How Disciplines Drive Goal Achievement

When a goal is that important to you, it becomes a Wildly Important Goal (WIG), or some people may even refer to big important goals as BHAGs (Big Hairy Audacious Goals). Whatever you want to call them, they are essential to you; therefore, a way to achieve them is needed.

I remember setting a goal to own my own home after being in the rental market for many years as a single mum raising two children. I finally set myself a goal to achieve this dream within three years. Nothing got in my way; it became my focus, influencing how I managed my finances. The day I signed the paperwork and finally became a homeowner was one of the proudest moments of my life. My wildly important goal at that time had been achieved. Then, I set my next WIG to complete my MBA while working full-time.

“When you work on that many goals, you actually work on none of them because the amount of energy you can put into each one is so small, it’s meaningless.” Chris McChesney

A Wildly Important Goal can transform your business or life. It is often ambitious and impactful, offering growth or change that makes everything else easier or more effective. WIGs can range from launching a new product to achieving financial independence, becoming a market leader in your industry or simply achieving something to prove to yourself you can. In this fast-paced world of business and life, getting lost in the whirlwind of daily demands, distractions, and urgent tasks is easy. However, real success comes from focusing on a select goal that truly matters. This is what Wildly Important Goals are. If achieved, these goals will make the most significant difference in your personal and professional life. In business, they will usually be ones that will fundamentally change or influence the results being achieved to scale or achieve growth. As Chris McChesney says in the book, 'The 4 Disciplines of Execution',  which he co-authored with Sean Covey and Jim Huling, “When you work on that many goals, you actually work on none of them because the amount of energy you can put into each one is so small, it’s meaningless.”

But how do you identify, prioritise, and achieve these WIGs? Let’s break it down.

'The 4 Disciplines of Execution’ (4DX) is a book about achieving wildly important goals. One of the testimonials in this book was written by Stephen R. Covey, the author of ‘The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People’. Covey stated, "In place of the top-down, control-orientated management techniques of the industrial age, the four disciplines offer…an approach that engages people’s hearts and minds towards a common goal, unlike anything I've seen. Truly a profound work!"

The concept is to focus on a few highly impactful goals rather than being spread too thin across many initiatives. Like anything we do, where focus goes, energy flows, and action shows. When we pay attention to what is essential and have a best practice framework to develop and an approach that is proven to be effective, results will be achieved.

Here are five steps to help you achieve what you want that incorporate the 4 disciplines of execution principles:

Step 1 - Identify the Wildly Important Goal.

Ask yourself what will make the most significant difference to achieve the desired results. The WIG can come from within the whirlwind or from outside the whirlwind. From within it could be a system or process that is so ineffective that fixing it will make a fundamental difference to you or the business . If it is from without it could be a new product or service, a big opportunity that will make a difference to your business.

Step 2 - Bring focus to the Wildly Important Goal.

Discipline 1 of 4DX is all about focus. It teaches that exceptional execution starts with a narrow focus and identifying what must be achieved. Have a rule that there is no more than 2 WIGs at any one time. Is the goal clear and able to be measured? What gets measured gets managed. Use the SMART goal-setting framework to ensure it is specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound.

Step 3 - Create lead measures and act on them.

Discipline 2 of 4DX is all about leverage. All effective business planning includes a significant focus on leveraged activities because 80% of the results will come from 20% of your activities. Therefore, focusing on the right ones is imperative, as these are your lead measures to move you towards the result, the goal to be achieved. This discipline is based on the principle that all actions are not created equal, so identify and act on the activities with the highest leverage.

Step 4 - Measure what you are managing.

Discipline 3 of 4DX relates to engagement. People play differently when you measure and track progress and results because the score is being kept. Keep a scorecard of the results and focus on achievements by measuring backwards, not forwards. A scorecard is your lag measure, the result of what you said you would do with your lead measures. Did you or did you not achieve that activity and move towards the goal?

Step 5 - Create a culture of accountability.

The fourth discipline relates to creating a cadence of accountability. How will progress be made if you are not holding yourself or the team accountable? Even if you are a sole trader, having an accountability buddy is a great way to hold yourself accountable. Accountability is a weekly check-in, a process to highlight successes, review failures (which is just feedback to try something different), and adjust the activities as needed to keep moving towards the goal. This is a people-driven performance management system where self-leadership has a significant impact.

Achieving wildly important goals requires focus, discipline, and commitment. By using these five steps that incorporate The 4 Disciplines of Execution, you will set yourself up for success. Having a plan using these five steps will help keep a focus on achieving high-leveraged activities that can impact the scale and growth of the business. By allocating resources such as time and people, results can be achieved while managing the daily whirlwind of activities and tasks in everyday business life. It is all about focus.

Book a complimentary strategy session if you want help setting goals and focusing on achieving results. We look forward to connecting.