Sticking to It: The Art of Adherence
How many times have we been told the formula for maintaining a
healthy weight is to eat a balanced diet and exercise regularly?
Everybody knows the formula, although sophisticated marketers
package it in many creative ways. So if we all know what the
formula is, why is it so difficult to apply it to our lives? The
secret to losing weight is not in knowing the formula - it's in
applying what we already know.
Most organizations understand how to develop a strategy, but
many fail to successfully execute it. To illustrate this,
consider that in a typical year, 40 CEOs from the Fortune 200
are removed from their posts. Why? Of course, some had poor
strategies. However, the most common reason CEOs lost their
leadership position was because they didn't execute their
strategies.
Lack of strategy execution is not isolated to CEOs. Leaders at
all organizational levels experience challenges executing their
strategies. In fact, the greatest challenge for today's leaders
is not the lack of well thought-out strategies, but the lack of
disciplined execution of those strategies. There is a
knowing-doing gap. The game is won not by creating new
strategies, but by sticking to your current strategy - it's
called Adherence.
So, how do you achieve Adherence? Based on the experiences of
high-achieving individuals and teams, there are three key
components of Adherence: Focus, Competence and Passion. The
relationship between these three components is best illustrated
by a multiplication equation:
Focus x Competence x Passion = Adherence
When you think about Adherence this way, the critical role of
each component becomes clear. For example, on a scale from 0 to
10, if one component is missing (i.e., Focus = 0, Competence =
4, Passion = 8), there can be no Adherence.
0 x 4 x 8 = 0
There is also an exponential relationship between the three
components. In other words, a higher level of Focus, Competence
or Passion will result in an exponential increase in Adherence.
As you increase each component, you build momentum toward
executing your strategy.
The results of building Adherence can be compared to the results
of planting a bamboo seed. When the seed is planted and
nurtured, it can take up to two years for a sprout to break
through the earth. But once it does, it can grow over 100 feet
in two weeks! This accurately describes the journey and benefits
of building Adherence.
The ultimate competitive advantage, organizationally or
personally, is being the very best at implementing a plan. Your
greatest challenge is not creating a new plan. Your greatest
challenge is adhering to your current plan. Spend more time on
Adherence and less time creating a new strategy.
Let's take a closer look at Adherence. The following sections
describe the success factors for each component of Adherence:
Focus, Competence and Passion.
Commit to one action YOU can take in the next 24 hours to start
improving your team's Adherence. High-achieving leaders start
with themselves. They build personal Adherence before they try
to build their team's Adherence. If your team's focus is low,
look at your personal focus. If your team's competence is
sub-par, look at your own competence. If your team's passion is
faltering, look at your personal passion.
That's it. You are on your way to building Adherence for your
team!
Now, continue your journey by STICKING TO IT!