The meaning we give things determines our beliefs. These believes drive behaviors, ultimately delivering an outcome: win, plateau, loss. X does not have to equal A. X can equal B, C, D. We get to choose. We GET to choose. The question is: How do we find a meaning (in stress, conflict, catastrophe, pain) that avoids despair and instead creates clarity, a path forward, a renewed spirit? 

When we wake up in the morning, and step on the “scale of life,” what are we absolutely hungry to achieve? A giant mountain of a goal? A numerical outcome? Delivering for people who are depending on us? Being more effective here means finding a hunger, an INSRINSIC driver, a selfless inspiration. The question is: What “thing worth the effort” is (or could be) on our hunger scale to avoid feeling overwhelm and instead ignite an emotional fire that makes daily actions more effective?

Gravity never goes away. Let go of a ball, and the force of gravity makes it fall. Seeing and experiencing this reality makes planting a flag of faith and trust in gravity easy. Now, imagine planting another faith and trust flag on this fact: letting go of ineffective balls like fear, doubt, insecurity, anger, and total control means being more effective. The audio training here shares how I’ve used this factor to find clarity, a path forward, a renewed spirit. Now, let’s be clear: blindly letting go of ineffective balls doesn’t mean relying on chance. Rather, it means effective people rely on the positive force of faith & trust to make daily actions more effective without taking tons of time. The questions are: Which ball in your life represents ineffective focus (is worth letting go of)? Where will you plant your Faith & Trust Flag for more effective effective daily actions?

Avoid old ways, jump on the path to clarity, drive, a renewed spirit here

The greatest wins originate from an energetic, will-not-fail, state of mind. It’s the core of how we landed on the moon, essentially starting from scratch. It’s the core of how we got astronauts home safe, after part their spaceship exploded (Apollo 13).  It’s the core of your own effective daily actions. To be clear, a Moonshot Outlook is not delusional dreaming (although an element of that does help kickstart it).  Instead, the Moonshot Outlook is that energetic, winning, “find a way” state of existing, at a level 5 of 5 at least 80% of the time, for more effective daily actions without taking tons of time. The question is: What needs to happen to produce a positive attitude so we can land this problem successfully like life depended on it?

Being more effective means connecting dots that can’t be seen, at first.  This “beyond critical thinking” approach uncovers more possible “bad” outcomes before making a judgement call. That can help avoid “bad” judgement calls (thereby increasing capacity to see more obscured dots, and bypass even more “bad” judgement calls). The result? Better decisions more often (usually with less resources, i.e. cheaper, faster). The question is: What hidden/obscured dots can you uncover and connect today to make less “bad” decisions and more great decisions more often?

Maturity is behavior. And, behavior sends signals. Mature, highly effective behavior is like an oak tree.: grounded, reliable, and positively influences achieving better outcomes. It’s responsive. Immature, less effective behavior is like an oak sapling: weakly grounded, questionably reliable, and not helpful in achieving many useful outcomes. It’s creative. Being more effective means being aware of our behavior decisions and how those decisions will impact people and the outcomes. The question is: When overwhelmed (from partner, kids, calendars, tasks, work, the world, deadlines, etc), what needs to happen to center, ground, and RESPOND vs. react? How can we be an OAK TREE vs. an oak sapling for more effective daily actions?

Avoid old ways, jump on the path to connection, positive influence, and stronger partnerships instead here

Being more effective means asking right questions: how will we achieve X? How do we attain X? What would need to happen (and not happen) to reach X? Unapologetically seek the right questions. Because, the right answer to the wrong question can be worse than the wrong question. Let’s ask more right questions and more questions of those answers. Why? To pursue solutions that align with “our end in mind” and are protected with a “values moat.” Not asking questions is equivalent to not eating. We will survive for a while, but slowly we’ll wither, leading to less effective judgement calls, decline, and disappearance. At best, people will stop having conversations (a silent poison). At worst, people and resources will be discarded like a disposable coffee cup. The question is: What needs to happen to ensure will ask more right questions than wrong questions, based on our intended outcome?

There are natural frictions (examples: disempowering paradigms, behaviors, mindsets, uncalibrated / unused tools) that negatively impact effectiveness. Nobody and no organization is immune (including a family). Success additives can reframe focus, meaning, decisions/actions to find and fix constraint points and shave off friction in our daily actions. Example: Imagine shifting from “my job” to “my responsibility” in a relationship or a roll. This success additive reframes focus and effort to produce more effective daily actions without taking tons of time. By pouring useful additives on the grinding gears or constraint points in daily actions, our effective meter can move more into the green. The question is: how will we find and fix constraint points to shave off friction for more effective outcomes?

