How can you fulfil big dreams and visions? How can your overall target be split into goals? What further tasks and milestones should you identify to complete your goals?

Creating a plan to achieve success is all about breaking down our overall mission into smaller, measurable goals. From there we can deconstruct the goals to the point where we have a simple activity, a next step, that is achievable and easily actionable.

In this post, we will look at the importance of having a plan and remaining flexible, then drill down into how to break down the various goals. In the next section, we will then go onto how we go further still and chunk that down to the next actionable step.

Have a plan but remain flexible

Whether you are leading others or just yourself, you are much more likely to succeed – in whatever you want to do – if you have done some planning. If you can produce some sort of written plan, so much the better; especially if you need to communicate your ideas with other people.

Even if you don’t need to share your plans, the writing process still helps. That is because writing information down forces our brains to express our ideas clearly. In psychological terms, writing something makes it more real to us and connects more synapses in the brain, which in turn will make the ideas stick and improve our chances of success.

Going through the process of breaking down a mission statement into goals and steps is a large part of the planning process. When these tasks are connected to the people, resources and time needed to achieve each one, we have a complete plan.

When planning there must be a balance between getting the detail we need to act, while maintaining flexibility to adapt to the situation and unforeseen circumstances. To do this we concentrate on developing more detail for the activities that are closer in terms of time than those that are further off. The more distant the task, the broader and more flexible the approach can be. Circumstances will inevitably force you to amend your plan; hence the process of planning is more important than the plan.

“Plans are worthless, but planning is everything.” – Dwight Eisenhower

Turning mission statements into action with goals, tasks, and milestones

To take a mission statement and turn it into something actionable we need to break down the overall mission into constituent parts. We then end up with a hierarchy of larger down to smaller activities.

These various elements can be called different things, but I think about the overall vision and mission, and then break this down into various goals. Each goal is then broken down into key tasks, activities, and milestones. This then becomes the basis for the overall plan.

We might not achieve every single goal or task. We may need to adapt our plan along the way. But having targets to aim for is important as it inspires action, builds confidence and helps us gain momentum.

“A goal is not always meant to be reached; it often serves simply as something to aim at.” – Bruce Lee

Once we have a goal we can consider what tasks and milestones will help us achieve our aim.

What is the difference between a task and a milestone? A task is best defined as a piece of work, an activity, that has a certain duration. A milestone is an event, a point in time, that indicates important stages of progression.

Example of breaking down a vision or mission statement into objectives, goals, and milestones: The Shard

Earlier in my career I worked as a project manager on large construction projects. One such project was The Shard in London, the tallest building in the United Kingdom.

Building the tallest tower in the UK was the dream but it was a highly complex project. Not surprisingly this overall idea had to be broken down into manageable chunks to make it a viable project.

The first phase or goal was planning. The next would be demolishing the existing building that existed on the site. The final goal would be to construct the new tower.

Each of these phases had multiple tasks and activities. For example, planning included designing the tower, estimating the costs, and making the planning application. The key milestone at the end of this phase was gaining planning approval which was the green light from the authorities to proceed.

As you can imagine, even for each task there were a myriad of smaller activities that needed to be completed, but when first creating the plan we did not go into the same level of detail for the whole programme. We kept the overall plan as a framework and then added subsequent detail as needed, and that particular stage got closer.

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Examples of tasks and milestones for a personal life goal: The Dragon’s Back

The same process, that I applied professionally as a project manager working on The Shard, can be applied to our own life goals. For example, one target I set myself was to run The Dragon’s Back Challenge, reputedly one of the hardest mountain races in the world. The race covers over 300km of mountain terrain in 5 days. Not surprisingly there is a high failure rate. In the year I completed the race over 800 people signed up, but fewer than 200 finished.

For me, the overall mission was to complete the race. It was simple; I had no set time or place that I wanted to achieve, I just wanted to finish.

Each of the five days could be considered a goal in itself. These stages were 60-70km on average and each was an ultra-marathon on their own. Completing each day became the constituent five goals of the overall mission.

Each day was further broken into four stages, each of about 15-20 km in length. These sections could be considered the tasks or activities making up the goals.

Each day had a start and finish line, along with three further checkpoints, that marked out the stages. Each of these points along the route equated to milestones.

So, as you can see, the overall mission (race) broke down into goals (days), which were then further chunked down into tasks (stages), which then had milestones (checkpoints). To achieve my mission, I had to complete all the tasks and goals. Along the way, I could measure my progress using the milestones.

The Right Questions Route Card Tool

To help with breaking down our overall dream, vision or mission we can use The Right Questions Route Card Tool.

A route card is a document that shows the breakdown of a larger route into smaller sections. For example, when you get directions from an app such as Google Maps, it will break down the journey to list each road and turn you need to make.

Similarly, when planning a hike, it is usual to create a route card that breaks down the whole journey into manageable sections, often using key landmarks or changes of direction as sensible endpoints for each leg.

1. Breakdown the overall vision or mission into goals

We can do the same with our own mission or life goal. When creating our route card, we start by stating that overall dream or goal at the top. We then list out the smaller goals down the left-hand column (as per the picture below). The number of goals may differ for your plan but three to five goals is a good benchmark.

2. Divide the goals into task and activities

For each of these goals, we break them down further into sub-tasks and activities. In the table, there is space for up to five tasks per goal.

3. Add milestone to measure progress

The final column is for milestones. Here you can add the measure that will help you know when you have achieved that specific goal or task.

Worked example of using Route Card Tool

For example, your dream might be to start a new career. To achieve this mission you might have several sub-goals such as gaining extra qualifications, researching the sector and applying for jobs. The goal of getting extra qualifications might involve tasks such as choosing the right educational institution, saving up money to pay for the course and then completing the studies. The obvious milestone at the end would be gaining the qualification award but you might also want to add milestones to the other tasks if you find that helpful.

Adding milestones has the benefit of giving frequent moments of achievement. Whenever we hit a milestone it gives us a feeling of satisfaction which boosts our confidence. This is leveraging neuroscience in our favour. Succeeding in a milestone gives us a dopamine reward (the pleasure hormone) which boosts our confidence and helps us press on to the next marker. If we did not break down our overall mission into smaller chunks we would miss out on these little neural encouragements.

Making your own route card of goals, tasks, and milestones

The best thing to do now is to have a go yourself. Take the overall vision, mission or life goal that you thought about in the ‘what’ and ‘where’ sections of The Right Questions Framework, and then use the Route Card Tool to break it down into manageable chunks. You can copy or print out the picture to use if you like or you can create your own template.

And remember, you don’t need all the detail at this stage so use the template to focus your mind on the most important constituent parts needed to achieve your target. Ask yourself:

• What are the 3-5 key goals I need to achieve to fulfil my overall dream?
• For each goal, what are the 3-5 major tasks or activities that I need to complete?
• What milestones will mark the completion of each goal or task, so I can measure progress and celebrate the little wins along the way?

If you want to achieve your goal, what is your next step? When your vision feels overwhelming, what is the one small action that takes you closer to that dream? If you struggle to start towards your objective, what small stride can you take in the right direction?

