Here we are … “What I Learned This Week” Friday. Along with the usual stuff this week, I spoke with a handful of corporate executives, attended a few webinars and participated in a few mastermind groups. The theme this week in just about everything I did was CLARITY.
For me personally, clarity was the difference maker in my transition out of the construction industry. I mean it’s hard enough as it is to try and stay clear and focused when you only have one job. Going from one to another, and one that is completely different, produced a lot of fuzz in my vision for a really long time.
I think the most significant thing that was missing early on was guidance. I was trying to do it all myself and well, you can probably guess how that turned out. When I became part of the John Maxwell Team, I not only was connected to John himself and an incredible roster of teammates, but a mentorship team that has been invaluable in my successful transition.
One of my teammates, Kary Oberbrunner, who was coaching and mentoring in his own business took me a step further by introducing me to a framework that included an Overarching Vision, Purpose, Unifying Strategies and a Scorecard for Significance. If you want to know more about that framework, let me know, but the end result was gaining the clarity that I had been lacking that brought my world back into focus.
I said clarity was the theme this week, but it came in different forms and I offer these up to see if your world currently resonates with any of them.
I’m not sure where I am so how can I possibly know where I’m going?
You have to start somewhere, right? Well it only makes sense to start where you’re at. I have found that if you find yourself in this situation it’s because you’re lacking a benchmark, nothing to define your current condition. I love the idea of starting with the end in mind. Do you have a vision for your future?
Look, I will be honest, if you don’t know where you’re going then it doesn’t matter where you are. Knowing where you want to go allows you to establish what the difference is between the destination and where you currently are. A destination provides the clarity to map the course to get there.
I’m too busy to figure out where I want to go. I can barely take care of today.
I know some of you are in this category. I won’t pretend to minimize your current workload or responsibilities, but this I know – if you don’t know where your going, it really doesn’t matter where you end up. If you don’t have a plan, someone else will make one for you and if you didn’t know this already, they don’t have much planned for you.
Clarity doesn’t just happen. It comes from strategically planning out the steps you need to achieve a desired result. And it only starts there. Once you have that plan, you need to work it. Clarity is the glue that holds a plan together and makes it stick! (Tweet This / Post to LinkedIn)
I’m not quite ready for clarity, I need to take care of a few things first.
Really? Doesn’t that, in itself, suggest that clarity is needed? The time for clarity is now. Remember earlier when I said BEGIN with the end in mind. Last time I checked, the beginning is usually the first part. My point is that the next move is your most important because it sets the stage for the rest.
Don’t fool yourself into thinking that you need to take care of a few things before you create and implement a plan. Those “things” should be part of your plan. Start now with the plan you want to execute. Be strategic and specific with every move.
My guess is that you fit into at least one of these three scenarios, maybe more. This week I mentioned the gap between what we know and what we do. Clarity can close that gap.
The Question: Which of these scenarios are you currently in?
The Challenge: Before going back to whatever it was you were doing, take just 15 minutes and come up with one action item you can take immediately to improve your current condition or circumstance.
***********************************************************************
Click here to get a copy of my Kindle Book “The Manifesto Of An Influential Leader”
Join me on the STOP CHALLENGE CHOOSE 12 week health transformation
Don’t miss a single post from Building What Matters by subscribing at the top left of this page.
Help support us by clicking here and Liking our facebook page
Barry Smith 2/7/14 photo by author © Building What Matters 2014
//
