Four Disciplines of Execution 4DX

The 4 Disciplines of Execution are precise rules for translating strategy into action at all levels of an organization.  I believe that most of you would agree with me that it is easier to strategize than to implement the strategies formulated.  It is easier to make plans than to do the plans you created.  Am I correct?  It is just like New Year’s resolution, it is easy to make plans or strategies for your life but it is very hard to execute them.  Let me get to my point.  How many of you have dreamt of losing weight when you started 2013?  How many of you have actually lost weight?  Who among you have planned to read at least one good book in a month?  Who among you have actually read at least three books for now since it is already September?  Who among you have decided at the beginning of the year not to be late at work or appointments anymore?  Who among you are actually on time – with your going to office and meeting appointments with customers or clients?

This is why I want to share 4DX to you tonight.  When applied, the 4 Disciplines of Execution produce extraordinary results by tapping the desire to win that exists in every individual.  It’s a good book so if you have extra money buy it.  But here’s a brief summary: The first discipline of execution is…

The Discipline of FOCUS

If you want to become a great follower, you have to focus.  Say focus.Extraordinary results can only be achieved when you are clear about what matters most. As simple as this principle may sound, unfortunately, only few leaders have ever mastered it.

Let me tell you a story.  A New York stockbroker had just purchased a brand new Porsche. He parked it in front of his office to show it off to his colleagues. As he's getting out of the car, an SUV comes speeding along too close to the curb and takes off the door before driving off. The man gets very upset. He grabs his cell phone and calls the police. It takes them five minutes to show up.Before the officer has a chance to ask any questions the man starts to scream hysterically, "My Porsche, my beautiful silver Porsche is ruined. No matter how long it's at the body shop it'll simply never be the same again!When the man finally finishes his rant, the policeman shakes his head in disgust. "I can't believe how materialistic you are," he says. "You are so focused on your possessions that you don't notice anything else in your life.""How can you say such a thing at a time like this?" sobbed the Porsche owner.The policeman replied. "Didn't you realize that your left arm went with the door?"The stockbroker looked down in horror and screamed, "My Rolex!"

Enough of the joke, let’s go back to business.  The leader should narrow his focus. This is not only hard in the beginning, it’s hard to sustain because leaders are always drawn to new ideas. While innovation is important, without focus the team cannot succeed – so leaders must learn to say “no” or “not now” to new ideas until the results on the strategy have been achieved.

Focus on the Wildly Important requires you to go against your basic wiring as a leader and focus on less so that your team can achieve more. When you implement Discipline #1, you start by selecting one (or at the most, two) extremely important goals at work or in your company, instead of trying to significantly improve everything all at once. We call this a “Wildly Important Goal” (WIG) to make it clear to the team that this is the goal that matters most. Failure to achieve it will make every other accomplishment seem secondary - or possibly evenunimportant.

The same for us Christians, we should have “FOCUS.”  Don’t just focus on your earthly and work life; focus on God because our life here is just temporary.  Colossians 3:1 says, “Therefore, if you have been raised with the Messiah, keep focusing on the things that are above, where the Messiah is seated at the right hand of God.” (ISV).  Others have time for Starbucks or for going out with friends or watch a movie after work.  But when you ask them to go to church or attend a cell group, they will say that they are already tired.  They have time for leisure but no time for God.

The Discipline of Leverage

Nowadays, restaurants often offer unlimited rice and bottomless drinks because Filipinos love it.  Who among you love to go to restaurants with unlimited rice or drinks?  Now, if given a chance by God, who among you would like to have unlimited time and resources? Wow, I also would love to have them.  With unlimited time and resources, we could accomplish anything. Unfortunately, our challenge is usually the opposite: accomplish more with less. We know that we only have 8 to 12 hours a day to work so don’t expect to have more than 24 hours a day to accomplish your work.  Don’t tell me that you don’t need to eat and sleep and spend time with your family.  If your capital in the business is limited, don’t make plans and apply loans that will give you future headaches.  Work out with what you have.  Save more money and use it in the business.  Check out with what you’re good at and use it as leverage.Leaders should find real leverage and how to use it to produce extraordinary results. 

If your product is not so good yet, leverage on service.  Use it as a strategic weapon that requires the right attitude and superior discipline. Only organizations with a “service first” mentality can even hope to create a service advantage. If your quality is not so good yet as you’re still developing your product’s quality, leverage on price.  Look at China, we laugh at their quality but we keep on buying their products.  Am I correct?  Who among you here can say that you don’t have any China product at home?  I believe none of us will ever raise our hand here because we are definitely using China products one way or another.