When goals feel too big

In the previous section, I mentioned competing in the Dragon’s Back race, and how I broke down the overall race into various goals, tasks and milestones. That played a huge part in my overall success in the event, but there were times when even the next task or milestone felt too big.

There were moments during the race when I wanted to give up. The fourth day was probably the worst for this. By that stage of the race, I was physically exhausted, having already completed three ultramarathons over three days. My feet were in constant pain due to sores, created by blisters that had rubbed raw. And now I had to complete the longest section of the course, over the dullest, wettest terrain, a place called Elan Valley.

Make the big seem small

With my physical and mental strength at their lowest ebb, the thought of even another few kilometres became overwhelming. My brain was screaming out that it was impossible to go that far, and so I made deals with myself. I broke everything down even further. When it got tough I promised myself that in another five minutes I could have a snack. When it got worse still, I told myself that all I needed to do was jog the next hundred metres, and then I could walk for the hundred metres after that.

I completed the day within the cut-off time and could therefore progress to the final day. That evening, the thought of doing yet another ultramarathon the next day felt impossible. So yet again I made the big, small. I told myself that the only thing I needed to do the next day was to put on my running shoes. That was all.

The next day I did put on my shoes and so I set myself a new step of getting to breakfast, then getting to the start line, and so on until, many hours later I found myself staring at the finish line. It felt surreal to have done something that had felt so distant and difficult for so long. But I had completed it, one step at a time.

Taking the first step towards your goal

So, this brings us to the final constituent part of our planning, the ‘step’.  This is the smallest and yet probably the most crucial part.  Defining the first or next step is important because many jobs and goals are never initiated, as it is too daunting to start, or they stall because the next step is not defined.

There is a known psychological hurdle when getting going on any task.  For example, a clean sheet of paper can lead to a mental block.  To overcome this an artist may give a blank canvas a simple wash of colour that will be painted over, or a writer may type a few lines on an empty page that may later be deleted. The first strokes or words don’t matter. What matters is that we switch from deliberation to action. Neuroscientists explain that this change of mindset improves our focus and confidence, instantly improving our chances of success.

So, whatever venture we are initiating, we need to make a small step in the right direction to get over the inertia of going from immobile to mobile.

“The Scandinavians have a phrase the “doorstep mile”, meaning that the first mile away from your front door is the hardest of all” – Alastair Humphreys

The Right Question Tool: Put on your shoes and take a STEP

One useful strategy when starting a project is to break down the first task into an easy step that can be completed in about 30 minutes.  If it can be done in 5 minutes even better!

If we cannot do it right now, we plan to do that one step at the next opportunity, for example, at the beginning of the next day. Then we ensure to set another step for the following occasion or day.  As things gain momentum you will find it easier to get into the work and complete your tasks. Success in small steps gives us little dopamine rewards in our brains. They also build confidence, as they are little data points that show that we can do it, it can happen. Therefore, the key thing is just getting going.

The metaphor we look to in the Right Questions Framework is footwear. We put on our shoes or boots to get going and take that first step. The word step can help us too, as this becomes an acronym for how we take action, relating it to the Route Card tool covered previously.

The STEP tool stands for:

• Start with the overall success or mission statement
• Target success by identifying the key goals that need to be achieved
• Evaluate these goals, breaking them into tasks, activities and milestones
• Plan the next step, making it small enough to be achievable

“When it is obvious that the goals cannot be reached, don’t adjust the goals, adjust the action steps.” – Confucius

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Using the STEP tool: Planning exercise

Now it’s your turn. Think of what you need to do. You might focus on a life goal, but if not then pick something with enough complexity to test the process. For example, that could be planning a holiday or business trip, or purchasing a new phone or computer. But use a real goal that you need to achieve.

First state your mission statement and define what success looks like. Then follow the process, breaking down the overall outcome into key goals. Then evaluate these and pull out the necessary tasks and activities. Finally, identify the first or next step you need to take. These are the ones that need to go in your diary or be done right now.

Congratulations, you are a step closer to achieving your mission! Now complete the first step and follow the process again, always making sure you define the next step and can make progress.

What resources do you need to fulfil your dream? How much money, muscle and materiel, is necessary to achieve your goal?

We often limit ourselves and our goals to our present resources.  After all, it is reasonable to ask, ‘What can I afford?’ before committing to something, even if that is just a vacation.  Budgeting is good stewardship, and I would certainly not recommend getting into debt on a whim.

But, we won’t be able to dream big if we limit our goals to what we can achieve with the resources we have now.  It is better to ask first, ‘What are we most passionate about doing?’ Then we work out the resources required and can think creatively of ways to get what we need.  That is why this question comes some way down the planning process.

“First, have a definite, clear practical ideal; a goal, an objective.

Second, have the necessary means to achieve your ends; wisdom, money, materials, and methods.

Third, adjust all your means to that end.” – Aristotle

Resources: The importance of logistics

An army needs logistics. A large portion of every military is concerned with delivering the right resources to the right people in the right places.  In fact, there are many more logisticians than infantry soldiers in the average army.

“Amateurs talk tactics, professionals talk logistics” – General Omar Bradley

But the army does not exist for logistics. It has a mission to achieve. That aim is very rarely just to do with just moving men and equipment from one place to another.  Logistics is a large and essential part of achieving your aim. But it is there to support the mission, not to drive it.

History testifies to the fact that an army will beg, borrow and steal if necessary to get the job done if (or rather when) logistics fail.  You can still achieve your aim when resources are difficult to come by if you remain focussed; as the United States Marine Corps would say: you need to ‘improvise, adapt and overcome!’

Resources are not as finite as you might think

There are very few occasions when finances and resources are truly fixed.  That is why the vision or goal is so important. They give us the correct motivation. A compelling dream will inspire us to innovate and overcome shortages. The idea of success motivates us to find the money, people and tools to get the job done.

Why is it that many people who win the lottery often struggle? Why do they end up having spent their money within a few years?  The gambling industry sells winning as the dream; it does not provide a vision for what comes beyond that.  Many people who win do not have a clear idea of what they want to do with the money. They might take a nice holiday and pay off the mortgage but that is not a grand vision.

People who make (and maintain) large amounts of money tend to use it productively. Resources that continue to grow are usually driven by a vision beyond that of just making cash.  Bill Gates, the richest man in the world for many years, was not motivated primarily by money.  When he started Microsoft with Paul Allen they had a vision of a computer in every home. This dream, of how computing could transform the world, drove Microsoft. It became the most successful software business in the world and made Bill Gates a multi-billionaire. This money is now being used to drive a new vision. Through their foundation, Bill and Melinda Gates are on a mission “to create a world where every person has the opportunity to live a healthy, productive life.”

Money, Muscle and Materiel

So, we start with the dream and then work out what we need to make it a reality.  When we need to make something happen it generally comes down to the three ‘M’s:

• Money
• Muscle
• Materiel

Finance, human resources, and equipment are all important, but it is usually the first element, the money, which drives others. Therefore, we will focus on cash now and return to people in more detail when we consider the ‘Who?’ question.

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Estimating the cost: Using the Route Card Tool

Once we have articulated our dream or goal, we can start to estimate the resources we need.  If it is hard to assess the cost for a whole goal we can break it down, as we have done previously, and cost each constituent task or step.

