How to Make Your Vision Happen

The great thing is that you now have clarity in your organization. People know why you exist, how you are going to win and where you are going. That begs the question – how will you get there?

The simplest answer is to start walking in the direction of your vision and don’t stop until you get there. But studies show that less than 30% of strategies are implemented. In fact, the Conference Board’s CEO survey recently revealed that chief executives are so concerned about strategy execution that they ranked it as both their number one and number two most challenging issues.

Think about that for a minute. Everyone states that strategy is the most often used and most effective tool that leaders have, even though most strategies are never implemented. Imagine how effective strategy would be if we could walk out our plans!

Thankfully, many smart folks have attacked the strategy execution issue and left us with some great concepts that work. Larry Bossidy and Ram Charan wrote “The Discipline of Getting Things Done.” Robert Kaplan and David Norton wrote “The Execution Premium.” Both are great works and have their merits, but if I had to give you one book on achieving your vision, it would be “The 4 Disciplines of Execution” by Chris McChesney, Sean Covey and Jim Huling. It is a simple 4 step process that works if you work it. They are called “disciplines” for a reason. It is not easy.

The 4 disciplines

The 4 disciplines are:

1. Focus on the Wildly Important
2. Act on the Lead Measures
3. Keep a Compelling Scorecard
4. Create a Cadence of Accountability.

If you are a regular reader of strategy literature, you probably don’t see much new in these 4 disciplines. The real magic is in the discipline of executing all 4 disciplines.

Let’s start with focusing on the wildly important. Seems simple doesn’t it? Who wouldn’t focus on the goals that are wildly important? The trick to this discipline is that you must focus on only your 1 or 2 most important goals. Face it. Each day we face a storm of urgent demands as soon as we walk into the office or glance at our smartphones. Everyone and everything wants your attention right now, except for that long term goal that could make a huge difference in the success of your organization. That goal sits quietly in your notes from your last strategy session. It is patient. It doesn’t say a word and that is why it rarely gets accomplished!

Facing the Storm

The storm will require a certain amount of your time every single day. The key is what you focus on when you come up for air. Do you grab the next item on your list or do you know what the #1 most important goal is for your organization and go to work on that? That is why your team cannot have more than 2 wildly important goals. I tell my clients that they can only have 1. If you choose the right goal, one is plenty. It will have such a huge impact on the success of your organization that no one will doubt you for only focusing on one goal. You can have a second goal but think of it as your back up goal. The one you will put attention on after you have accomplished your first goal.

How do you choose this goal? It does take time, but if you’ve done your homework and know the values and purpose of your organization, your one, most important goal will be easy to recognize.

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