The 4 Disciplines of Execution

4DX

The Whirlwind Oh, the whirlwind! The whirlwind is the chaos of our day to day lives. For me it is the teaching, lesson planning, making parent phone calls, grading work, etc. Experiencing the chaos of the whirlwind on a day to day basis sometimes makes us feel like there is no time to add more to our plates, especially a new initiative, like blended learning. After watching this week's videos and engaging in the readings, I came to the realization that we must use The 4 Disciplines of Execution, to create a “winnable game” plan (McChesney, 2016) for the implementation of blended learning in my organization.

Discipline 1: Focus on The Wildly Important Goal According to McChesney (2016), we must "focus on less in order to accomplish more." By identifying and focusing on our Wildly Important Goal (WIG), we are able to create change without being overwhelmed by the "whirlwind" of our everyday lives. We must focus on the most important objective, the one that won’t be achieved without special attention, so we can tackle the implementation of blended learning in small yet powerful steps (McChesney, 2016). Discipline 2: Act on Lead Measures According to McChesney (2016), LAG Measures are the big measures like profit, customer satisfaction, or weight loss.They are called LAG, because by the time you see a difference the performance has already passed because they LAG behind. Lead Measures on the other hand can be tracked. They are the activities that drive the LAG Measure, such as eating healthy and exercising when trying to lose weight (LAG Measure). When we act on the lead measures we focus on what we can control which will predict our results. For example, our LAG Measure might include student growth and achievement. This measure is a huge one, because we all want to see growth, but it also might take a while to achieve and lag behind. Instead we should focus on our LEAD Measure, which would include the consistent and faithful implementation of a blended learning program. This will drive the growth. Discipline 3: Keeping a Compelling Scoreboard and Discipline 4: Create a Cadence of Accountability. By keeping score and creating accountability, people are able to track their progress and create their own commitments. When people see the impact of the WIG and the 4 Disciplines of Execution, they are more likely to continue with the change. With that being said, my team and I must create a way to keep score and hold weekly meeting in which we hold each other accountable to our commitments.

To read more about how my coworkers and I will use the 4DX to execute change in our organization, click here.

References: McChesney, C. (2011, July 26). Move your middle - chris mcchesney. YouTube. Retrieved February 20, 2022, from https://youtu.be/j3ThJ5b3vww McChesney, C., Covey, S., & Huling, J. (2016). The 4 disciplines of execution: Achieving your wildly important goals. Free Press. McChesney, C. (2016, December 29). The 4 disciplines of execution in a Nutshell. YouTube. Retrieved February 20, 2022, from https://youtu.be/aEJDliThj7g