Savvy Success: Triple Your Effectiveness

1. Be clear about your desired outcome.

Know what you want to accomplish. Ask yourself:
How will I know whether I've succeeded? Once you've
identified the end goal, work backwards to determine
how to get there. Then work it one step at a time.

2. Determine which tasks tap into your brilliance.

If you're truly the best person do to the task, keep
it; otherwise, hand it off to someone who has the
skills, passion and/or talent to do the work.

2. Ask others to contribute to your goal.

Engage others by concisely describing how you want
them to support the goal. Don't assume you're
on the same page without double checking with
them. Otherwise, you'll waste a huge amount of time.

3. Develop "people reserves."

If you've only got a few people in reserve, they'll
quickly get overloaded. Keep your pipeline full by
gathering "on call" folks. This will cause you to
keep moving forward instead of becoming a bottleneck.

4. Instill alacrity.

Don't put off what is urgent and important. Move
beyond the road blocks by asking for attention or
a speedy resolution. Ask for a few more minutes of
conversation or a specific call-back time.

5. Schedule short meetings.

Begin by cutting your meeting times in half. This
causes everyone to be more alert and focused. Stick
to your schedule. It's amazing how much you can
accomplish in even just 15-minute meetings!

6. Get to the core of recurring problems.

If problems keep recurring, you'll need to drill
deeper to get beyond the surface. This time
investment is well worth the "expense" since it
will yield much greater returns. You'll become
"problem-free."

7. Keep your energy up.

When you're not getting the results you were
expecting, don't waste time and energy getting
frustrated. Let your annoyance immediately
signal you to take productive action. Address
what's not working. Stay calm and plug the
energy leak.

8. Under promise, over deliver.

Have fewer commitments and make sure you follow-
through. Keeping your promises builds trust and
credibility. It prevents you from experiencing
integrity glitches.

9. Manage through systems.

Set clear guidelines and procedures. Systems help
leaders manage remotely because it limits
personal involvement. Use technology to have results
occur automatically or through others.

10. Give up being the GM of the universe.

Let go of having to orchestrate everything yourself.
Don't take on extra projects if this will over
burden you. Negotiate or learn to elegantly say
"no."

The Best of Success to You!