worked well in the past and move forward with successful new developments will depend on how well inter-generational groups can work together. The key is the right combination of an appreciation of wisdom and experience, and the acknowledgment of fresh ideas and vision for the future. Mutual respect and open-mindedness at all levels of the organization will also be critical. As long we keep this in mind we will be able to overcome roadblocks more easily. 

Inspire, Lead and Succeed Together for a Sexier Tomorrow!

In order to change people's perception, 

we have to start painting a different picture of the manufacturing industry.

~ Karin Lindner

I am proud to say that I finished writing my book "How Can We Make Manufacturing Sexy? A Mindset of Passion and Purpose". It's now in the final stages and will be on the market very soon. 

It is time for change and to make people think! I understand that it may be easier to point the blame at others than assuming responsibility. However, I do believe that we all have to take full responsibility for what's happening. Every single one of us is part of the big picture.  

I have started to share my unconventional insights and observations with the General Public at various Toastmaster and Rotary Clubs. Recently I also had the opportunity to speak at the SME (Society of Manufacturing Engineers) and on February 23 I will speak at the CTMA (Canadian Tooling & Machining Association).

CTMA Event in Windsor on February 23, 2012

I believe most people in the industry are not aware how negative people's perception about the manufacturing industry really is. It is astounding how much I find out during and after my talks. Whenever I ask people outside of the manufacturing industry what comes to their mind when they think about manufacturing I hear words such as dull, boring, mindless jobs, dirty, long hours, unsafe, shift work, no education, assembly line, pollution, and the list goes on.

Obviously this is still the mindset of the industrialized age and most people don't seem to realize that we have already entered the knowledge worker age a couple of years ago. 

In the picture above you see the inside of the most innovative factory in the world - the transparent Volkswagen Factory in Dresden, Germany. It is half assembly plant, half museum. Highly automated, glass wherever you look, white overalls for the workers and Canadian Maple hardwood floor. This is the image that we should have in mind when we think about manufacturing because this is the future.

After my presentation people feel inspired and they tell me, "You have taught us newfound respect for manufacturing", "I have never looked at manufacturing this way", "You made us aware that this could be an interesting and rewarding career choice for our children", or "You gave us a lot to think about today."

Can we be surprised when people don't encourage their children to go into an industry that displays this kind of image? They are simply not aware about the opportunities and what the future will bring. 

Manufacturing environments are changing and progressive companies "get it" and go with the times.

However, in too many manufacturing facilities people lack hope, they don't have a voice and more often than not they are looked at as bodies and not as minds. On the other hand it's exhausting for management teams to get their workforce to go above and beyond. 

Doesn’t it make a lot of sense that when you can make a job, a product or service, and a business “appealing”, “wanted”, or even “coveted” by future apprentices, employees, employers, and customers that you have found the key to success? It is surprising what’s possible with the right mindset, attitude and drive. If we would have more sexy leadership, we would have more sexy businesses, and with that more sexy employee attitudes that could result in a sexier tomorrow.

Manufacturing Leadership Challenge ~ What If All You Need Is Feedback?

Some of the best and brightest people will tell you that one of the key elements to their success is ongoing constructive feedback. Why is it that many in the corporate world shy away from either giving or receiving feedback? When done correctly, constructive feedback can be extremely motivating. You may want to keep in mind my simple, common sense approach to feedback. Take a look!

Video # 100 ~ Karin's Bloopers

Since January 2010 I have produced weekly videos to serve the manufacturing industry. If you take a look @ my youtube channel, you will notice how much better I have become since I started. Practice, practice, practice and continuous effort is the price you have to pay when you want to consistently get better at what you do. However, I believe that life is sometimes far too serious and that's why I also like to have fun along the way. This is video # 100 and it is a laughing matter. If you want to start your week with a good laugh at my expense, please take a look at a couple of bloopers from my past video productions. Enjoy!

My Next FREE Workshop at the Richmond Hill Library is on February 7, 2012

Lost your Job?  Hate your Job?

Discover what you want and go for it!

Have you been laid off once or multiple times? Are fearful that you may be laid off soon?  Do you feel stuck in your current career? Do you  want to change direction but don’t know how?  Are you ready to be proactive and make a plan for your life?

I can help! I provide a supportive and positive learning environment and empower people to achieve their full potential and realize their dreams. It is all about taking action and taking 100 % responsibility for your life and for your results!

Sometimes it's tough to stay positive considering all the fears and insecurities we have to deal with. However, I have learned from my own experience that attitude is everything and it is my goal to communicate to YOU how you can turn a positive outlook in your job search into action.

Come and join me! It's time to sign up.....

My commitment to you is to give you positive energy, a lot of new ideas and a fantastic workshop without any investment for you, except your time. If you give me your commitment to participate, please do not let anything prevent you from attending. It will be well worth your time and effort.

This attitude alone will separate you from others who are looking a job. I firmly believe, how you do anything is how you do everything!

"When one door closes, another opens. But we often look so regretfully upon the closed door that we don't see the one that has opened for us."

~ Helen Keller

When? February 7 from 6 pm - 8.45 pm

Where? Central Library, 1 Atkinson Street, Richmond Hill, L4C 0H5 (west/south corner of Major Mackenzie and Yonge)
Why? This is our contribution to serve the community

Please register @ the Library or via email at karin@karicosolutions.com.

Excellence - Did You Know?

Each day we have many decisions to make but have you ever thought about the decisions you make unconsciously? Do you find yourself making decisions without really thinking? It is my firm belief that most of us are not used to thinking. In fact, it has been psychologically proven that the majority of us are on auto-pilot. Do you want to learn more? Take a look.