What do some of the most successful and productive people in the world do every week that ensures their top performance?
They proactively focus on their goals and review their progress towards those goals. Specifically, they stop, think, analyze what happened, learn, and then plan their next week’s goals.
Based on the works of a few great gurus and advisors including Brendon Burchard, Michael Hyatt, Alex Ikonn and Uj Ramdas, I’ve developed the President’s Weekly Review. I use this powerful process in my President’s Advisory and executive coaching services…and in my own business.
Photo 1: The President’s Weekly Review
The President’s Weekly Review is a process I (and several clients) undertake every week. It involves the simple steps of analyzing and recording your responses in a spreadsheet, word document, or journal. You do need to write it down, though, or type it. Just thinking about it doesn’t count.
The main concept is to focus on your goals. Do not get lost in a detailed to-do list. These lists, just like email, are often someone else’s priorities, not yours. To-do lists are never aligned with your goals, which I’ve learned from my mentor, Alan Weiss.
The President’s Weekly Review steps include:
- Progress on goals: What were my prior week’s goals and how well did I do completing them? What metrics do I use to track progress?
- Obstacles: What obstacles were encountered? Were they expected or unexpected? How did I deal with them?
- Learn: What did I learn? What are the patterns of success or challenges? (This is the most important step that yields fascinating insights, challenges my old beliefs, and lifts me up to the next level of success)
- Next week’s goals: What are my top goals for next week? What are the expected obstacles? Who and what can help me to achieve them? Tip: Ask for help!
- Schedule: What are the main actions to take and when can I schedule them in my calendar?
To be clear, the weekly goals are subsets of your major business and life goals.
Figure 5.1 The SME Business Wealth Builder Weekly Review
But don’t take my word for it. Here are comments from two clients and successful business owners who work with me in my President’s Advisory program and participate in the President’s Weekly Review process.
Steve McKenna is the president of the McKenna Group of Companies, who, with his brilliant wife Alyssa, own two main businesses in two countries: Luxury Granite in Saskatchewan (and expanding rapidly) and McKenna Distribution in Canada and the USA. They have three young children, so they’re a busy bunch of entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs-in-the-making.
Steve says he gains these benefits from our Weekly Review process:
- “The regular and consistent goal-setting takes larger goals and puts them into bite-sized chunks each week.”
- “Pausing to reflect, looking back, and then looking ahead, helps to maintain my perspective and to focus the overall direction of my companies.”
- “The habit of awareness helps me to continually learn, take action, and recreate the positive results.”
- “Reporting accountability – meeting with you every week and discussing goals and issues keeps me focused on the priorities in my life, both personal and business.”
Across the pond in Dublin, Ireland, Shane Cradock is a management consultant and focuses on growth for Fortune 100 companies and entrepreneurs. He’s also an award-winning playwright!
Shane stated that he’s “always been a fan of weekly reviews.” Here’s why:
- “I use weekly reviews as part of the skills I work with clients on. But it’s easy to lose consistency yourself if no-one is holding you accountable.”
- “Accountability – knowing I have to send it to you is a good trigger; it’s also part of our [President’s Advisory] meeting now so I get it done, consistently.”
- “It helps my focus, reminds me of my progress or not, and also is a simple way to keep track of what matters most – business and personal.”
- “Previously I would have done my review for myself in handwriting – The spreadsheet format is new but I like it – because it allows me to see possible trends over time and be real with myself.”
Focusing on goals helps me to consistently make better decisions because I know whether something fits or not, and I don’t waste time on unimportant activities. From decisions come actions, and actions drive results.
The weekly review can be done in as little as 15 minutes. It provides immense powerful feedback and clarity on my business and my life.