To do this you can use the Route Card Tool. Just follow these steps:

1. Take your completed Route Card Tool, choose a goal and then estimate the resources needed for each task or step included in that row.
2. Now add these up to create a total resource bill for that goal.
3. Repeat steps 1 and 2 for your other goals.
4. Add up the total costs of each goal to calculate your overall resource needs.

This should give you a reasonable estimate of what you need to succeed.

Counting the opportunity cost

Remember to put a cost against the time you invest in achieving the goal.  When doing something yourself you can feel you are getting it done for free but that is not true.  Our time is worth something, even if it is just the opportunity cost of not being able to do something else while we are engaged with a task we have decided upon.

Often it will turn out cheaper to pay someone else to do a task that can be delegated. This leaves you with just the things that no one else can do, meaning you will achieve your goal sooner.

We will look at delegation some more under the ‘Who?’ question, but now – having broken down tasks with costs against them – we are in a much better place to decide on the team of people you might need to support you.

Alternative funding

Once the cost for each task is estimated you will get an idea of the budget for the whole project.  Now you can start to think creatively about how to raise funds or reduce costs.

For example, instead of paying for a qualified professional, could you get someone to do the work voluntarily? Perhaps you could offer them experience as an intern? If someone is still in training or education they may value the experience more than pay.

Alternatively, think about what service or product you could offer someone in return. Bartering is as old as trade itself but sometimes people forget it. I have used this sort of transaction in building my business. For example, I have coached people in return for help with developing my website.

Fuel the dream

Considering the resources we need and how we are going to get them is an important aspect of how we make our dreams real.  An idea is more tangible as we think about the money, muscle and material we need for the job. It can take some time (and may not be as liberating as big-picture thinking) but it will help you succeed, so stick with it!

And remember:

• Your calculation is just an estimate. The overall cost will change and is likely be higher than expected. It is worthwhile adding an extra 10% to the overall estimate to take this into account.
• You don’t need all the resources right now. Focus on what you need for that first step or goal.

The psychology of stopping procrastination through creating effective habits

How do you overcome procrastination and achieve your goal? What are the steps to building new habits? How long does it take for a habit to stick and become effective?

“Quality is not an act, it is a habit.” – Aristotle

The power of habits: the compound effect

It’s all good and well having a lofty goal but we all know how hard it is to achieve. Often a goal can feel so big that we can procrastinate, unsure about how or when to start. One way to get over this is to break things down into manageable steps, as we did in the previous section under ‘How?’

But our goal is not just a one-off action.  We won’t get there in one step; we need to take multiple strides. We are trying to create numerous actions that compound each other, reinforcing improvement and building momentum over time.

“Habits are the compound interest of self-improvement.”

– James Clear

This is why we are now looking at the ‘When?’ question and linking it to the ‘How?’ with the concept of habits. Starting towards a goal means changing our behaviour. Changing behaviour means developing new habits. Therefore, we will look at creating the new habits we need to succeed.

Don’t worry if you have been struggling to do this to date.  If you have not managed to keep your goals thus far then you are in good company.  The Business Insider publication polled over 1000 people and found that 80% failed to keep their New Year’s resolutions after just one month.

The challenge is that big life goals can take months, even years, to achieve. That means we need to create effective habits that stick for the long term. But these can take weeks to embed. So, what can we do?

Well, the key is knowing how behaviour develops. With this knowledge we can craft new habits, to give us the best chance of success.

The Habit Loop and Atomic Habits

Fortunately for us, a lot of clever people have studied the neuroscience and psychology of habits. One such person is Charles Duhigg, author of  The Power of Habit (2013).

The core of Duhigg’s research was identifying the cyclic nature of behaviour development, what he called The Habit Loop. The Habit Loop breaks down behaviour into three steps. There is a

1. Cue (the stimulus),
2. A Routine (our action or behaviour)
3. and a Reward(the payoff).

Writer and performance coach James Clear continued to build on this concept. Drawing upon his experience in competitive sports, and recovering from a brain injury, Clear refined the habit loop, adding a fourth step and stating what we need to do at each stage to help make an effective habit. His version then becomes:

1. Cue (make it obvious)
2. Craving (make it attractive)
3. Response (make it easy)
4. Reward (make it satisfying)

You may notice that the habit loop is a form of decision-making cycle. The thing is that as the behaviour becomes deeply embedded it becomes a habit – an intuitive or automatic response – rather than a conscious choice.

An example of experimenting with the 4 stages of habit building

For example, I tend to get a little hungry mid-morning and mid-afternoon.  I often want a snack.  When the blood sugar is low it is very easy to grab something unhealthy to eat at this point – a sweet biscuit, chocolate bar or cake. But I know this is not good for me, therefore I have tried other replacement snacks.  I have experimented with various options, and some things just don’t hit the spot, but I have found success with dates.  The date packs a sugary punch. So using the habit loop the process becomes:

1. Cue. I start to obviously feel peckish.
2. Craving. I feel like something sweet and the idea of something sugary is attractive.
3. Response. I keep the dates in the fruit bowl, on the surface of the kitchen, so I don’t need to go into a cupboard (where less healthy options are stored out of sight). This makes the dates the quickest and easiest sugary snack to grab.
4. Reward. The dates deliver an immediate sugar hit. I will often combine them with Brazil nuts so that after a few minutes both my cravings for sugar and my overall hunger subsides.

It does not always work but I have nudged that behaviour in the right direction.  I have seen a tangible drop in my body fat index as a result. It is still hard to resist biscuits laid out at a meeting, or someone else’s house, but even my resistance to these temptations has improved. I also continue to experiment with other healthy snacks, increasing my options and chances of success.

So, as you can see from this example, the trick is to analyse the habit loop and play with each stage. Treat it as a fun experiment and find rewards that work for you with the habit you want to modify.

How long will it take for the new habit to stick?

There is a lot of misleading advice about how long it takes to form a habit. For instance, the 21/90 rule is the idea that working on a new routine for 21 days means it becomes a habit. Then if you stick with it for 90 days it becomes part of your lifestyle.

The problem is it isn’t a rule. It is a rule of thumb at best. The most useful thing about the 21/90 rule is that it mentally prepares you to work for the long term. The need for long term commitment is backed up with evidence.

One such study, conducted by Phillippa Lally over 12-weeks, found that on average, it took about two months (or 66 days to be more exact) for a new activity to become a habit.  This is longer than the 21 days popularised by Maxwell Maltz (1960) or the 30 days advocated by Marc Reklau (2014).

The fact is that some habits are harder to form than others and often it can take a longer period of experimentation to trigger the lifestyle switch. They are trying to rewire the brain so that it automatically follows a new routine. Unlike computers, our brains need time to build the new synaptic links, you can’t just input new code. Therefore, expect to take time, and you will know when you have a new habit because you will stop thinking about it!

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The Watch Tool: Avoid procrastination by turning goals into systems

Habits are cyclical, as demonstrated by the habit loop. We also have a routine of behaviours, we do certain things at certain times. That is why in The Right Questions framework of tools we can think about habits relating to a watch. The hands of the watch follow the loop and indicate when we take certain actions.

So, we use the watch tool to avoid procrastination by turning our goals into systems and building habits. You can start now by following these 5 steps.

