Beyond the Whirlwind Utilizing the 4 disciplines of execution to achieve your team's wildly important goals

The 4 Disciplines of Execution (4DX)

WHIRLWIND The Day Job URGENT (It Acts on You) GOALS New Activities WHIRLWIND The Day Job URGENT (It Acts on You) IMPORTANT (You Act on It) When urgency and importance clash, urgency will win EVERY time.

Discipline #1: Focus on the Wildly Important CONVENTIONAL THINKING All of our goals are Priority 1. We can successfully multitask and succeed at five, ten, or fifteen important goals. All we need to do is work harder and longer… 4DX PRINCIPLE Many of our goals are important, but only one or two are wildly important. We call them WIGs. They are goals we must achieve. Our finest effort can only be given to one or two wildly important goals at a time.

Discipline #1: Focus on the Wildly Important THERE WILL ALWAYS BE MORE GOOD IDEAS THAN THERE IS CAPACITY TO EXECUTE

Discipline #2: Act on the Lead Measures CONVENTIONAL THINKING Keep your eye on the LAG measures: the quarterly results, the sales numbers, pounds lost. Stress out. Bite your nails while you wait. 4DX PRINCIPLE Focus on moving the LEAD measures. These are the high-leverage actions you take to get the lag measures to move.

Discipline #2: Act on the Lead Measures PREDICTIVE and INFLUENCEABLE LAG MEASURES Measures the Goal Lever (LEAD Measure) Rock (LAG Measure)

Discipline #3: Keep a Compelling Scoreboard CONVENTIONAL THINKING Scoreboards are for leaders. They are coach’s scoreboards that consist of complex spreadsheets with thousands of numbers. The big picture is in there somewhere, but few (if anyone) can easily see it. 4DX PRINCIPLE The scoreboard is for the whole team. To drive execution you need a players’ scoreboard that has a few simple graphs on it indicating: Here’s where we need to be and here’s where we are right now. In five seconds or less, anyone can determine whether or not we are winning or losing.

Discipline #3: Keep a Compelling Scoreboard 4 Characteristics of a Compelling Players’ Scoreboard It has to be SIMPLE. It has to be VISIBLE. It should show both the LEAD and LAG measures. It has to tell you immediately if you are WINNING or LOSING

Discipline #4: Create a Cadence of Accountability CONVENTIONAL THINKING Accountability on our team is always top down. We meet with the boss periodically and he lets us know how we’re doing and what we should focus on next. 4DX PRINCIPLE Accountability on our team is shared. We make commitments and then we’re accountable to our boss, but more important, to each other, for following through.

Discipline #4: Create a Cadence of Accountability WIG Session ACCOUNT Report on last week’s commitments Review Scoreboard Learn from successes and failures PLAN Clear the path and make commitments What are the 1 or 2 most important things I can do this week to impact the lead measures?

GIVE IT A GO! the4disciplinesofexecution.com Use the WIG builder tool to brainstorm ideas for a personal or team goal the4disciplinesofexecution.com