The following guidelines for getting results are organized by the results frame. Each guideline is an easy to remember one-liner. Draw from the guidelines as you need them, and remember that guidelines are just that … guidelines. They’re here to guide you, not to limit you or to use blindly. Adapt or adjust them as you see fit.
Action
- Ask yourself: What actions have you taken?
- Chunk it down.
- Decide and go.
- Do a dry run.
- Do it, review it, and improve it.
- Get the ball out of your court.
- Just start.
- Put in your hours.
- Scrimmage against results.
- Set a quantity limit.
- Start with something simple.
Efficiency and Effectiveness
- Ask yourself: Is it effective?
- Do it daily.
- Expand your toolset.
- Reduce friction.
- Reduce your context switching.
- Script your success.
Energy Management
- Have a compelling Why.
- Increase your power hours.
- Leverage your power hours.
- Manage energy for results.
- Play to your strengths.
Expectations
- Know your capacity.
- Set and reset expectations.
- Under-promise, over-deliver.
Focus
- Apply concentrated effort.
- Batch and focus.
- Narrow your focus.
Goals and Objectives
- Check your ladder.
- Create SMART goals.
- Have a compelling What.
- Know the tests for success.
- Know the Why behind the goal.
- Use vision and feeling.
- Work backwards from the end in mind.
Information Management
- Factor reference from action.
- Identify what you know, don’t know, and need to know next.
- Improve your filters.
- Organize your actions.
- Use checklists.
Learning
- Build a system of profound knowledge.
- Build feedback loops.
- Fail fast.
- Find a mentor.
- Model the best.
- Turn insight into action.
Mindset and Motivation
- Adopt a growth mindset over a fixed mindset.
- Drive or be driven.
- Adopt high-value self-talk.
- Make it a game.
- Pace yourself.
- Use SWAT mode.
- Use empowering metaphors.
Planning
- Iterate more, plan less.
- Plan, then execute.
- Stay agile.
Prioritizing
- Ask yourself: What’s the next best thing to do?
- Hit windows of opportunity.
- Use MUST, SHOULD, and COULD.
- Worst things first.
Self-Awareness
- Know your strengths.
- Know your weaknesses.
- Know yourself.
Self-Discipline
- Ask yourself: What’s the right thing to do?
- “Choose” To over “Have” To.
- Decide up front.
- Link it to good feelings.
- Reward your behaviors.
- Treat motivation as input.
Task-Management
- Bite off what you can chew.
- Fix time, flex scope.
- Focus on outcomes over activities.
- Let things slough off.
- Reduce open work.
Time Management
- Baseline your schedule.
- Carve out time for what’s important.
- Have a buffer.
- Know your most effective hours.
- Manage energy, not time.
- Schedule it.
- Set boundaries.
- Take weekends off.