5 Steps to creating your new habit

1.        Identify the goal you want to achieve.

Hopefully you have already done this but revisit the ‘What’ and ‘How’ sections if you need help with this.

2.        Think about the habit that will help you succeed in that goal

What behaviour do you need to start or change to progress towards success?

3.        Break down the habit using the habit loop, listing what happens through the 4 steps

Analyse the process and brainstorm multiple answers for each stage. Habits are very rarely linear with single cues and rewards so think about various options but focus on the most likely successful routine.

Use habit stacking, that is linking one habit to another, to make the new routine more sticky. For instance, I frequently make hot drinks during the working day which means I often go into the kitchen. Knowing this I have now placed a pull-up bar and weights in the kitchen. This means I can do a few exercises while I wait for the kettle to boil or coffee to brew. We all have daily routines, so think about yours and use existing routines to trigger new behaviours.

4.        Write out your personal commitment to the new habit

Commit to the new habit by writing it down. Use the following wording:

• I will (insert behaviour)
• At (insert time)
• At (location)

Prepare the environment to give you the best chance of success. For example, if you want to go to the gym in the morning, lay out your sports clothing the night before. Make it obvious, attractive, easy and satisfying.

5.        Do the first iteration of the habit

Now try the new routine. If you want to succeed, then the concept of chunking down applies here too. Start small and make your first iteration of a habit less than 2 minutes to complete.

In other words, if you want to learn a new language, don’t make your first lesson a gruelling hour of study. Just do a couple of minutes of vocab. Learn one or two new words. This is easy and gives you a measurable sense of achievement and progress.

Or, if you want to run a marathon, don’t try and clock a 10 miler on the first day. Instead, why not have a fun few minutes of jogging up and down, loosening up the joints?

Once you have achieved the first small step you can gradually build the challenge, be that in length, intensity or difficulty.

So in conclusion remember this: if you want to build a new habit, start small, experiment and keep trying new things until it sticks.

“Small wins are a steady application of a small advantage.”
― Charles Duhigg

How do we get the best out of our time? How can we be most effective and productive with our time? What is deliberate practice and how do you do it?

Timing is critical, as time is the one truly limited resource, so we need to make sure we make the best use of the time we have. As Benjamin Franklin observed:

“You may delay, but time will not.” – Benjamin Franklin

Therefore, we have to answer:

• What are we going to invest our time in?
• How much of our time should we invest?
• What is the most effective and productive way to use our time?

What should you spend your time doing?

Knowing what to spend your time on is a matter of prioritisation. You have to know what is the most important thing to do. To do that you have to understand why you even want to do something in the first place. This is the reason The Right Questions Framework looks at the ‘why’ questions first to help answer this.

Once that you know why you are wanting to do something you can confirm what is the best thing to do. This is where we identify our mission, goal or other measure of success.

Productivity and the effective use of time: the discipline of practice

We would all like quick success but our biggest dreams will take considerable time and a lot of hard work to achieve. One wise person once told me that people overestimate what they can achieve in one year and underestimate what they can achieve in five or ten years. I have found this to be true.

Don’t underestimate the cumulative effect of applied time. Investors understand the power of compound interest when it comes to money. The same applies to the time we invest in something, including our personal development. If we continue to invest our time wisely and with focus then we can achieve great things.

“I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.” – Bruce Lee

Malcolm Gladwell in Outliers: The Story of Success did a study that explored the lives of many of the world’s most successful people and looked at the patterns behind their achievements.  One large theme prevails: that it takes a concerted application of time to achieve anything truly great.  Gladwell estimated that it requires 10,000 hours of quality practice to become an expert at one given thing or become world-class in a particular field.

Deliberate Practice: what it is and how it works

The key point here is not so much the 10,000 hours but the idea of effective or deliberate practice, something explained in detail by Robert Pool and Anders Ericsson in Peak: Secrets from the new science of expertise.

Deliberate practice involves these 5 things:

• It develops skills using proven training techniques
• Stretches the comfort zone; being just on the verge of one’s ability
• Is based on specific, well-defined goals (both overall and for each practice)
• Is purposeful and specifically focuses on those specific goals
• Is a learning cycle which includes experimentation, reflection and finding new ways to improve.

Or as Anders himself sums up:

“So here we have purposeful practice in a nutshell: Get outside your comfort zone but do it in a focused way, with clear goals, a plan for reaching those goals, and a way to monitor your progress. Oh, and figure out a way to maintain your motivation.” ― Anders Ericsson

The latter point, regarding the process being a cycle, is reflective of Kolb’s learning model, where there are four components in the learning cycle:

1. Concrete experience in practice leads to
2. Reflective observation of how that practice went, then
3. Abstract conceptualisation (mental representations) of what is being learned, followed by modification and
4. Active experimentation to get further feedback, and so the cycle continues.

So, we not only make good habits and routines, but we then, through deliberate practice, make sure that the time we put in has the maximum impact and effect.

Counting the opportunity cost

If we are going to be that focused and invest our resources in one particular way we are going to have to count the cost.  For every outlay of time or money, there is an opportunity cost; the cost of not investing our resources somewhere else.  In other words when we choose to do one thing, by default we choose to not do various other things.

You can become good at almost anything, but you cannot be good at everything.

We watch sports stars, standing on a podium receiving their gold medal at the moment of glory.  What we don’t see is the years of training, the sweat and tears spent hour after hour, day after day, invested in the dream of that moment, in the winning of the prize.  How many days and evenings out with friends were sacrificed?  What number of holidays were foregone?  Which alternative careers were declined?  You can be sure that the opportunity cost was high.

The fulfilment of a vision is going to take time and hard work.  That is why we need a dream to compel us, a mission to focus upon, and a passion to spur us forward, no matter what the obstacles are that lie in the way.  If we have that level of compulsion we can make the investment of time that is needed to succeed. With that motivation, we can build the habit of deliberate practice and self-discipline to keep pushing ourselves.

“We don’t rise to the level of our expectations; we fall to the level of our training.” – Archilochus

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The Sunglasses Tool: FOCUS

I pretty much never leave the house without sunglasses. I like to be outside, but I don’t like to squint the whole time, so sunglasses help me keep me see clearly and stay fully focussed. Sometimes it is almost like putting on another persona when I put on my glasses. At the beginning of a hike or a race, I put on my sunglasses and I become the focussed me; eyes on the goal.

That is why, when we need focus and deliberate practice, we can use The Right Questions Sunglasses tool. Here, the word ‘focus’ becomes an acronym for the five components of deliberate practice. In other words:

F – Fully Focussed

O – Outside your comfort zone

C – Clear goals

U – Using measures to monitor progress

S – Self-discipline

In my experience discipline is more important than motivation. That is because we don’t always feel motivated. Getting outside your comfort zone is challenging, we won’t always want to do it. That is why we need strong self-discipline. Motivation and a sense of flow may come when we act, but it is self-discipline that will most likely initiate that action.

With discipline comes a state of flow

The good news is that the more we use our self-discipline and apply the principles of deliberate practice we start to achieve mastery over something. When we do this and continue to apply our focus we can achieve a state of flow.

The idea of flow is the feeling of being ‘in the zone’, where there is a sense of timelessness as your body and mind become hyper focussed on what you are doing.

