Stop Walking in Circles

Institute for Biological Cybernetics – TÜbingen, Germany

Research Finding #1

Institute for Biological Cybernetics

Without reliable cues for their walking direction

people who think they are heading in the right

direction – do in fact walk in circles.

Research Finding #2

Institute for Biological Cybernetics

Without a map or compass – people become

increasingly uncertain about where straight

ahead is.

Research Finding #3

Institute for Biological Cybernetics

The perception of walking in a straight line or

specific direction is highly unreliable.

Most individuals and many

Organizations don’t have a plan or a

process for getting them from where

they are now to where they want to

be.

The failure rate for small businesses in

the U.S. is 96% within the first 10 years

and …80% of those businesses fail

within the first two years of start-up.

Why?

One of the primary reasons is they

have no plan (strategy) for converting

their passion into a profitable

enterprise.

FranklinCovey Center for Advanced Research

“If you can’t describe what you’re doing as a process, you don’t know what you’re

doing.”W. Edwards Deming

“If you don’t know where you’re going, you might

end up somewhere else. Yogi Berra

Employee Goal Awareness Study

• 5 Year Study

• 6778 Employees

• 530 Companies / Organizations

• 9 Separate Sectors of the Economy

44Had no organizational objectives

45Couldn’t Name a Single Organizational Goal

Transportation & Utilities

48Couldn’t Name a Single Organizational Goal

Retail

49Couldn’t Name a Single Organizational Goal

Information

59Couldn’t Name a Single Organizational Goal

Financial Services

60Couldn’t Name a Single Organizational Goal

Manufacturing

62Couldn’t Name a Single Organizational Goal

Health & Education

63Couldn’t Name a Single Organizational Goal

Professional Consultants

69Couldn’t Name a Single Organizational Goal

Hospitality Industry

74Couldn’t Name a Single Organizational Goal

Public Administration

(Gov’t)

“When large numbers of American workers show up

to work each day knowing neither why they are there

nor what they are supposed to do all day, it means

American business is operating very inefficiently, and

that means poor service and lower profits.”

The Bottom Line

Tactical Operations

Strategic

TacticalExecution

WHAT? Big Picture –Overall Objective

WHERE is this going to take place?WHO does what?

Outperformers Action Plan

See Clearly

Focus Intently

Work Wisely

What you want to accomplish

Strategic InitiativesSpecific Goals

Daily/Weekly Focused Activity

Outperformers Action Plan

S.M.A.R.T Vision (What are you trying accomplish or achieve?) Specificity is key

· Timeline (90 days

· Product Offering(s)?

· Target Market?

· Geographical Scope

· Desired Revenue

Categories – Specific Areas of Focus

· Sales

· Marketing (Visibility)

· Process Improvement – Continuous Improvement

· Business Systems – Team Development

Initiatives – General plans of Action – Areas of Focus for your business

· Increase product sales

· Increase XYZ product sales

· Gain agency visibility through social media

· Improve sales skills – Personally and for my team

· Develop Sustainable Business Systems/Processes

Goals – Measurable Objectives (How Much? By When?

· Increase product sales by X%

· Increase PIFs by X%

· Informative Twitter and LinkedIn posts weekly

· Improve sales skills by learning…. By 8/31/14

Action Items – DAILY goal achievement activities

· 90 Minutes – every day

· Specific tasks

· EOD deadline

State Clearly What You Intend to

Accomplish

See Clearly

Focus Intently

Work Wisely

S.M.A R.T Vision Statements

On key initiativesLink daily activities toInitiatives & objectives

“A pile of rocks…. a cathedral.”Saint Exupéry

“The Only way to get the future you want is

to create it.”Peter Drucker

What are you wanting to accomplish or

achieve?

Specificity is the key

S.M.A.R.T. Vision

GAPAnalysisFromOurCurrentState–ToaDesiredState

WhereWeAreNowClearlydefinetheCurrentstate–beVeryspecific.

WhereWeWantToBE

Clearlydefinethepreferredstate–again,beveryspecific

.

TheGapClosedbydevelopingStrategiesandgoalsForclosingthegap.LimitthenumberofStrategiestonomoreThanfive

Timeline of 90 Days

Specific Product/Service Offering

Specific Target Market

Specific Geographic Scope

S.M.A.R.T. Vision

Why a 90 Day Timeline?

S.M.A.R.T. Vision

Within the next 90 days increase consulting

clients by 50% by focusing on “C” level

executives of medium sized companies in the

Phoenix metro area.

S.M.A.R.T. Vision

Outperformers Action Plan

S.M.A.R.T Vision (What are you trying accomplish or achieve?) Specificity is key

· Timeline (90 days

· Product Offering(s)?

· Target Market?

· Geographical Scope

· Desired Revenue

Categories – Specific Areas of Focus

· Sales

· Marketing (Visibility)

· Process Improvement – Continuous Improvement

· Business Systems – Team Development

Initiatives – General plans of Action – Areas of Focus for your business

· Increase product sales

· Increase XYZ product sales

· Gain agency visibility through social media

· Improve sales skills – Personally and for my team

· Develop Sustainable Business Systems/Processes

Goals – Measurable Objectives (How Much? By When?

