The 4 Disciplines of Execution Summary & Review (Chris McChesney) - ANIMATED 2021

Summary

The video introduces the 'Four Disciplines of Execution' (4DX) framework, a system designed to help achieve goals through focus, leverage, engagement, and accountability. It explains how setting 'Wildly Important Goals' (WIGs), tracking progress with measurable actions, maintaining a visible scorecard, and regularly holding accountability sessions can turn plans into reality. Using examples like Mike's weight loss journey, the video highlights the importance of practical execution rather than just planning, emphasizing continuous progress and motivation. The video sets up for further implementation steps in the next video.

Takeaways

• 💡 Coming up with a strategy is much easier than executing it, which is why many great plans fail over time.
• 📘 The Four Disciplines of Execution (4DX) provide a system for achieving goals effectively: Focus, Leverage, Engagement, and Accountability.
• 🎯 **Focus**: Choose three 'Wildly Important Goals' (WIGs) to drive your life. These goals should be challenging but attainable, measurable, and primarily depend on your own efforts.
• 📝 To set WIGs, follow four steps: brainstorm potential goals, assess their impact, ensure they are measurable and self-dependent, and then write them down.
• ⚖️ **Leverage**: Identify the right lead measures, or actions, that will move you from point A (current state) to point B (desired outcome). Lead measures should be both predictive and influenceable.
• 📊 **Engagement**: Maintain a compelling scorecard to keep yourself motivated. It should be simple, visible, and easy to understand at a glance.
• 🏆 Leverage your natural competitive nature by using the scorecard to compete with yourself and track progress.
• 📅 **Accountability**: Schedule regular review sessions to track your progress, analyze what went well or poorly, and make necessary adjustments to stay on track.
• 🔄 Regular accountability ensures continuous improvement and helps to overcome distractions from everyday tasks, referred to as the 'whirlwind.'
• 🚀 Successful execution involves applying these four disciplines in a structured manner, rather than just making a plan and failing to implement it.

Q & A

What are the four disciplines of execution mentioned in the script?

The four disciplines of execution mentioned in the script are focus, leverage, engagement, and accountability.

What are 'Wildly Important Goals' (WIGs)?

WIGs are medium to long-term goals that are considered to be of utmost importance in one's life, such as having a certain amount of money invested by a certain age or losing weight by a specific date.

How does one determine their WIGs?

To determine WIGs, one should brainstorm for impactful changes, assess which three would have the highest impact, test their measurability and dependency, and finally state them specifically and concisely.

What is the importance of having measurable goals?

Measurable goals are important because they provide a way to keep score of progress, which helps in maintaining motivation.

What is a 'lag measure' in the context of the script?

A 'lag measure' refers to the end results or outcomes that indicate whether the goals have been reached, such as weight loss or savings.

How is a 'lead measure' different from a 'lag measure'?

A 'lead measure' quantifies the actions that directly influence the achievement of the goals, whereas a 'lag measure' is the result or outcome that indicates the achievement of the goal.

Why is it important to have a compelling scorecard for engagement?

A compelling scorecard keeps individuals motivated and engaged by providing a visual representation of progress towards goals, leveraging our natural competitive instincts.

What are the three requirements of a good scorecard?

A good scorecard should be simple, visible, and quickly readable, allowing anyone to quickly understand the status of the progress towards the goals.

How does accountability help in achieving goals?

Accountability ensures that an individual stays on course towards their goals by regularly reviewing progress, identifying issues, and making necessary adjustments.

What does the author call the daily tasks that can overshadow goal achievement?

The author refers to the daily tasks that can overshadow goal achievement as 'the whirlwind.'

What is the significance of scheduling regular accountability sessions?

Scheduling regular accountability sessions helps in maintaining focus on goals, tracking progress, and making continuous improvements towards achieving them.

Outlines

00:00

📘 Introduction to the Four Disciplines of Execution

The paragraph introduces the concept of execution being more challenging than strategy formulation, and presents a book that outlines a system to achieve goals through four disciplines: focus, leverage, engagement, and accountability. It emphasizes the importance of applying these principles in a specific way. The first discipline, focus, is explained with the concept of 'Wildly Important Goals' (WIGs), which are medium to long-term goals that significantly impact one's life. The paragraph guides through a four-step process to identify WIGs: brainstorming potential impactful changes, assessing which have the highest impact, testing their measurability and personal dependence, and finally stating them clearly. An example is given with Mike, who lists his goals and refines them into measurable WIGs with deadlines.

