My wife and I recently returned from Sicily, where we completed a grand tour of the island by car in about two weeks.

Reflecting on our experience in Sicily, there are three items that are relevant to both work and daily life.

Stopped is worse than slow

An axiom as relevant on the shop floor as it is in traffic. Sicilian drivers seem to take this to heart: traffic rarely comes to a complete stop. Stop signs are treated as a suggestion rather than the law. The interesting bit is that no one “blows through” a stop sign. As drivers approach stop signs they slow down, check for cross traffic, then continue through the intersection without stopping if it is clear. When cross traffic is present, a barely perceptible order is created and drivers take turns…though often at the same time. At a busy intersection with a 4-way stop, it is not uncommon to see three or four cars in a bit of a scrum in the middle of the intersection. At first, this seemed chaotic. But after a day or so we realized: it just works. In two weeks, we witnessed no accidents and saw the aftermath of only one. Another observation is that road rage is nearly nonexistent. In Palermo and Siracusa, we heard horns honk and saw a few drivers toss their hands up in frustration in high-traffic areas. We also witnessed drivers constantly getting cut off, but the “victim” being cut off was never offended. The act wasn’t an affront to one’s esteem–and it wasn’t aggression on the part of another driver–it was simply thinking and acting in terms of flow.

A computer in your pocket is a game-changer

In 2014, newly engaged, my wife and I backpacked through Europe for a little over two months. We had a cell phone that could complete calls over wifi and a tablet to download maps to. We went to Rome a few years ago with the same setup, never wanting to putz with swapping SIM cards. Prior to leaving for Sicily a friend told me about Airalo - a company that sells eSIM cards. (An eSIM has the same functionality as a SIM card, except there is no physical chip to insert into your phone.) I purchased one for my iPhone prior to leaving and it was one of the best decisions I have made while traveling. Instead of stopping at an airport bodega or an electronics shop in an unfamiliar city, I only had to change a few settings on my phone when we landed to activate the eSIM and access the data network. This allowed us to use location for Google Maps - a necessity for driving 500 miles on highways, rural paths, and many mazes of city streets that have existed for centuries.

The other remarkable piece of technology we frequently relied on was Google Lens. Google Lens is an augmented reality app that allows users to scan a menu, sign, or other text in a foreign language to translate the text. The text appears on a user’s screen in real time in the language of their choosing. While menus and signage in tourist destinations (Palermo, Trapani, Taormina) typically included English translations, those in smaller towns, rural areas, or restaurants off the beaten path didn’t include such accommodation.

Finally, for the few situations in which we truly couldn’t communicate with someone, we’d take a phone out and pop a word or phrase into Google Translate, then show the phone to them. This worked equally well for a helpful host typing a phrase in Italian and translating it to English as it did for us when translating English entries into Italian.

Unbridled hospitality

One of the easiest ways to get along with anyone is to treat them like you’ve known them for a decade. This is taken to the extreme in Sicily, where we were treated phenomenally by pretty much everyone we interacted with. Whether a waiter, the owner of a bed & breakfast, a receptionist at a hotel, or a gas station attendant, our interactions were notably positive. The accommodating style of everyone made us feel at home, almost as if we were with family. The genuine hospitality we experienced was delightful and memorable.

Learning from travel

We are fortunate beyond measure to have the opportunity and means to travel. The perspective, experience, and empathy gained through traveling are well worth the price of admission. Thinking about what I’ve learned while traveling in Sicily, I’ll reiterate the relevance of these lessons now that we’re back home:

1. Stopped is worse than slow.

   Stopping an assembly line or a continuous flow process for any period is more detrimental to productivity than going slowly for the same duration. Even if things are just moving, we can observe, learn, experiment, and improve to get back on track.

2. A computer in your pocket is a game-changer.

   While scrolling through a favorite app, it is easy to take a smartphone for granted. Translating, way-finding, and augmented reality are just a few spectacular uses of technology. For managers, team leaders, and those in operational excellence roles, it is imperative to continually think about how we can use technology to make work easier and less frustrating for those who we serve.

3. Unbridled hospitality.

   Lean practitioners and CI professionals are familiar with the lean principle of respect for people (a translation of “respect for human resources” from The Toyota Way). The concept of respect for people includes everything from personal and professional development to utilizing talent appropriately and keeping team members motivated.

    

   But the underlying theme of respect for people is to keep humanity in the workplace. Simply put: everyone we work with is someone’s child. They may also be someone’s parent, sibling, spouse, partner, grandparent, or favorite aunt. When a supplier misses a delivery, a colleague misses a deadline, or a product is assembled incorrectly it’s easy to get frustrated because things didn’t go how we planned. The better mode of action is asking yourself how you would treat someone you’ve known for 10 years. Would you get upset with them? Or would you ask how you could help to ensure it doesn’t happen again?

I’m closing this week’s newsletter with a quote from Anthony Bourdain.

Cliche? Of course!

Relevant? Eternally.