Poka-Yoke

• Seiri: Separate needed tools, parts, and instructions in the work area and keep only essential items within reach. Everything else is stored or discarded. This leads to fewer hazards and less clutter to interfere with productive work.
  
• Seiton: Neatly arrange and identify parts and tools for the easiest and most efficient access. There must be a place for everything, and everything must be in its place.
  
• Seiso: Keep your workplace clean as well as neat - at the end of each shift, clean up the work area so everything is restored to its place.
  
• Seiketsu: Conduct seiri, seiton, and seiso at frequent, indeed daily, intervals to maintain a workplace in perfect condition.
  
• Shitsuke: Sustain discipline. Maintain these standards and keep the facility in safe and efficient order day after day, year after year.



I've got nothing to do.

I'm here. I'm awake. I'm ..ready to do something. But there's nothing for me to do, and it's worrying the hell out of me. I'm sending out emails that say "hey, is there anything you need me to do?" but I'm not hearing anything back because everyone else has something to do. Everyone else is busy.

I shouldn't freak out about this. I'm new. I don't have access to all the software that I need yet. I haven't been formally trained on everything I'm supposed to be doing. It's mid December and most people's minds are on the Christmas party or their upcoming vacations. But I can't help it -- after the debacle at my previous "new" job, I'm terrified that I'm going to find a way to screw this one up too.

The last thing I need is for someone to call me into their office and talk about how they are concerned about my "apparent lack of enthusiasm" (which was the clever euphemism the last company I was with used to describe how they felt about me falling asleep in my chair during a conference call on my third day with them).

What I want is to have something going on, something "in process" or "pending approval" where I don't have to feel like I'm just sitting here waiting to get canned. I want to be able to wave off anyone who comes by my desk to ask me how my week has gone because I'm socked with paperwork, or have a meeting with the Bobs or something.

I'm not web surfing, I'm taking the edge off until legal gets off their asses!

But really all I've been doing is shuffling papers and trying to look busy, like some news anchorman waiting for the cameras to cut off. Part of me wants to go into my bosses office and say "Hey pal, what kind of outfit are you running here -- I could be doing this at home!"

But the rest of me is all too aware that this is exactly what I was doing the last six months.

At least this way I'm getting paid, you know?

Hopefully one of those emails will catch someone's eye and I'll get called up to start on a project. Or maybe that one guy I need to get a signature from will show up. Then at least I'd have some sort of sense of direction, or at least an excuse as to why they should be paying me an hourly wage, you know?

But at the same time -- this is still me we're talking about here

It's not like I actually want to do anything

I just hate not having anything to do.

[Listening to: David Bowie, "Ashes to Ashes"]