Turning plans into results

MOST people can plan; few can execute effectively to get the result. How can we convert our plan into real delivery?

We have to understand why plans fail or why most plans never reach completion on time? We know what to do, but why do we still not do it? There is a gap between knowing and doing. The knowing-doing gap is the distance between what you know you should do and what you actually do. Most productivity failures happen not because you lack the knowledge, training, or intelligence, but because you lack execution discipline, proactivity and initiative to start doing the job.

There are many reasons for the knowing-doing gap. You can be mentally overloaded. You know your priorities, but have too much on your plate so you freeze and are at a loss at what you should do first. You may even procrastinate or do the easier tasks first and avoid meaningful and important tasks. This leads to a non-productive day.

Most plans fail at the starting point because the goals are vague and ambiguous. There is a lack of clarity of what exactly you want to do. For example, you have allocated 2 hours to write a report. However, you don’t have an idea how to start it, because “writing the report” is very vague. Maybe a better plan is to prepare “the terms of reference” or write “the introduction” of the report. You can actually break down a big task into many smaller and easier manageable parts. Breaking down a task into smaller and easier manageable tasks will help you focus on what you exactly want to achieve within the 2-hour allocated time.

There are some people who do their work based on mood, motivation or when they feel like doing it. They will tell you, “I will do it when I am in the mood.” Even when they know what the right thing they should do is, their emotions often override their action. There are also people who automatically default to checking email, responding to WhatsApp and doing some trivial tasks when they are not in a mood for working.

Sometimes people don’t do their tasks promptly because there is a lack of immediate consequences. There is no punishment if they don’t do their task. If a task isn’t done, nothing happens. When there is no pain, the delay continues. There is obviously no follow-up system in such circumstances. Without an execution process or system, there is no urgency and everything is done on an ad hoc and reactive basis. This type of work attitude is doomed for failure.

How to close the knowing-doing gap? The goal is to move from “I know” to “I do”, and to “I finish”. You must convert plans into (1) clear outcomes – what does “done” look like; (2) clear steps – what is the next step to be taken; (3) clear deadlines – when to get each step done; and (4) clear ownership – who is doing what in each and every step.

When a task is big and difficult, you can break it down into smaller parts. You can prepare the task list the night before and break the task into very small parts. Start anywhere even when you find it difficult to get started. Many executions fail not because the task is hard, but because starting is hard.

Sometimes it helps to declare your commitment in doing a task openly, especially when you find yourself not having the push to start doing it. People complete what they commit to publicly or to someone else. You can also make your progress visible and let your colleagues monitor the progress. What gets measured gets completed. This will enhance your motivation and commitment in doing the task. Commitment increases execution and follow-through.

Here is an example of knowing and doing. Knowing – “I need to write the report by Friday.” You know what you need to do, but you have not committed to a process of doing it. Doing – “I will breakdown writing the report into smaller parts – get information, organize the information into different sections of the report, schedule deep work sessions to start writing, give a completion deadline for each of the smaller parts and then follow-through the plan.” You will be more likely to succeed in writing the report by Friday when you have the steps of doing it.

Many people fail not because they don’t know how to do the job, but because they do not do it. We will be more effective in our work if we learn how to close the knowing and doing gap. Turning plans into results is rarely about what we know, it is about what we actually do to achieve the results.