05:01

🔧 Leveraging Lead Measures to Achieve Goals

This paragraph delves into the second discipline, leverage, which is about finding the right actions to move from a current state (point A) to a desired state (point B). It uses the analogy of a lever to move a heavy rock, explaining that lead measures are the actions that significantly influence the achievement of goals. Lag measures are the end results that indicate whether goals are met. The paragraph discusses how Mike's lead measures, such as calorie restriction and exercise, are both predictive of weight loss and influenceable by him. The importance of focusing on lead measures to ensure the achievement of goals is highlighted.

🏆 The Power of Engagement Through Scorecards

The third discipline, engagement, is the focus of this paragraph. It discusses how keeping a compelling scorecard can motivate individuals to achieve their goals, leveraging the natural human tendency to compete. The paragraph outlines three requirements for an effective scorecard: simplicity for easy updates, visibility for constant reminders, and quick readability to assess progress at a glance. Using Mike's example, it shows how he creates a scorecard to track his daily calories and exercise time, which he places on his fridge for motivation.

🗓 Accountability for Continuous Improvement

The final paragraph covers the fourth discipline, accountability, which is crucial for staying on course towards goals. It contrasts accountability with the 'whirlwind' of daily trivial tasks that can derail goal pursuit. The paragraph explains that accountability must be precise and regularly scheduled. Mike's accountability practice is highlighted, where he schedules weekly reviews to assess his progress, identify issues, and devise solutions for improvement. The paragraph concludes by emphasizing the importance of execution over just making plans, and hints at the next video's focus on implementation.

Keywords

💡Execution

Execution refers to the process of implementing a plan or strategy to achieve a desired outcome. In the context of the video, execution is the core theme, as it discusses how to effectively turn a plan into reality. The video emphasizes that having a strategy is not enough; one must execute it to see results, which is where the 'Four Disciplines of Execution' come into play.

💡Wildly Important Goals (WIGs)

WIGs are medium to long-term goals that are considered of utmost importance in one's life. The video uses WIGs as a starting point for setting clear and challenging goals that drive personal progress. An example from the script is 'have $1.2 million invested in the stock market by the age of 40', which illustrates a specific and measurable WIG.

💡Focus

Focus is the first discipline of execution and involves concentrating on a few key goals rather than trying to do everything at once. The video explains that by choosing three WIGs, individuals can direct their efforts towards what truly matters. This concept is crucial for preventing the diffusion of energy and ensuring that meaningful progress is made.

💡Lever

A lever, in this context, is a metaphor for the small actions or inputs that can lead to significant outcomes or results. The video suggests finding the right 'lever' to move from the current state (point A) to the desired state (point B). This is about identifying and prioritizing actions that will have the most substantial impact on achieving WIGs.

💡Lag Measures

Lag measures are the end results or outcomes that indicate whether a goal has been achieved. The video explains that these measures are crucial for tracking progress towards WIGs. An example used is 'Have you lost weight?', which is a clear lag measure that shows whether the goal of weight loss has been met.

💡Lead Measures

Lead measures are the actions or inputs that directly influence the achievement of lag measures. The video stresses that lead measures should be predictive and influenceable, meaning they should directly correlate with the desired outcome and be可控 by the individual. An example given is 'restricting calorie intake', which is a lead measure that can predict and influence weight loss.

💡Engagement

Engagement is the third discipline of execution and is about maintaining motivation and interest in achieving goals. The video suggests using a scorecard to keep track of progress, leveraging human competitiveness to stay engaged. This concept is illustrated by the idea of competing with oneself to stay motivated.

💡Scorecard

A scorecard is a tool for tracking progress towards goals, making the process more engaging. The video outlines three requirements for an effective scorecard: simplicity, visibility, and quick readability. Mike's scorecard, which tracks daily calories and exercise time, is an example of how a scorecard can be used to maintain focus and motivation.

💡Accountability

Accountability is the fourth discipline of execution and involves holding oneself responsible for the progress made towards goals. The video explains that regular accountability sessions help in staying on course and making continuous improvements. Mike's weekly review is an example of how accountability can be implemented to ensure that goals are not overshadowed by day-to-day tasks.