· Increase product sales by X%

· Increase PIFs by X%

· Informative Twitter and LinkedIn posts weekly

· Improve sales skills by learning…. By 8/31/14

Action Items – DAILY goal achievement activities

· 90 Minutes – every day

· Specific tasks

· EOD deadline

Focus Intently - 3 Areas

See Clearly

Focus Intently

Work Wisely

What you want to accomplish

• Categories• Initiatives• Goals

Link daily activities toInitiatives & objectives

CategoriesAreas of Focus – Profit Centers

Category Initiative

Sales

Marketing

Process Improvement/Continuous Improvement

Business Systems / Team Development

Strategic

Initiatives

Categories Strategic Initiative

Sales Focus on newly promoted “C” level execs

Marketing Increase visibility in Phoenix metro area

Process Improvement/Continuous Improvement

Business Systems / Team Development

Measurable

GoalsInitiative Goal

Focus on newly promoted “C” level execs Speak with 10 “C” level prospects per week

Increase visibility in Phoenix metro area Implement direct mail campaign by 7/15/14

Process Improvement/Continuous Improvement

Business Systems / Team Development

“Goals are the fuel for the furnace

of achievement”

Brian Tracey

“If you can’t measure it, you can’t

manage it”

Anonymous

Action Plans – Daily Tasks

See Clearly

Focus Intently

Work Wisely

S.M.A.R.T. Vision

Strategic InitiativesMeasurable Goals

Do those things (daily) that willaccomplish stated objectives

“When an archer misses the mark he

looks for the fault within himself.

Failure to hit the bull’s eye is never

the fault of the target, if we want to

improve our aim we have to improve

ourselves.”Gilbert Orland

“The only measure of what you

believe is what you do...”

Ashley Montagu

“Failure is the result of a few errors

in judgement - repeated every day.”

Jim Rohn

“Success – is the result of a few simple

disciplines practiced every day.”

Jim Rohn

Action PlansMIAs

Most Important Activities

Goal MIAs

Speak with 10 “C” level prospects per week 10 Sales Calls every day this week

Implement direct mail campaign by 6/30/14 Draft direct mail campaign piece by 6/30/14

Action PlansMIAs

Most Important Activities

80/20 Time Management

Outperformers Action Plan

S.M.A.R.T Vision (What are you trying accomplish or achieve?) Specificity is key

· Timeline (90 days

· Product Offering(s)?

· Target Market?

· Geographical Scope

· Desired Revenue

Categories – Specific Areas of Focus

· Sales

· Marketing (Visibility)

· Process Improvement – Continuous Improvement

· Business Systems – Team Development

Initiatives – General plans of Action – Areas of Focus for your business

· Increase product sales

· Increase XYZ product sales

· Gain agency visibility through social media

· Improve sales skills – Personally and for my team

· Develop Sustainable Business Systems/Processes

Goals – Measurable Objectives (How Much? By When?

· Increase product sales by X%

· Increase PIFs by X%

· Informative Twitter and LinkedIn posts weekly

· Improve sales skills by learning…. By 8/31/14

Action Items – DAILY goal achievement activities

· 90 Minutes – every day

· Specific tasks

· EOD deadline

Achievement Solutions, LLC (DBA) Outperformers International

Six Success Keys

1. The size of your success will be determined by the size of the problems you

solve.

What big problems are you facing – solving?

2. Build and utilize your team. “None of us is as smart as all of us.”

Build your team around your deficits.

Leverage your team’s strengths.

Are you building / developing a team that leverages individual strengths?

3. The harder you work – the luckier you get.

The key – working on the “right things.” The right things contribute to your professional development and contribute to your company’s success.

What are the “right things for you and/or your company?

4. Focus & Clarity Rule – Multitasking is a myth.

“Good is the enemy of the best.” Activity does not equal productivity.

Are you carving out time – every day – to work on the “right things?”

5. Accept failure as a part of success.

See adversity as a challenge. Take calculated risks.

What’s the one risk you should be taking now?

6. Challenge yourself beyond your current capabilities. Strive for continuous

growth and learning.

Be greedy at getting better. Have a plan for personal and professional

development and WORK that plan.

Today’s PRIORITIES:

Date: ____________

MIA #1 ______________________________________________________________

Resources Needed: ________________________________________________

Challenges Expected: ______________________________________________

What finished will look like:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________ ___

______________________________________________________

Completed: ___Yes ___ No

MIA #2 ______________________________________________________________

Resources Needed: ________________________________________________

Challenges Expected: ______________________________________________

What finished will look like:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Completed: ___Yes ___ No

MIA #3 ______________________________________________________________

Resources Needed: ____________________________ ____________________

Challenges Expected: ______________________________________________

What finished will look like:

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________ ________________________________

Completed: ___Yes ___ No

“If you can’t describe what you’re doing as a process, you don’t know what you’re doing.”

W. Edwards Deming

Think Strategically

Act Tactically

See Clearly

Focus Intently

Work Wisely

What you want to accomplish

On what matters mostMIAs80/20 = 90

MIAs

Goals

Initiatives

Vision

Exercise

S.M.A.R.T. Vision

Draft a sample Outperformers Action

Plan – for some aspect of your business

The Bullet Proof Vest