A Good Idea Without Execution Is Worthless — How To Execute.
“Ideas don’t make you rich. The correct execution of ideas does.”- Felix Dennis
The Whirlwind
A good idea without execution is worthless.
The authors of ‘THE 4 DISCIPLINES OF EXECUTION’ found out that people who struggle with executing their ideas are completely consumed by ‘The Whirlwind’.
What is ‘The Whirlwind’?
Have you ever thought: “Wow, I was busy all week but I don’t feel like I accomplished a damn thing”. That’s the whirlwind.
Everything in the whirlwind seems urgent and you end the week partially executing many different things without making any actual progress during the week. To combat this, you need a system of execution to withstand the power of the whirlwind and this is broken down in ‘The 4 Disciplines of Execution:
1. Focus on your W.I.G — Widely Important Goal
“Discipline 1 is about applying more energy against fewer goals” — Chris McChesney
To avoid spreading yourself too thin and accomplishing very little, use your energy to focus on your ‘WIG’ whilst doing the minimum to focus on other less urgent tasks.
So, how do you find your WIG (Widely Important Goal)? One thing to consider is — if everything remained constant, what ONE achievement would make everything else seem secondary?
For example, if you want to write 5 blog posts by the end of the week to feel accomplished, but have many other commitments and are struggling to get it done. Identify those 5 blog posts as your ‘WIG’ and tackle that first thing in the morning when your energy and focus are high, whilst giving less focus on those less urgent tasks.
Just by acknowledging that a task is of more importance than another, you are able to give it more attention and are more likely to achieve the results you want at the end of the week.
2. Measure Lead Behaviours
Execution will suffer if we mismeasure our progress.
There’s a difference between measuring progress in a factual, literal way and measuring the outside factors that can contribute more to success. These factors are lead behaviours.
For example, if you are trying to lose weight, rather than weighing yourself every week as a way of measurement, measure how many miles you run per week and try to do more in the next week. This way you are measuring things will actually allow you to make progress rather than ‘progress’ which is static.
Furthermore, measure small wins. You posted 1 blog post today, well done, and on to the next. You don’t have to post 3 in one day to make it a win.
Increasing those lead behaviours will increase overall results.
3. Put up a Scoreboard
“People play differently when they know the score” — C. McChesney
Any goal you have, just by ‘knowing the score’ and making it competitive, there is an increase in will & fuel to win.
It’s human nature.
4. Weekly Accountability Talks
Accountability peers.
Having people around you who are aware of your goals can be so powerful. You’re not only letting yourself down by not keeping to your word, but you are also letting your peers down.
Have a talk with those peers at the end of the week and talk about the progress you had made on your goals. That sense of accountability will create a powerful routine of execution.
Verbally committing to goals naturally creates a strong desire to honour your word and prevent ‘The Whirlsind’.
“Once you’ve decided what to do, your biggest challenge is in getting people to execute it at the level of excellence you need.” — Chris McChesney
Have a great week!
Abdullah
Check out my Blog & FREE eBook with lifestyle tips talking about my journey from rejection in medical school to now getting within the top 10% in the UK.
