Summary
The book’s core idea is to treat every 12 weeks as a year to instil a sense of urgency and ensure people are laser-focused on the goals because of the short timeframe.
The authors argued that many employees only really started making real progress on their objectives in the last quarter when it was close to the end-of-year performance review. By dividing a year into four 12-week periods, one could achieve four times as much as one usually does with annual goals.
Overall, it is a short, easily digestible book on productivity. It has some good insights, but nothing like some reviews that say, ‘It changed my life’ - at least not for me.
A couple of interesting points the authors made:
- Accountability should not be seen as holding people accountable and finger-pointing when things go awry. It should be an ownership with which people genuinely feel connected. Only then can accountability empower and motivate people to excel and give their best. It’s the freedom to self-realisation, not a burden to carry 24/7. To achieve such a level of ownership, the goals must be aligned with individuals’ visions and values, whether professionally or personally.
- You are solely responsible for the outcome of your goals. While you may not have complete control over external circumstances, you can decide how you respond to challenges and act accordingly. No one else is to blame if you fail at what you set out to do at the end of the year performance review. Use a scorecard to measure your actions instead of finding excuses. This is especially true for personal goals, as many tend to forgive themselves easily with excuses such as ‘you have tried’, self-compassion, or ‘life gets in the way’.
- Every goal comes with costs. Your time is not free, nor are your other resources or emotional needs. For example, if you want to lose weight, you must be prepared to give up the pleasure of certain foods or reduce the portions of meals; if you aim to learn a new language, you may have to reduce the time spent on your favourite hobby. We often say we want to go to the gym more often, read more, spend more time with friends and family, and build that side hustle we are destined to pursue, but what are we prepared to give up? Not many people thought the costs through when they set these goals. No wonder most goals fail.
Reference
- Moran, B. and Lennington, M. (2013). The 12 Week Year. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons.