“What makes a personal kanban any better than a to-do list?” asked Julie, crossing out a completed task on her “ta da!” list with exaggerated strokes.

“With personal kanban you visualize your work, it becomes tangible, you get kinesthetic feedback, it’s flexible, contextual,  and it promotes completion and clarity,” said Kara. “To-do lists don’t.”

The 2011 International Shingo Prize Conference & Workshops are ready, set, and going this week in Covington, Kentucky, at the Cincinnati Northern Kentucky Convention Center. The main conference is Wednesday and Thursday, March 30–31, featuring dynamic learning sessions with expanded networking opportunities for more one-on-one time with the speakers and Shingo Prize recipients.

There is a group effort commencing beneath the English city of Nottingham with a main goal of assessing the archaeological importance of nearly 500 man-made caves that were cut into the sandstone during medieval times and possibly earlier. The caves have served many purposes from housing dungeons, beer and wine cellars, malt-kilns, tanneries, and even a bowling alley, to serving as air-raid shelters, sand mines, and summer homes.