The term flow was first used by psychologist Mihály Csíkszentmihályi in 1970.  Csíkszentmihályi was was fascinated by the way artists get lost in their work and could be so immersed that they forget the need to eat or sleep. This phenomenon has been observed in other fields and Sir Isaac Newton was famous for forgetting everything else when he was deep in thought.

The idea of flow also relates to the idea of the Individual Zone of Optimal Functioning and the experience of athletes in elite sports. Here once again, athletes can experience a hyper-focus that is also a transcendental experience where there is a feeling of effortlessness when they achieve their best. Formula One driver Ayrton Senna, whilst qualifying for the 1988 Monaco Grand Prix, put it this way:

“I was already on pole, […] and I just kept going. Suddenly I was nearly two seconds faster than anybody else, including my team mate with the same car. And suddenly I realised that I was no longer driving the car consciously. I was driving it by a kind of instinct, only I was in a different dimension. It was like I was in a tunnel.”

We cannot guarantee getting into a flow state, but research does show that the more we gain mastery, through deliberate practice, the more likely we are to achieve this zone. And it is worth aiming for because if we can get into flow we get not just increased focus but also improved learning and a greater chance of overall success.

The time to start deliberate practice is now

As mentioned at the beginning, time is our only truly limited resource, therefore we can’t afford to waste any of it. That’s why it is so important to know what we want to achieve and why, and then find the most effective way to succeed. This is where deliberate practice comes in. Once we have built taken the first step and started to build new habits, one of those habits should be deliberate practice. Crucial to this is getting out of our comfort zone, and stretching ourselves to improve.

The theory is simple; it is the motivation, discipline and commitment that is hard. That is why we always bring to mind the vision, the end goal, and remind ourselves that it is possible. And on that note, I will leave the final word to Anders Ericsson who encourages us by saying that with deliberate practice:

“If you wish to become significantly better at something, you can.” ― K. Anders Ericsson

What is your personality type? How does your personality affect the way you do things? Which test is best to help understand my personality traits?

Why we need to understand personality

Is personality important? Evidence suggests that the psychology of personality types is important as it aids our self-awareness. This, in turn, helps us to plan for and achieve goals in a way that makes the best of our strengths. We are also much more likely to be happy (as well as successful) if we understand our personalities, characters and preferences.

I am a great believer in self-discovery as foundational to fulfilment in life. And once again I am not alone in this. From Socrates to Stephen R. Covey, the history of personal development emphasises the importance of self-awareness.

“To know thyself is the beginning of wisdom” – Socrates

It is somewhat tautological to say that self-improvement should start with self, but it is a point that is often overlooked. All too often, when setting goals, we choose to focus on other people. This might be in making unhealthy comparisons (a particular problem in the age of social media), blaming our situation on others, or endlessly seeking to fix everything around us, without doing any critique of self.

What is the difference between character and personality?

The terms character and personality are often used synonymously, but in psychology they tend to be used in slightly different ways.

Character

Character generally refers to the beliefs and moral values that we hold. In other words, why we do things or the ethical code that informs our actions. You can therefore see that it is no accident that The Right Questions Framework starts with the ‘Why’ question and an exploration of personal values. This knowledge of character and values is foundational to self-awareness, good decision-making and overall success.

Personality

Personality is usually more associated with how we do things. Our personality reflects how we think, act and feel as we navigate life. Here you can see the overlap with character, as both impact behaviour, but personality traits are often seen as innate qualities that we were born with (although the nature vs nurture debate still rages on this and many other issues).

Personality tests – Myers Briggs (MBTI) and the OCEAN (Big 5) Model

There are various ways to explore our personalities but perhaps the simplest way is with the use of personality tests. There are many personality tests of one sort or another and you might have heard or used some, such as the DISC personality test or the Clifton Strengths Finder. The best-known of all is probably the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® (MBTI®). This was the first such test I took.

Since then, I have utilised many psychometric tests in my work, and I now prefer using the Big 5 (OCEAN) model. The Big 5 is the preferred standard test of most psychologists and has been adopted by many employers (such as NASA). The OCEAN model emphasises personality traits rather than types.

Is personality more about traits or types?

The difference between traits and types reflects the distinction between analogue and digital. Traits are analogue as they measure aspects of character on a spectrum. For example, we might be more or less of a team player. The Big 5 (OCEAN) model uses this approach to understanding personality.

Personality type theory is more digital, saying that some either is or isn’t of a certain sort. For example, a test using the ‘type’ approach will say you are either extroverted or introverted. It does not illustrate to what degree you are either introverted, or extroverted, and the same with other traits. In other words, it is less nuanced. The Myers-Briggs test uses this more binary approach of typology.

Are some personality types good and others bad?

One downside with type theory is that you can start to identify as a fixed kind of character and, even worse, start to think of that type as either positive or negative. This is unhelpful. Personality traits are about preferences and these preferences are not necessarily good or bad, they are not ethical judgements. Also, personality, traits and preferences are not fixed. They can change situationally and over time. For example, I have grown more confident over the years; that element of my personality is not fixed.

Therefore, in my experience, there is no one ‘right’ personality type, but different people thrive in different situations. And the science backs me up on this. That is why the psychological study of personality and the science of identifying personality types has grown in scope and importance.

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What are the Big 5 personality types and what does OCEAN stand for?

The Big 5, which stands for five personality traits (also known by the acronym OCEAN) was developed by a series of researchers but is most closely associated with the work of Paul Costa and Robert McCrae. The 5 traits of the OCEAN model are:

O – Openness

C – Conscientiousness

E – Extroversion

A – Agreeableness

N – Neuroticism

The traits are generally measured with psychometric tests (questionnaires that indicate preferences) and the scores are expressed on a scale or spectrum. There are many tests available, some even for free. But, whether paid or not, make sure whatever test you use comes from a recognised provider with proven credentials if you want to trust the results.

The Big 5 (OCEAN) personality traits explained

Here is an explanation of each of the Big 5 traits:

Openness

Openness is the degree to which people are open to new experiences and ideas, being creative, having imagination and creativity. Less ‘open’ people prefer routine and deep, specialist knowledge.

Conscientiousness

The more conscientious a person is, the more organised, disciplined, and hardworking they tend to be. Less conscientious people tend to be more impulsive and disorganised.

Extroversion

Extroverts get more of their energy from external stimuli. They tend to be gregarious, outgoing, positive, enthusiastic, and assertive. Introverts get their energy more internally. They tend to think more before speaking, prefer fewer (but deeper) relationships and retreat from others to recharge.

Agreeableness

A more agreeable person is more likeable, cooperative, and trusting. They tend to be warm and good-natured. Less agreeable people are less trusting, more critical, and often prefer to work alone.

Neuroticism

The higher a person is on the neuroticism scale, the more they worry. They tend towards negativity and are more prone to depression and anxiety. Less neurotic people are calm, even-tempered, and more secure in themselves.

Free personality tests

If you want to discover your personality type, the easiest thing is to take a short test. There are many resources available online and many are free.

One free resource I often use is https://openpsychometrics.org where you can find a variety of tests including the Big 5 model.

