A part of my Trip Report about the Workshop on Material Flow Cost Accounting (MFCA) that will be submitted to Development Academy of the Philippines :)

...As to the knowledge and benefits I have received, I undeservedly received much and many. And three things really stood out from the rest.

The first was not even in the actual workshop but in all the traveling we did. In my calculation, we spent close to half of the time traveling. I saw and experienced Tokyo’s and Osaka’s transport infrastructure.

If one is to compare their infrastructure to that of Manila's, it is perfectly understandable to feel bad. The trains and buses were always on time. If Tokyo’s and Osaka’s is a masterpiece, Manila will be close to a blank canvass. But if one is to look at this truth from a different perspective, being a blank canvass means we are simply starting. And all the possibilities and better things is still ahead of us. And what makes this even more exciting is we now have many inspirations to draw from.

The second take-away from my seven days and six nights in Tokyo and Osaka happened during the Monday morning session with Furukawa-san.

I shared with the class during our Q&A portion that it was nice to hear the MFCA’s success story in Nitto Denko. But I was wondering and curious about the problems they faced early on, over a decade ago, as they started to implement MFCA. They were the first one to implement MFCA in Japan. They definitely met problems, new problems. I thought it was of value if I knew beforehand what they were so that I can watch out for them and be ready for them as I implement MFCA back in the Philippines.

I was pleasantly surprise with the very generous answer Furukawa-san gave. Instead of a problem list, he gave me a prescription on a better way to start.

And the third pearl I receive is to not let the fear of the unknown and of new problems stop us in trying and in solving them. For if the problem is of true significance and of importance, the wisdom one generates or acquires in the process of solving and in finally solving the problem gives one a valuable trait over those who are simply comfortable with being users of the proven solution. I think this is the spirit and the reason why the current acknowledged and highly regarded MFCA experts are Japanese. This spirit made our hosts - sensei.

And to honor the generosity I received from APO, JPC and DAP - when I see a problem, either new or old, I will be thankful for it then smile more broadly and then start solving it until it is done.

"...why think like mere men?"