Getting Started with Agile Results
If you don’t have a system for results, now is a great time to adopt one. I’ll give you a quick start and step you through adopting Agile Results. Even if you already have a system for results, you can adopt pieces of Agile Results to get more out of it.
Having a system on your side gives you a firm foundation. It helps you when you fall down or are overwhelmed. It also helps you move up the stack by not having to worry about the basics. By making results a routine and rhythm, you can direct your attention on to bigger and better things.
Agile Results in a Nutshell
These are the basics. If you do nothing else, simply identify 3 great results for today. The rest will follow. This helps you get mindful about your results and keeps you forward-looking. This little pattern increases your focus, your prioritization, and keeps you inspired as you carve out and drive your great results. Here is a quick summary of how you can get started with Agile Results:
Mapping Out What’s Important
- Identify the most important results in each area or hot spot in your life: mind, body, emotions, career, financial, relationships, and fun (consider where you over-invested or under-invested.)
- Consider your work projects (identify 3 great results here)
- Consider your personal projects (identify 3 great results here)
Producing Results
- On Mondays, identify 3 results for the week
- Each day, identify 3 results you want to accomplish (this drives your day)
- On Fridays, reflect on your results. Identify 3 things going well, and 3 things to improve.
Monthly Themes
- Each month, pick a theme for focus. This is how you can balance across your interests. It allows you to focus less on one thing, while you focus more on another.
You can read the one-page guide on getting started with Agile Results for a simple walkthrough.
The Sum is More Than the Parts
I’ve been trying to put my fingers on why something so simple works so well. I think it’s the synthesis of:
- Agile (respond to change, stories and value-driven, … etc.)
- Outcomes over activities (instead of a task-focus, it’s a focus on results and outcomes)
- The rule of 3 (used from military to marketing for great results and avoid overload)
- Lean (demand driven, avoid getting stuck in the process, reduce open work, hack away at the unessential)
- Scrum (backlog for life + weekly sprints to bite off what you can chew)
- Stories / story-driven results (we’re wired for stories, making meaning, emotional connection)
- Positive psychology (3 things going well, focus on forward)
- Strengths-focus (spend more time where it matters, focus on energy)
- Project management (think in projects, start/end, know the work, know capacity/throughput)
Together, these parts create a powerful synergy and momentum in your life.
A Simple Frame for Maximum Results
It’s a lot compacted into a simple frame
- Use 3 stories to carve out results for your day, for your week, for your month, for your year, and for your life.
- Ride the rhythms of results — focus on weekly results – Monday vision, daily outcomes, Friday reflection.
- Let things go and slough off … the art of letting the right things go to spend more time on the right things that matter.
- Catch your next best train … set the trains to leave the station each day, each week, each month … miss the train today, catch your next best one over dwell on the train you missed … get up to bat time and again.
What Are Your 3 Results for Today?
You can test yourself and gauge your progress. You’ll know you’re doing well when you can start answering the simple question, “What are my 3 results for today?” Test yourself each day.
When you first start, you might think of things like “have a great lunch” or “clear my inbox” or “win a raving fan.” As it becomes a habit, you’ll find yourself creating even more compelling stories and getting creative with your results.
Photo by Tigr.
Thanks for this, J.D. I look forward to buying your book.
I would love to hear your take on the concept of resistance (as laid out by Steven Pressfield in his book the War of Art) as it pertains to getting results (or not). I see resistance as something even more insidious than problems of motivation because it comes from the irrational reptilian brain as opposed to the rational mind from which we get our sense of motivation.
Hey Annabel
I’m glad you asked … The War of Art is one of my favorite books
You’re right — resistance is more insidious because we have to fight it from a different place, but we can still do effective battle when we know and respect this enemy.
The very first thing is to reframe how we look at resistance. Just like stress, there’s good and bad. The right resistance makes you stronger — it’s your growth. Bad resistance is like pushing the weight side-ways, and just gets in the way.
One way to fight the reptilian brain is to stay out of it … and do more from your prefrontal. There are several ways, and this is emotional intelligence in action, but here are some practical ways:
- checklists (this is how the Air Force does it)
- Master your stories (whenever you slip into fight-or-flight, start telling yourself a new story, starting with the facts … this is covered in Crucial Conversations)
You defeat resistance by stacking the deck in your favor
- compelling vision or end-in-mind
- creating glide-paths (reduce the little friction in your day that gets in the way)
- link it to good feelings (you can trump your reptilian brain very effectively this way)
I would argue that motivation gets you started, but it’s connecting to passion and values that keep you going. You can help this along by making it as enjoyable as possible (whether it’s playing your favorite songs or rewarding yourself in the moment … sometimes it’s as simple as an attitude of grattitude … appreciate yourself for doing the right thing, when resistance is telling you otherwise.)
I could say a lot on this, but I hope this is enough to get your started.
1. have left comments on 50 blogs.
2. clear my inbox
3. have a great dinner!!
xo
@ Jannie
It looks like you’ve got clarity and results … a perfect combo!
I really liked your response to Annabel above. Short, effective and to the point summary of how to fight resistance. The rule of three was the biggest revelation for me in agile results system. Love it.
@ Lana
Thank you. I like the fact you used the rule of 3 and resistance so close together … you reminded me that the rule of 3 is powerful way to fight resistance by avoiding overload and creating compelling stories.
Hi JD .. I hope all things being equal .. I’m restarting my life to move on – so the field can be sown as I see my mother through .. first it’s interesting how the same things seem to ‘hit’ us .. eg the Stephen Pressfield book “The War of Art” .. it keeps popping up.
So now to threes – you do set things out succinctly .. I’ve printed the post out: I’ll be using it. Today 1) catch up on the Reader & blogs, 2) write letters to my mother’s friends and family answering those we received and giving a quick update – I’ll be sloughing somewhat with this one – but a job that needs to be done 3) sort some paperwork out in preparation for some technical help tomorrow ..
Tomorrow – a bit more sorting I expect, some business letters and then honing down the needs for the technical help .. then my mother – so that’s 4 for tomorrow .. good to dos though ..
Thanks – I’m going to check out a couple of your links .. then on with 1, 2 and 3 for today .. Hilary
@ Hilary
One of our president’s turned their depression into a black cat — it helped him deal with it. I think the same is true for resistance — you can think of it as a leprechaun or whatever inspires you to win.
Paving the path forward is tough — latching on to a compelling vision will help you through the tough times and keep you on path. Use the core of “You 2.0″ as a firm foundation. It’s all you, but you’re a lot when you can fully harness what you’ve got.
Great start on practicing your 3′s.
Hi JD .. I failed, but I will get there – I did one thoroughly – I’ll blitz through the second today, the third I started .. but my black cat of having to move my mother’s room .. will be leading me on .. I will get there .. just grateful for the resistance idea .. bouncing ball .. bouncing away from me .. I’ll go that route! Thanks for replying .. have a good week … Hilary
Thanks for your insights on Resistance, JD. I like the idea of getting ideas from how the military does things—if those techniques work under such extreme stress conditions, then they should work in everyday life where the stakes are nowhere near as high.
@ Hilary
The bouncing ball sounds like perfect imagery.
If it helps, one of my most effective patterns is “worst things first.” I do the worst things for the day in my first hour of the day … this way they don’t loom over me and it creates a glide-path for the rest of the day.
@ Annabel
I’m with you … I like the fact we can borrow these high-power techniques and get results in our everyday lives. One of my favorite books is Flawless Execution that shares how the Air Force uses checklists to help people share tribal knowledge, avoid getting overwhelmed, and get better results.
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