Applying the Big 5 personality traits – an example

By way of an example (and to show any given trait is not good or bad) we can consider NASA astronaut selection for different missions. Let’s take one trait, that of agreeableness in this instance.

For a mission of a long duration, with people stuck in close confines such as a trip to Mars, you want people higher on the agreeableness spectrum. That is because they are more likely to work well as a team (and not rub each other up the wrong way!) This is similar to the type of person selected to serve for long durations in Antarctic research stations.

By contrast, someone completing a solo mission might be better off having a lower agreeableness rating as they will need to be happy working on their own, with no company, for long periods.

So here we can see it is not that agreeableness is good or bad. Where someone lands on the spectrum just indicates tasks or roles they are better suited to, but this is situational and just one factor to take into consideration.

How the Big 5 (and other personality tests) can help or hinder us

Taking a personality test, especially one using the preferred Big 5 (OCEAN) model, can be beneficial in aiding self-awareness. Traits show preferences and help us to identify our strengths and weaknesses. It can help inform us of roles that we might prefer and excel in (and others where we might struggle).

But personality is not fixed. Therefore, we must be careful not to identify too closely with personality types as this can get us into an unhealthy fixed mindset. This is why we focus on traits. Each trait sits on a spectrum that can change with circumstance and time. We also need to be careful not to think of our personality as good or bad. And, if we feel our personality has room for improvement, then the evidence shows that we can change.

The Right Questions ID CARD Tool: Understanding Self with Personality Tests

I very rarely go anywhere without some form of identification. Whether that is an ID card for work or a passport for travel, we often need a way to confirm who we are.

Within The Right Questions Framework, the ID CARD tool helps us think about who we are by assessing our personality traits. To do this we simply follow these steps:

• I – Itemise what you think your strengths, weaknesses, preferences and personality traits are. (N.B. Doing this first helps to avoid some of the unconscious bias that can creep in once you start speaking to other people or doing tests.)
• D – Discuss with other people and find out how they would describe your personality.

• C – Choose a suitable personality test. If you have not done one before then I recommend the OCEAN/Big 5 model.
• A – Answer the questions and complete the questionnaire.
• R – Review the results using your intuition (whether the results feel right) and the evidence of your behaviour (to confirm or deny a particular trait). In this way you can assess how closely you think the results reflect your actual personality.
• D – Do another test. After having done one personality test (such as the Big 5), then do another. You can also use different sorts of tests and compare the results. It is also helpful to do the same test but after a gap. That could be days, weeks, even years, but it is insightful to see what might have changed over time.

Who is in your personal network? Who are the best people to help you achieve your goals? How can you identify the right people for the critical roles?

Who do you want on your bus?

You are about to start a grand venture. You are in the driving seat ready to go. So, who do you want on the bus with you? Organisations expert Jim Collins poses this question in the bestselling book Good to Great.

“If we get the right people on the bus, the right people in the right seats, and the wrong people off the bus, then we’ll figure out how to take it someplace great.” – Jim Collins

I love this analogy as it is a picture we can all identify with. For instance, whether we are off on a family holiday, a team excursion or an expedition, we can empathise with checking off to see that we have the right people in the vehicle.

On expeditions, I have certainly had that experience, and whether on a military operation or explorative trip, each person is selected to fulfil certain roles, based on their particular skills and characteristics.

The same goes for whatever goal we want to achieve.

How do you think strategically about your personal network?

Building a team or network is contextual and there are various approaches to doing this. I have found the idea of the Personal Boardroom, developed by Amanda Scott and Zella King, helpful when thinking about professional networks. Equally, when building high-performing teams, I have employed Meredith Belbin’s 9 Team Roles model with great success.

But when thinking about the personal network needed to achieve specific goals I have landed on a model based on my own experience. It is these roles that we will look at next.

The Right Questions Team Tool: The 10 vital roles in your personal network

When starting out on an expedition or new business venture I always have a team list. This list specifies names and key roles. So, in the Right Questions Framework, the Team Tool is a list of the ten vital roles you need in your network. The 10 key roles are:

1. Networker
2. Creative
3. Follower
4. Expert
5. Encourager
6. Challenger
7. Fixer
8. Sponsor
9. Sage
10. Guide

So those are the ten key roles. Now, let’s look at a more detailed explanation of each role and questions to help you identify the right person.

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The Networker

A networker is someone who is a natural at building and maintaining networks of people. They have a long list of useful contacts and are good at connecting folk and helping to expand other people’s networks. They can help navigate social spheres and organisational hierarchies.

To find a networker, picture who you think of in response to these questions:

• Who can help me expand my personal network?
• Who can assist me in navigating who is who?
• Who can introduce me to the right people?

The Creative

A creative person brings inspiration. They are people who activate fresh thinking, new perspectives and the occasional crazy idea! Creatives generally work beyond the purely rational, helping to inspire lateral thought.

To find a creative, ask yourself:

• Who brings new ideas?
• Who acts as a muse or catalyst to inspire you?
• Who can bring new opportunities and ways of thinking?

The Follower

A follower is a critical team member as they help get things done. They provide support, primarily through helping productivity. They are also someone who is willing to learn and give the opportunity for you to lead, mentor and develop them. This is important as a network should always be two-way; a network is stronger if you are adding value to others as well as getting help yourself.

Remember:

“The currency of real networking is not greed but generosity.” – Keith Ferrazzi

To choose the right follower ask:

• Who can follow your lead and help you?
• Who can you delegate tasks to?
• Who can you help mentor and develop?

The Expert

An expert is someone with in-depth knowledge and expertise. They are a leader in their sphere, someone others look to for ideas and solutions. They are likely to be trendsetters, thought leaders or disruptors in their sphere.

To find the right expert to help you, think of the goal you want to achieve and ask:

• Who is the subject matter expert?
• Who is a leader in your field of interest?
• Who has the best specialist knowledge to help you?

The Encourager

An encourager is a positive person who brings energy and vitality to a relationship. They cheer you on when you are doing well and help you keep your when times are tough. They tend to have an optimistic worldview and a can-do attitude.

To identify your encourager, think:

• Who can encourage you and bolster your nerves?
• Who can be your fan, cheer you on and give moral support?
• Who can help you remain idealistic, positive and optimistic?

The Challenger

A challenger holds you to account and provides feedback on your performance. They ask probing questions, critique your ideas and highlight risks. This might make them seem pessimistic, but a good challenger is a realist who helps shape ideas to make plans (and you) more robust.

• Who can challenge your ideas and bring a contrary view?
• Who can give you honest critique and feedback?
• Who is a realist (who might sometimes sound like a pessimist)?

The Fixer

A fixer is a practical problem solver. You don’t always understand (or want to know) how they get things done, but they always achieve a result! When you are facing challenges, particularly short-term and unforeseen issues, such people are invaluable.

To find a fixer, ask yourself:

• Who can you think of who is a great problem solver?
• Who can find resources and solutions when you are under pressure?
• Who can you delegate to who you trust completely to get a task done?

The Sponsor

A sponsor raises your profile and helps with resources. They can help you find key people, money or materials. They can move behind the scenes, unblocking issues and working on your behalf.

To identify a good sponsor, ask:

• Who can champion you and your cause?
• Who can support you by finding or releasing resources?
• Who can unlock doors for you that would otherwise remain shut?