Exodus 4:1-3 – “Moses answered, “What if they do not believe me or listen to me and say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you’?”  ² Then the Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?”  “A staff,” he replied.  ³ The Lord said, “Throw it on the ground.”  Moses threw it on the ground and it became a snake, and he ran from it.”  Moses here was tasked by God to free the Israeli from the slavery caused by the Egyptians.  But Moses said he can’t do it.  He had so many reasons so that God will not use him.  This is why God asked Moses what is in his hand.  Friends, what is in your hand right now?  How much money do you have as capital?  How much time do you have to accomplish your job?  What can you do with your skills or talents even if you think they are limited?  Don’t focuson what you don’t have.  Focus on what you have and I believe you can use it as your leverage or advantage.

The Discipline of Engagement

You have the authority to make things happen, but you want more than that – you want the performance that only passion and engagement can produce.  Leaders shouldshift from authority-driven compliance to passion-driven commitment in themselves and the people they lead.

The difference in performance between a team that simply understands their lead and lag measures as a concept, and a team that actually knows their score, is remarkable! Lead and lag measures that are not captured on a visual scoreboard and updated regularly, will surely disappear into the distraction of the whirlwind.

In any game, the players need to see the scoreboard to know how they are doing.  Am I right?  This is the same whether be at work or in your business.  You may be thinking that you already have a scoreboard, or even lots of scoreboards, all captured in complex spreadsheets inside your computer. This type of approach is tied to conventional thinking and is what we would call a “coach’s scoreboard.”

4DX Principle is different: The scoreboard is for the whole team. To drive execution you need a players’ scoreboard designed solely to engage all the players on your team to win…here’s where we need to be and here’s where we are right now. In five seconds or less, anyone can determine whether we are winning or losing.With this approach you will see an increase in the level of intensity of your team and you will also see teamwork. The fundamental purpose of a players’ scoreboard is to motivate the players to win.

4 Characteristics of a Compelling Players’ Scoreboard:

·         Is it simple? It must be simple. Coaches need the data to manage the game.  In basketball they have all sorts of info, like how many fouls, rebounds, steals, etc.  But the scoreboard on the field shows only the data needed by the players to play the game. 

·         Can I see it easily? It must be visible to the team. Visibility drives accountability.

·         Does it show lead and lag measures? This really helps a scoreboard come to life.

·         Can I tell at a glance if I’m winning? If the team can’t quickly determine if they are winning or losing, then it’s not a game, it’s just data.

People play differently when they’re keeping score. If you doubt this, watch any group of teenagers playing basketball and see how the game changes the minute scorekeeping begins. But the truth of this statement is more clearly revealed by a change in emphasis: People play differently when they are keeping score. It’s not about you keeping score for them.

Paul said in 1 Thessalonians 5:11, “Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.”  Use this compelling scoreboard to encourage one another.

The Discipline of Accountability

No matter how brilliant your plan or how important your goal, nothing will happen until you follow through with consistent action. In basketball, if you want to be a good shooter, you have to apply follow through.Ultimately, Discipline 4 is the most crucial, since it’s the discipline where the actual “game” is played. But remember, Discipline 4 can only happen because Disciplines 1 to 3 have set up a winnable game.

When accountability only exists between each team member and their boss, its effect is limited, but when team members feel accountable to each other, their performance shifts from being professional to personally important. Our experience has consistently shown that people will work hard to avoid disappointing their boss, but they will work harder to avoid disappointing their team. The result is a dramatically increased level of performance and follow-through.

CONCLUSION

There are two fundamental reasons that execution is so difficult. The first is that it requires people to change their behavior. Simply put, if you want to achieve goals you’ve never achieved before, you have to do things you’ve never done before. Changing human behavior is never easy, but it’s even harder because of the second challenge: implementing these changes in an environment that’s already swirling with urgent priorities – what we call the Whirlwind. Together, these challenges can derail even the best leaders from achieving their goals.

Do you remember the Law of Diminishing Returns? Basically, the more you try to do, the less you actually accomplish. This is an inescapable principle we all live with. Somewhere along the way, most leaders forget this. Why? Because smart, ambitious leaders don’t want to do less, they want to do more, even when they know better. Isn’t it really difficult for you to say “No” to a good idea, much less a great one? And yet, there will always be more good ideas than you and your teams have the capacity to execute. That’s why your first challenge is “focusing on the wildly important.”