Haven’t set your goals yet for 2015? Good, you don’t have to.
Brian Moran, author of The 12 Week Year, argues that “annual planning” is a great way to waste a lot of time.
Twelve months is too long of a time horizon to produce a meaningful plan. Not only is there far too much uncertainty, it’s also difficult to motivate yourself to work towards a goal that’s so far out in the future.
Execution happens daily and weekly, not monthly or quarterly.
— The 12 Week Year
Instead, Moran argues, take it 12 weeks at a time.
By focussing solely on the goals you can accomplish in the next 12 weeks, and the actions that will help you achieve those goals only, you’ll get more done in 12 weeks than most people do in 12 months.
How exactly? Moran outlines five success disciplines that are critical to achieving your goals in the shortest amount of time:
1. Vision
A compelling vision creates a clear picture of the future. It is critical that your business vision aligns with and enables your personal vision. This alignment ensures a powerful emotional connection that promotes a sustained commitment, and continual action.
— The 12 Week Year
Quite predictably, it all starts with a vision.
This may seem like cliche advice, and I’ll admit I did consider skipping this section of the book altogether, but that doesn’t change the fact a clear and compelling vision is critical to achieving your goals.
Without a clear vision driving you, your actions will be random and sporadic at best. You may end up getting to your destination (or you may not), but you’re probably going to take the long and expensive route either way.
This also where most ‘productivity’ advice goes wrong. Productivity is about getting more stuff done — whatever that stuff is. But a clear vision will help ensure you get more of the right stuff done.
Anything that doesn’t align with your vision is simply not worth doing.
2. Planning
An effective plan clarifies and focuses on the top-priority initiatives and actions needed to achieve the vision. A good plan is constructed in a manner that facilitates effective implementation.
— The 12 Week Year
The 12 Week Year pushes you to take your vision and outline the specific goals you are going to achieve in the next 12 weeks that will get you closer.
Why 12 weeks? Because 12 weeks is long enough that you can actually achieve something significant, but short enough that you don’t have time to drag your feet and get complacent.
Think about it. If you set a goal to achieve in 12 months, how motivated will you be to take action today? It’s 12 months away. You’ve got plenty of time!
But if you set a goal that has to be achieved in 12 weeks… well that’s coming up pretty quick. You better get to work.
3. Process Control
Process control consists of a set of tools and events that align your daily actions with the critical actions in your plan. These tools and events ensure that more of your time is spent on strategic and money making activities.
— The 12 Week Year
The 12 Week Year doesn’t attempt to help you get more done in 12 weeks than you could in a year. That’s just not possible.
Instead, the shorter time horizon forces you to focus relentlessly on the things that actually matter. Because when you’ve got a big scary goal coming up in 12 weeks, you can’t afford to waste time on things that don’t move the needle.
We’re all guilty of it. Whatever business you’re running, there’s a million things you could rationalize as being ‘top-priority’.
But when you’re forced to lay it all out in front of you and decide what’s truly important… the answer is usually obvious.
Process control helps keep those important goals top of mind all the time… so you never give yourself, or your team, room to stray from the plan.
4. Measurement
Measurement drives the process. It is the anchor of reality. Effective measurement combines both lead and lag indicators that provide comprehensive feedback necessary for informed decision making.
— The 12 Week Year
Why does client work always come before marketing?
Because if you miss a client deadline, there are consequences. The client will be upset, they’ll ask questions, and you’ll put the relationship at risk.
What if you could manufacture the same kind of external accountability for your own business goals? Wouldn’t that help you stay on track?
This is where measurement becomes critical. By actively measuring your performance and tracking your progress week after week, you’ll always know if you’re on track with your plan — or if you’ve let something else get in the way.
Here’s the problem: this kind of accountability is incredibly uncomfortable. It’s like having a client breathing down your neck every day asking for a status update. And that’s exactly why it works.
5. Time Use
Everything happens in the context of time. If you are not in control of your time, then you are not in control of your results. Using your time with clear intention is a must.
— The 12 Week Year
A good plan will help you identify what you should be doing. But you still need to have the discipline to buckle down and do it. No ‘system’ can do the work for you.
Easier said than done when you’ve got a seemingly endless stream of things competing for your attention: meetings, phone calls, email, Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook — oh yeah, and a personal life.
The key is to be intentional with how you spend your time. Your plan will show you where you should be spending it. Beyond that, you need to take ownership of how you allocate your minutes, hours, and days.
Otherwise, don’t be surprised when your 12 weeks are over and you’re still in the same spot.
Intrigued? Pick up a copy of the book here:
The 12 Week Year: Get More Done in 12 Weeks than Others Do in 12 Months
Flickr creative commons image via studio curve.