The Sage

A sage is a wise person, often more mature, who has probably achieved something similar to the dream that you have in mind. Their experience makes them an ideal mentor, who can point out the potential paths and pitfalls on the route to your goal.

To find your sage, think:

• Who can bring you experience, advice and wisdom?
• Who would be your ideal role model or sensei?
• Who can act as your mentor?

The Guide

A guide is a coach who helps you to achieve your specific life goal. They help create a thinking environment, using questions to unpack your assumptions. They assist you in making plans, setting milestones, and then sticking to them.

Therefore, to find your guide answer the following:

• Who can help you keep on track?
• Who can keep you accountable?
• Who can be your coach to help you achieve your goal?

5 Steps for how to build your personal network

1. Using The Right Questions Team tool, use your imagination to think of who you would like in each role if you could pick anyone in the world (or even from the whole of history).
2. Thinking about who you chose in step 1, now think about the top two or three reasons why you specifically chose those people. Write these factors down.
3. Now think, who in your network is sitting in those places at the moment? Are they the right people for your mission or vision? Do you need to ask someone to get off the bus?
4. Next, think about who you want on your bus to achieve your primary goal. Who can you connect with from your ideal list? From your existing network (or connections of existing connections) who could fulfil the given role and tick off the same factors you identified?
5. Now make a plan for how to engage with these people. Remember, this should include not just how to make contact but how to develop and maintain that relationship.

First steps (and further thoughts) towards building your powerful personal network

Having gone through these steps you should have identified a list of potential people who can be your personal network to help you achieve your goal. As with all good plans, make sure you commit towards taking the first step. Put something in the diary to have that first call or meeting to foster the network.

And expect things to evolve. In reality, the team we end up with is rarely the team we initially think of or start out with. Some people won’t be able to help. Others will have to step away or be replaced. Equally, you are likely to come across new people who are presently not on your list.

All these roles are important, but the roles of sage (mentor) and guide (coach) deserve some extra investigation, and that is what we will do in the next section.

Do you really know who you are? Can you describe your character, your personality, your strengths and weaknesses? How good is your self-awareness really?

There is an old Greek aphorism ‘know thyself’ that has been quoted or paraphrased by many greats through the course of history, such as Socrates and Shakespeare.  It still rings true today as being self-aware is critical to how we relate to ourselves and others.

Therefore it is good to know your personality type, your strengths and weaknesses, your most effective learning methods, your preferred communication styles, your love languages.

We are also shaped by our values and beliefs.  Understanding this will go a long way to self-awareness.

Know yourself and you will find it much easier to establish meaningful relationships and develop strong teams.

“This above all: to thine own self be true,

And it must follow, as the night the day,

Thou canst not then be false to any man.”

Polonius (from Hamlet by William Shakespeare)

The currency of relationships

Relationships are similar to bank accounts.  We know that we have to invest in friendships for them to be fruitful and at times we rely on people and have to make withdrawals.  We have to invest quality time, act in ways that develop trust and bring positive emotions and energy to make down-payments.

You often hear the phrase ‘a needy person’ and in these terms, you could say that they are a person who is always overdrawn when it comes to relational accounts – they always need someone else to invest in them.

It is a useful metaphor to keep in mind. When you are interacting with someone, ask yourself, am I investing in this relationship or am I making a withdrawal?

No one wants to be continually in debt, be that financial or relational, so we need to keep an eye on our personal balance.  The best way we can keep our own social and emotional bank account out of the red and into credit starts with being self-aware.

We need to know how to manage our emotions, how to recover our energy and which people will feed into our own reserves when we need it.

Personal development is another way we serve ourselves, and in the end, also serve others. It is not just about improving skills. As we increase in self-awareness, as we develop good habits, we also increase our resilience and effectiveness; not just our professional abilities and productivity.

Our effectiveness as professionals, as people, is built on a foundation of character. The stronger the foundation the higher you can build and the more positive the impact you can have.

The importance of integrity

We have to be true to our character. We have to be genuine, authentic. In the end, you won’t make it if you fake it.

Think about the people you most look up to.  Are they perfect?  You can be sure that they are not!  What then makes them so attractive? What is it about them that makes people want to follow them?  If they are successful, ask why are they successful?  What makes them different from the average person?  If you read biographies of such people one generally finds that the person in question is both self-aware and purposeful.  They have great strengths but also genuine vulnerability. This gives them integrity that is magnetic.

It is important to remember that we have to accept our own vulnerability and weaknesses or they will catch us up, or catch us out in the end. This takes real courage, as Brene Brown explains in her excellent book ‘Dare to Lead‘, but it is the best way to maximising our potential.

If you are being proactive by maximising your strengths and being honest about your weaknesses people are more likely to trust you.  You will be more confident and inspire the confidence of others.  If you have a firm grounding in where you are and have a vision for where you are going then you will naturally be a more attractive person.

If you are secure in who you are then others will feel secure around you.  Therefore, start with yourself; the one person who you can really change.

Change starts with me, myself and I

This holds true for working through any sort of relationship challenges.  When family or friends hurt us it is very easy to see the faults in others and how things could be better if the other person changed.  The hard part – but the most effective way forward – is to look at yourself and start the improvement there. This is the true importance of self-awareness.

But it is hard to work out how to change unless you know your starting point.

Tools for understanding self

There are numerous tools, exercises and tests you can do to help understand yourself better. Here are of the main ones that I have found useful:

Myers-Briggs Personality Test

The Myers-Briggs test is based on psychological research developed from the work of Carl Jung. You can conduct a free version of this test at Truity.com

Big 5 Personality Test

The Big 5 is another popular personality test. You can conduct a free version of this test at Truity and also at Finding Potential.

Strengths Finder

The Clifton Strengths Finder is another research-based test. This one is a paid service run by Gallup. You have to pay to do this test but you can find more information by clicking on CliftonStrengths.

Learning Styles

There has been a lot of work of different preferred learning styles. You can find a good summary of some of the key ones on MindTools.

Love Languages

For understanding relationships, the 5 Love Languages is a great resource. You can get the book on Amazon.

Have you ever done any personality or character profile tests? What test did you use and did you find it useful? Do leave a comment and let me know; I would be really interested to hear your thoughts.

Use an online course: The Quest of Self-Discovery

I have created a journey of self-discovery that uses some of the tools mentioned here along with many others. You can try out the first section for free by signing up using the link below:

The Quest

Understand your values, unlock your purpose, set your priorities, achieve success. Click here to sign up and get the 1st stage for free!

“To know thyself is the beginning of wisdom”

Socrates

How do you stand out in the workplace? What core competencies must you have to be successful in business? Work in all sectors is increasingly dynamic, and in order to succeed, employees must have the ability to deal with complexity, identify critical information, make sound decisions, and collaborate effectively with people both inside and outside their immediate environment. The problem is, many people lack the skills that employers need to achieve their goals.

CEB, a member-based advisory company based in the US, has recently published research looking into this challenge and the results are of vital importance to employers and employees alike. As a consultant friend of mine noted ‘this is gold dust!’ If you are wanting to be hired or looking to hire people then you should be thinking about this list of core competencies.

