No good comes from ignoring a check engine light. It’s not going away on its own (in fact, it will most likely get worse). But in life, we do this with ourselves all the time. When we fail to evaluate and improve on the shortcomings of our performance, our problems only grow.
Whether you're established in your career or just embarking on your first job, it’s essential to reflect on key metrics of performance to grow. This not only gives you the chance to celebrate successes but also an opportunity to flag issues before they become unmanageable. But how?
An After-Action Review is a military strategy that can seamlessly be applied to a professional context. It’s a reflective tool that asks:
- What did we want to achieve?
- What occurred?
- What went well, and what didn’t go well?
- What can be improved?
A trusty tool in your arsenal, the After-Action Review is proven to help performance. If you have a Full Focus Planner, you will find After-Action Review in the Weekly Preview and Quarterly Preview.
One of the most helpful action points to implement during this process is also one of the most overlooked ones: What can you eliminate to boost achievement? This strategy involves asking yourself (or your team) two questions:
Question 1. What is Not Important?
Unimportant tasks crowd your achievement. It means your time is eaten up by unnecessary responsibilities. By reviewing what’s happened, taking action, and eliminating distractions, you have a clearer path to take and more space to focus on what matters.
Question 2. What Actions Are Undermining Achievement?
Look at your situation. What is successfully contributing to your team’s performance and what is hurting it? We all have habits that undermine productivity so take the time to name and notice these things. Too many meetings? Laborious Zoom calls? Cut them and prioritize actions that contribute to achievement.
An action plan builds accountability, creates a toolkit for success, and moves you closer to achieving what you want. Conducting an After-Action Review with elimination in mind forces you to reconnect with your vision, ensure alignment within your team, and prepare how to execute more effectively.
Last modified on March 29th, 2023 at 2:11 pm
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