💡Whirlwind

The term 'whirlwind' refers to the constant stream of urgent but less important tasks that can distract from achieving significant goals. The video uses this concept to illustrate why accountability is necessary—to prevent being swept up in the whirlwind and losing sight of WIGs. It's about prioritizing and focusing on what truly matters.

Highlights

The book introduces four disciplines of execution to achieve goals: focus, leverage, engagement, and accountability.

Focus involves choosing three 'Wildly Important Goals' (WIGs) that are medium to long term and impactful.

WIGs should be challenging yet attainable, and they should drive your life.

To identify WIGs, start by brainstorming changes that would impact your life the most.

Assess which goals from your brainstorming list would have the highest overall impact.

Test potential goals for measurability and dependency on external factors.

Write down your goals specifically and concisely.

Leveraging involves finding the right actions to move from point A to point B.

Lag measures are the results that indicate if goals have been reached.

Lead measures quantify actions that significantly impact goals.

Lead measures should be predictive and influenceable.

Engagement is enhanced by keeping a compelling scorecard that motivates like competition.

A good scorecard is simple, visible, and quickly readable.

Accountability ensures staying on course and continuous improvement.

Accountability requires precise and regularly scheduled reviews.

The system is designed to prevent goals from being overtaken by day-to-day tasks.

Implementation of the four disciplines is crucial for achieving goals.

The book emphasizes execution over just making a plan and feeling good about it.

Transcripts

How many times have you come up with a  magnificent plan, showed it off to all your  

friends and family, been sure it is the solution  to all your problems, only to have it die a slow  

death over the next few weeks? Many times we've  all done it, so I'm not pointing fingers here.  

That's because coming up with a strategy is  much easier than executing it, and this is  

where this book comes into play. The authors  came up with four disciplines of execution.  

It's a system that makes achieving goals totally  possible. The four principles are focus, leverage,  

engagement, and accountability. If all this  sounds super general, it is because it is. But,  

before we show it off and move one to the next  video, let me tell you the secret sauce. It is  

how you apply this principle that matters,  and the four DX framework does it in a very  

particular way, so let's get cracking. Number one is focus, but what does that even  

mean? Stay with me. In this very first step. We  choose three goals to focus on. The author calls  

this wildly important goals or WIGs. These are  medium to long term goals that drive your life.  

Things like have $1.2 million invested in the  stock market by the age of 40, or lose 5 kgs by  

June 2022, or get promoted to senior manager by  the age of 30. These are basically any goals that  

you would consider wildly important for your life.  There is no right, there is no wrong here. Only  

you know what drives you. These goals need to be  challenging, but attainable. That's all fine and  

dandy, but how do you even come up with these  goals in the first place? There are four steps  

to settling on a wildly important goal. First, it all starts by brainstorming. Ask  

yourself what kind of change would have the  most impact on your life. Think of things that  

are not currently working, or the things that  if they're made to work a little bit better,  

would have a dramatic impact on your life. Now,  list them all out. Next, you need to assess.  

Out of everything you listed, which three  would have the overall highest impact? Now  

you need to test your potential goals, and  there are two main considerations here.  

Is it measurable? Is there a way to keep score of  your progress? If the answer is no, it is not a  

good candidate because the scoring system would  help keep you motivated. Second, does it depend  

mainly on you? If you need to enlist outside  help for more than 20% of your goal, it might  

be a challenge. When things depend on outside  factors or other people, the challenge for you  

is even greater. Finally, state, or put simply,  write it all down. Be specific and concise.  

Now let's look at an example. This is Mike. He's  really excited to start executing his plans,  

and aren't we all? Mike takes out a piece of paper  and lists all the goals that are important to him.  

These are things like become more healthy, save  more money, get a dog, buy a dependable car,  

travel the world, and so on. When he assesses  things and test them as we talked about,  

he realizes that becoming more healthy or buying  a dependable car will have the most impact on his  

life. But, they're not very measurable,  at least not yet. Let's transform them.  

Become more healthy becomes to lose 5 kgs by March  2022. Buy a dependable car becomes buy a Toyota  

RAV4, two to three years old at a cost of no more  than 30K by April 2022. Now we're talking. These  

are specific goals that depend solely on Mike, and  have a specific deadline and way to keep track of.  