Avoid old ways, jump on the path to feasible strategy, getting on course here

Risk, in obvious and obscured forms, permeates everything. While identifying risk and mitigating the frequency-severity is critical, being more effective means defining and deciding to stay within an operating envelope to manage risk and avoid harm and suffering to people, equipment, or the environment. It’s building wide safety margins into everything and ensuring everyone knows it’s safe to say “Stop!” How likely is X to occur, what will impact/severity level of X occurring be, what level will we tolerate based on what we value? What is our bottom line? The question is: Would we be willing to wage our net worth that our family or team is aware of these same risks, and are willing to halt all movement (at front-line & enterprise levels) when a stop boundary is tapped? If no, then there is opportunity here to be more effective & achieve better outcomes.

There are basics to being physically healthy: running a 10-minute mile, doing 10 pull-ups, doing 10 push-ups.  And, there are basics to being time healthy, too: disciplined time-planning, task-matrixing, and time-blocking for distraction-free focus. These basics work our “main-thing muscle” so we can move important things towards and across the finish line. Having reasonable clock and calendar fitness means achieving more effective outcomes without taking tons of (ironically) time. The question is: How can we be more time-healthy? How can we really own our time: the hour, day, week, month, quarter, life… so there is less regret during our time left alive?

These are clear, regimented steps (executed with an artistic finesse) to ensure: right actions, right order, right times. Think: process excellence lubricated with emotional acumen (humanization). This improves effectiveness across a spectrum of activities from personal or relationship success to business strategies to flying spaceships. Example: think of a  magnificently-played symphony that’s very process driven, yet permeates humanization for an amazing outcome. That takes Apollo Steps! The question is: What are the Apollo Steps needed to ensure right things, right order, right times to make daily actions more effective?

How does a pilot ensure that their individual inputs are working together to keep an airplane flying? The answer that they see and interpret feedback from their environment: various sensors, computers, and pilot actions. This feedback signals the pilot so they can adjust their actions for a more effective outcome. In an airplane, this system consists of warning (red) or caution (amber) or advisory (white) lights and sounds. It’s very concrete. Back on the ground, life is less concrete. Being more effective here means having our own signal lights in place to see and interpret what’s working and signal what’s not working from our actions so adjustments can be made.  The question is: How accurately are we seeing and interpreting signals and feedback (to improve, not personalize) so we can adjust daily actions for more effective outcomes?

Avoid old ways, jump on the path to making a plan and making progress here

With more effective daily actions, we can naturally Lead Wiser. This means (1) our people win more often: they’re happier, they feel more secure, and they have a renewed sense of meaning to chase and achieve better outcomes. It also means (2) we pass the torch of responsibility and ownership of more effective daily actions to other passionate and capable people, helping them lead wiser, too. Momentum develops, especially when linked to non-negotiable values, that can result in remarkable outcomes for society. The question is: In these unpredictable and turbulent times, how will you use the Elements and their Factors to Lead Wiser?

With more effective daily actions, we can naturally Serve Greater. This means we evolve in directing our energy less into outcomes that benefit ourselves and more into outcomes that benefit other people, organizations, communities, and ultimately causes benefiting humanity. What once may have felt like a headwind of self-sacrifice now feels like tailwind of deep, deep care for peoples’ safety, peace, and happiness. Yes, sometimes this deep care demands candor, unpopular discernment and judgement calls, or short-term sacrifice (think, parenting kids or pets). Yes, sometimes this deep care starts with shoring ourselves up to create the capacity to serve others (important). But, that deep care for others has been woven into our DNA, finding a way to serve greater becomes core to why we believe have been put on Planet Earth. The question is: Despite daily demands for your attention, how will you use the Elements and their Factors to Serve Greater? 

When daily actions are more effective, we profit profoundly in three ways: (1) we’re more fulfilled, (2) we’re financially further ahead, and (3) we’re intrinsically driven to share our fortune (yes, money… but equally; time, expertise, know-who) with people and purposes we believe in. Imagine a “profit pie chart” with the above three variables displayed with three different colors. We get to decide how to divvy up the three parts of the pie chart, no matter the size of our “profits.” The question is: Despite color-filled calendars, continuous task-lists, obstacles, curveballs, and hard work ahead, how will you use the Elements and their Factors to Profit Profoundly… for Heart, Mind, Mission, and Time Left Alive… in yourself and those you care most about? What action will you take, starting today?

Avoid old ways, jump on the path to feeling accomplished, happy, at peace here