4DX

The book that has been my focus for this week is The 4 Disciplines of Execution by McChesney, Covey, and Huling. I loved this book! This book appealed to me for so many reasons.

First, the book gave a name to the chaos that is the majority of my day.....the whirlwind. The whirlwind takes up at least 80% of the day. It comprises most of what must be done, but it does not lead to change.

Secondly, I loved the acronym WIG! The Wildly Important Goal (WIG) is the one goal that leads to change. I also learned that the WIG and the Whirlwind are in battle. They battle for your attention, time, and dedication. Brief meetings are the key to combating the attention battle. Work the whirlwind during the day. However, have regularly scheduled brief meetings to speak only about the WIG. Give an update on what has been done with the lead measures and how that impacts the lag measures and the WIG. After the updates, state what will be done during the time until the next meeting. The important part of the meeting is the brief time period (no more than 30 minutes), and the intense focus during the meeting. The whirlwind needs to be left out of the meeting.

While reading the book, I learned that most people are focus on the wrong measures while trying to create change. The lead measures are what can be done that will have an effect on the lag measures and the lead to accomplishing the WIG. Most people look at the lag measure and not the lead measure. I learned that like many frustrated with lack of change, I was focusing on the lag measure and not the lead measure.

The most surprising detail I learned from the book was the use of the scoreboard. I'm a football fan, and know the importance of the scoreboard during the game. I'm surprised that I have never thought about using a scoreboard before! It seems so obvious, yet it wasn't.

Now, my challenge is how to incorporate the 4DX model into the influencer model. After several attempts, I have a spreadsheet format of the 4DX model based upon the influencer model.

While working on the 4DX model I began to understand how the two models work together. The influencer model helps to make connections to behaviors that create the change. The 4DX model is more of a checklist and outline of behaviors that will result in change. By utilizing both models, a qualified intern will become a qualified member of the staff.

Reference:

McChesney, C., Covey, S., & Huling, J. (2012). The 4 disciplines of execution: Achieving your wildly important goals. New York: Free Press.