Commit to Self‑Development: From Principle to Practice
Author: George Trachilis
For me, “commit to self‑development” was never an abstract idea. It meant going to the source.
Early in my journey, I realized that understanding leadership required more than studying frameworks—it required understanding origins. For that reason, my commitment took me to Japan, where the thinking behind disciplined leadership and daily practice was formed and lived.
In 2011, I made a personal commitment to share what I was learning with everyone in my network. I believed then, as I do now, that leadership development only matters if it is shared, practiced, and made accessible to others.
By 2012, Norman Bodek began referring to what he called “the world’s best system for day‑to‑day management.” His reference immediately caught my attention. I attended his workshops twice and traveled to Japan twice more—not just to learn, but to carefully observe and record the full system that would later become known globally as the Harada Method.
Over time, I conducted more than 100 webinars with Norman Bodek, and a similar number with Dr. Jeffrey K. Liker, author of The Toyota Way to Lean Leadership. Through these conversations and engagements, a pattern became increasingly clear: most leaders were missing the fundamentals.
The four‑pillar Lean leadership model articulated in Developing Lean Leaders at All Levels —
- Commit to self‑development
- Coach and develop others
- Support daily improvement
- Create vision and align goals
—was both elegant and powerful. Yet in practice, I saw that the first pillar, commit, was often undervalued or misunderstood.
Earlier in my career, I did not fully appreciate the weight of that first responsibility. As a consultant and coach working closely with executives, however, I began to see how frequently the absence of disciplined self‑development at the leadership level ensured failure—regardless of strategy, tools, or intent.
Then came the Harada Method.
When I first shared the inner workings of the Harada Method with Jeff Liker, his response stayed with me. He said, “This is very good. It has all the elements of scientific thinking built in.” That observation mattered—not as an endorsement, but as confirmation that the method aligned deeply with the principles underlying Lean leadership.
Initially, I believed the Harada Method primarily addressed the missing “commit to self‑development” pillar. Over time, I realized I was mistaken.
The Harada Method is not a partial solution. It is a complete system—one that supports all four elements of the Lean Leadership Development Model. It integrates commitment, coaching, support, and alignment through disciplined daily practice, reflection, and responsibility.
What had long been implicit became explicit. What had been expected became structured. What had been uneven became teachable and repeatable.
That is why stewarding the Harada Method today is not about introducing something new, but about restoring balance and discipline to leadership development—at both the personal and organizational level.
For leaders interested in understanding how this system is applied within large organizations, I welcome a conversation. A focused 55‑minute discussion is often enough to explore whether the Harada Method can meaningfully support disciplined leadership development in your context.