Few of us think of eating as a process, but it is. And, just like any process, there are wastes that can be categorized into the 7 Wastes. For example, one could even commit Overproduction – in other words, eat more than is needed. The customer in this case is your stomach. Religious folks call this Gluttony. But, we’ll steer away from anything religious.
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The point is this: if you’re eating more than your body needs, you’re overproducing and getting more calories than you need. The result? You’ll probably gain weight. Interestingly, Facebook knows all about this and has come up with an interesting way to mistake-proof the eating process [1. source: http://mashable.com/2012/04/07/facebook-hq/#57853Facebook-Food].
Facebook is growing and is in need of expanding their Headquarters. And, they’ve needed to look at their approach for providing free food to their employees, a perk that Facebook employees really love. But, how do they avoid the behavior that almost always comes with anything “free” attached to it, especially “free food”?
What do you see in the picture below? Or, more accurate, what don’t you see? Notice there is no tray — Facebook thinks you’ll eat too much unless you only carry a plate. In other words, this is a way to Poka-Yoke the waste of overeating.
What do you think? Do you think something as simple as not providing a tray will prevent the behavior of getting more food than you need?
Pete,
This is a great idea, and there’s science to back it up. Just read about the popcorn experiment from the great book “Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard”.
Well, the absence of a tray does make it harder to balance the plate full of food, the side desert, the salad and the 1200-calorie soft drink….
A simple but effective idea. And over time, they can switch to even smaller plates!
not a great idea because the process of eating is control by behavior . switching a tray for a plate your brain automatically deploys anti safeguards and says to your conscious to just get another plate. if you want to control overeating and still provide free food a better poke-yoke could be – its round of food on your plate is on Us – second round you pay!
I think the idea is that on average, people won’t want to take the extra effort of getting another plate. If that 2nd plate cost something, that would also work to reduce overeating.
The comment above mentioned the popcorn study, which gave people unlimited popcorn at a movie, and those given bigger bags ate more without realizing it. So there is some evidence that size of the plate, tray or container does make an impact.
For a good resource about Lean and eating health, check out Paul Akers free eBook, “Lean Health.” He talks about your body as a corvette, and not to put in defects. He also explains how the 7 forms of waste apply to diet. You can download for free at http://paulakers.net/books/lean-health