Achieving goals can sometimes seem like a daunting task and the challenge I have seen in the people I have worked with and even in my own life, is the willingness to stick with something long enough to see it come to fruition.
When setting and reaching desired outcomes in my life, I use a very specific framework. This framework is called the ICCAA. Let me explain briefly what that is.
The ICCAA is a concept that I created. I have used it in my personal life and with each of my clients to get maximum results. It is an acronym and stands for the following: Identify, Clarify, Commit, Act, and Adjust
- Identify- The first step in creating change is to figure out what one wants. What is it that you would like to have different? I find questions to be powerful in determining what it is I want. I tend to use a lot of rhetorical questions in this process because they trigger thoughts. I don’t always use questions to drive answers. I want to really consider what it is I say I want. Rhetorical questions give me the ability to look at things without judgment or emotion and really determine if I want them or not. What I know about reaching goals is that I will never have anything (positive or negative) unless I want it and the best way to determine that is to question it.
- Clarify- The second step in the process is to clarify the highest probability path for attaining goals. Clearpath Training stems from the idea of creating clear actionable steps for reaching goals. Notice I said “high probability path” and not exact path. I don’t really know what the future holds. I sometimes think if I did, life would be a lot easier. Instead, I am left to make things up, to figure them out. What does it take to go from point A to point B? I don’t always know that answer, so what do I do? I determine the action items that have the highest likelihood of getting me there. Where do I find these action items? Through testing; good old fashioned trial and error. Another great method is to follow mentors. We live in an information age, a time where people’s paths for success are available to us. Sometimes in creating a path I venture into uncharted territory and am left to beat the path myself, to make it up. Other times, someone has already beaten the path and I simply have to follow. A question I like to ask is, “If someone else has already beaten the path, wouldn’t it make sense to follow theirs?” Creating new paths takes time, energy and resources that many of us don’t have. I find value in following someone else’s tested results. That saves me time, energy and resources and allows me to shortcut the process. Remember, what path will give you the highest likelihood of success?
- Commit- Steve Chandler, one of my mentors, said “What you do is what you are committed to. If you are not doing something, you are not committed to it.” To commit means to perpetrate or to act, but we often use it as a term to signify an agreement. To engage is to agree. To commit is to act. However, in this sense we are going to use a combination of these two words to imply “an agreement to act”. I don’t care what you “say” you are going to do; I only care what you do. In order to reach your goals, you need to decide. To decide is to cut off, meaning when you are in, you’re all in. No more sitting on the fence, waiting for things to change. No more dipping your toe in the water to test things out. You jump completely in!
- Act- The fourth step is to act. You could have the greatest plan in the world, the greatest idea, the greatest service, but if you don’t do anything with it; who cares? Planning without action is just a waste of time! Everything we have ever accomplished was done by acting. How long does it take to reach goals? As long as it takes! How long can you stay committed even when you don’t see the intended results? I think it would be awesome if there was an algorithm for goal achievement. Take certain actions and “voilà” your goal appears. The majority of the time it doesn’t happen like that. That is why when acting on the high probability items it is important to stay focused on the desired outcome. Without action there can be no feedback and feedback is necessary for realignment with our goals.
- Adjust- The final step is to use the feedback that comes from taking action and realign yourself with your goals. Not everything you do is going to turn out peachy. You may act on a “high probability” item and find the result to be repulsive. What do you do at that point, quit? No! You dust yourself, make adjustments and fire again. This is how you learned to do everything in life. Watch a young child when you get a chance. Notice how they adjust to situations, challenges, and their environment. You were once young too! When you act on something it will either work or it won’t and if it doesn’t, make the adjustment and do it again, and again, and again, and again, until you reach your destination. The problem I see is that most people quit at the first sign of opposition.
When working with my clients, I am able to really help them get clear on the best course of action and then to do something about it. I don’t play around! If my clients say they will do something and continually fail to perform (I don’t mean they fail to miss their mark, I mean they don’t act) I fire them and they don’t get any refunds! What’s the point of hiring someone like me if you are just going to do what you have always done? What a waste of money and time?
When setting your goals remember that action is vital for any achievement. If you are continually saying you will do things and failing to do them, hire someone like me to help you get out of it. I have used coaches many times throughout my life to break through my behaviors. I believe I could have done it on my own eventually, but it would have taken a lot of time and energy. My mentors made a huge difference in my life.
Thank you for reading my post. I hope you found value in the information! As a token of my gratitude, I would be happy to sit with you for one hour and let you experience first-hand the ICCAA framework. If you email me at Nick@clearpathtraining.com with the subject line “ICCAA Coaching Session”, I will waive my $500.00 one hour session fee and help you break free. This offer is only good until March 1st, 2011 and spots are limited so you will want to act quickly!
Now, go out and make today amazing!
Nicholas Townsend Smith
The Expert Performance Coach