But before the list, here is Conrad Schmidt, global research officer for CEB, who frames the problem in this way:

“Employees today have more ambiguous objectives and are working with larger groups of stakeholders, making both flexibility and the ability to collaborate ‘must-have’ competencies for companies seeking higher levels of performance. Important business decisions are also being made lower in the organization, putting an even higher premium on good judgment. Building the next generation of high-performers will require organizations to cultivate these skills within their employee base and to be keenly aware of the dramatic shifts occurring in today’s work environment.”

What are the top 10 competencies?

CEB looked at the performance of over 20,000 workers from across the globe, incorporating data gathered from more than 40 different organisations. The conclusion of the study was that there are 10 competencies that, when exhibited together, identify someone as a high performer. The core competencies are:

1. Ability to Prioritize
2. Works well in teams
3. Organizational Awareness
4. Effective Problem Solving
5. Self-Awareness
6. Proactivity
7. Ability to Influence
8. Effective Decision Making
9. Learning Agility
10. Technical savvy

How can you develop the essential competencies?

The Right Questions is a framework that can be used as a tool to address these core competencies.  If you are seeking to improve in one of these areas then coaching can be a highly effective way to help you develop in these key areas.

Coaching, when done well, supports a client in achieving a specific personal or professional goal generally through facilitation of thinking.  This creates an environment of learning for the coachee.

Coaching can be described as:

Unlocking people’s potential to maximise their own performance. (Whitmore 2009: 11)

Or

The art of facilitating the performance, learning and development of another. (Downey, 2003:21)

Research has confirmed that one-to-one coaching is the most effective and satisfying way to help people achieve their goals.  This is compared to group coaching, teaching or self-coaching (Losch et al; 2016).

If you would like to find out more about coaching and how to find a coach then please do email me via our contact page.

Also, you might be interested in The Quest, which is an online virtual coaching course which leads on you a journey of self-discovery, improvement and success. Just sign up using the link below to try the first module for free:

The Quest

Understand your values, unlock your purpose, set your priorities, achieve success. Click here to sign up and get the 1st stage for free!

References

• Whitmore, J (2009) Coaching for Performance: GROWing Human Potential and Purpose: The Principles and Practice of Coaching and Leadership, 4^th London: Nicholas Brealey.
• Downey, M (2003) Effective Coaching: Lessons from the Coach’s Coach, 2^nd London: Texere.
• Echart, S (2013) CEB Executive Guidance 2013, https://news.cebglobal.com/2012-12-20-CEB-Identifies-Anatomy-of-the-New-High-Performer
• Losch, S; Traut-Mattausch, E; Mulberger, M D; Jonas, E (2016) Comparing the Effectiveness of Individual Coaching, Self-Coaching, and Group Training: How Leadership Makes the Difference. Frontiers in Psychology, 7, pp.629

Here is my Top 10 websites for getting inspiration and becoming more productive in your life and work. There are some fantastic resources here so I hope you find them as useful as I have.

99u (http://99u.com)

The name 99u comes from the quote by Thomas Edison that “Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration.” The content is a mixture of articles, tips and videos about making ideas happen.  99u is committed to education and the dissemination of practical ideas and, as well as having the website, they have an advisory branch, a book (Making Ideas Happen by Scott Belsky), and they also host an annual conference. If like me, you have lots of ideas but need the drive to make them happen, this is a great place to start.

The Smart Passive Income Blog (http://www.smartpassiveincome.com)

I was introduced to Pat Flynn’s site by a friend when I was redesigning my own website. The content on the Smart Passive Income Blog, coupled with the excellent podcast, transformed the way I looked at doing business online. Pat is very open handed and shares his experience freely. He also communicates in such a humble, friendly and disarming way that before long it feels as if you have known him personally for years. Pat’s story of his success is particularly pertinent at the moment as he has shown how you can turn being made redundant into a positive life changing opportunity. Pat is a generous and inspiring guy; whether or not you are looking to make money online you should check him out.

Start With Why (http://www.startwithwhy.com)

I first came across Simon Sinek via his TED talk on ‘How great leaders inspire action’ where he outlines the premise behind his book ‘Start with Why’. The content struck an immediate cord with me, as I am another firm believer in the importance of ‘Why’ and the need to understand the values, principles and motivations behind our life and work. Simon is a great orator and writer and makes his content very accessible. You can get a copy of his book by clicking here: Start With Why.

Mind Tools (http://www.mindtools.com)

Mind Tools is a treasure trove of useful content for your career. Mind Tools are a granddaddy in Internet terms as they have been around since 1996 and, led by James Manktelow their founder and CEO, they have amounted a host of great free content, as well as e-courses and a membership site. In 2012 they received a well-deserved Queen’s Award for Enterprise.

Thought Questions (http://thoughtquestions.com)

I love the simple concept behind the Thought Questions website, where every day there is a new question to inspire, provoke and reflect upon. The tagline ‘asking the right question is the answer’ resonates with me too as it reflects one of my favourite quotes by Francis Bacon: ‘A prudent question is one half of wisdom’. The founders, Marc and Angel, also have a great blog, ‘Marc and Angel hack life’ (http://www.marcandangel.com/) where there are tips on how to live a productive life.

Life Hacker (http://lifehacker.com)

As this list is effectively about smart thinking and productivity tools it would certainly not be complete without referring to Life Hacker. As Life Hacker says in the tagline, it has tips, and downloads for getting things done. At Life Hacker they apply ‘getting things done’ to the whole of life so the scope of Life Hacker’s content is boggling, and it just keeps on growing. If you want to work smart, not hard, this is the place to go. Whitson Gordon I salute you!

Tony Robbins (http://www.tonyrobbins.com)

Anthony Robbins is probably the world’s most famous coach and motivational speaker. He has developed his very own approach to coaching called ‘results coaching’; and you have to agree, Tony Robbins is a man who gets results! Tony is incredibly successful and his popularity just continues to grow. Tony is an extraordinary communicator and has the ability to engage with individuals as well as speak to thousands while distilling complex – and often emotional – content into practical wisdom. You cannot help but feel motivated after hearing this man speak or after reading his books such as Awaken the Giant Within.

Inc. (http://www.inc.com)

Inc. started out in traditional publishing as a magazine specifically for entrepreneurs and leaders looking to grow their businesses and became famous for it’s ‘Inc. 500 list’ of the fastest growing privately owned companies in the US. The magazine went online in 1996 and since then the website has matured into a bank of inspiration and advice as well as useful how-to-guides. There are lots of great articles; one of my favourite recent posts is ‘Servant First, Leader Second’ by Brent Gleeson.

Edge (www.edge.org)

The Edge is a space for cutting edge ideas and is an excellent place to go in order to challenge your thinking and expand your mind.  Fundamental to the whole concept is that of asking questions and exploring the questions that are on the minds of some of the great thinkers of our time.  The site is edited by John Brockman who is also the author and editor of some excellent books including Thinking.

Audible

Just like the amp in Spinal Tap, this one goes up to 11!

I am adding in Audible here at the end because, although it is different to the other resources on here, I am now a true convert and it has really helped me achieve my learning goals (as you can read about here).  

The Quest

Understand your values, unlock your purpose, set your priorities, achieve success. Click here to sign up and get the 1st stage for free!