WIGs done. Good job, Mike. Now comes leverage. In this discipline,  

you learn how to get from point A to point  B. Imagine that your point A is a huge heavy  

rock. No matter how hard you push against it,  it's not going to move. But, if you apply a little  

lever, the rock starts to move, and not by a  lot, but it does move and in the right direction.  

The second discipline is all about finding the  right lever so you can move your goals from  

point A to point B. Points A and B are what the  author calls lag measures. These are results. They  

are very important, as they tell you if you've  reached your goals or not. Have you lost weight,  

have you enough money, and so on. The  lever in the rock is called a lead measure,  

and lead measures quantify the actions  that have the most impact on your goals.  

Now back to Mike for an example. His lag measures  are, right now, he's 70 kgs, which is point A,  

and he wants to be 65, point B. His lead measures  are the how he'll get to achieve those goals.  

How does one lose weight? Less calories in  and more exercise and physical activity.  

This is a good time to mention that a good lead  measure has two characteristics. First of all,  

it's predictive. A change in the lead measure  must create a change in the lag measure. Two,  

it's influenceable. You must be able to influence  it without dependence on someone else. If Mike is  

to restrict his calories, it will for sure lead  to a faster weight loss, so it's predictive.  

Who controls how much and what Mike eats? Mike,  so his calorie intake is also influenceable.  

If Mike concentrates on actions that most  influence his goals, his goals become not an if,  

but a when. The less he eats and the more he  exercises, the faster he'll get to point B.  

Now, let's move on. Number three is engagement.  How do you best engage into a goal? By keeping  

a compelling scorecard. Humans are naturally wired  to compete. We become highly motivated and engaged  

where there is an opportunity to win. Just look at  every sport on the planet. The goal is always to  

win, to have a better score. The moment you take  the score away, people stop trying so hard. Let's  

use this hard wired tendency to your advantage. If  you're like Mike, right now you might be thinking,  

"That's all nice, but I want to lose weight,  and there's no one to compete with." True,  

so how about you compete with yourself? Come up  with your own scorecard that forces you to act.  

A good scorecard has three requirements.  First of all, it is simple. A more minimal  

scorecard is much easier to update. Think of any  competitive sport. It usually has a simple score,  

and time left in the game. It is a scorecard, not  a spreadsheet, so keep it simple. A good scorecard  

is also visible. Put it next to your bed, on your  bathroom mirror. Whatever it is in your case,  

you should not have to turn on your laptop or  log into a site to update it. Finally, a good  

scorecard is quickly readable. Anyone looking  at it should be able to tell within seconds  

if you're winning or losing. In the case of Mike,  he makes a simple scorecard that keeps track of  

his daily calories and time spent exercising, and  sticks it on his fridge. Three disciplines down,  

one more to go. Give it up for Mike. Finally, the last one is accountability.  

Disciplines one to three are to set up the  execution. In discipline four is where the  

action is. Without the accountability piece,  the goal will eventually be overtaken by what  

the author calls the whirlwind, or just the  day to day menial, trivial tasks. Basically,  

accountability is what will ensure you are  staying on course. There are two parts to the  

accountability discipline that you need  in order to make this step productive.  

Accountability needs to be precise and regularly  scheduled. Here's how it works for Mike. He  

schedules 15 minutes every Sunday evening for an  accountability session. The idea is to quickly  

review his last seven days progress, and see  things like what went well, what didn't go well,  

how can he do better next week. He narrows down  the specific issues he face, and comes up with  

a precise solution to over the pitfalls. The continuous review and adjustment will  

make sure not only that he stays on course, but  that he's continually improving. Not to mention,  

the personal satisfaction of seeing his progress  week after week will keep him happy and motivated.  

If you followed along this far, you saw how  Mike went from being caught in the whirlwind of  

day to day tasks, to figure out what his wildly  important goals are, and then he took the most  

important step: the execution of the plan. After  all, the book is called The Four Disciplines Of  

Execution, not the four steps of  making a plan, feeling good about it,  

and never implement it. Right now, you're either  super motivated to get started, or you're little  

bit confused because this is a rather complex  system. Either way, let's talk implementation.  

How do you take all of this fantastic information  and actually apply it? What is the first step?  

Let's talk implementation in the next video.  Click right here, I'll see you right there.