Are you measuring activity, or results?

Are you on a mountain trek or on a treadmill? Think of this in a literal and a figurative sense. On a treadmill you exert yourself, the pace might vary, but you're not really going anywhere. At work or in life in general you might be really busy, but are you making progress? Have you established a desired destination? Are you seeing the big picture? Are you measuring activity, or results?

The case for results measurement

Being busy does not equate to being successful. If your activities are not the ones that contribute to the outcome you seek, you can walk or even run full out all day long for naught. Start by defining the results you want, and then determine the activities most likely to lead to them. Start with the end in mind, as Stephen Covey wrote. 

The pull of worthy goals is motivating! When you are in the thrall of your big, hairy audacious goals, you are invigorated. You are pulled forward by your WHY. Your focus on the rewards of the outcome puts today's striving, and perhaps even pain, into perspective.

The case for activity measurement

Good outcomes are rarely the result of a singular action. They are the culmination of a series of actions, repeated over time. We've written in prior posts about beneficial habits - routines that create an upward spiral of accomplishment. A coach friend calls these beneficial habits "doing your pushups". And as in the case of actual pushups, there are a lot of people who avoid doing them and still expect to be strong and fit.

What are the pushups, the crucial activities, in your business? Do you need to make a certain volume of sales calls? Produce product for a certain number of hours per day? Train certain muscle groups on a schedule with specific weights and repetitions?

When the outcome takes a long time to develop

You are ultimately striving for a big result, to climb that tall mountain. How do you sustain your effort, your motivation, when it might take weeks, months, or even years until you see success? With the desired outcome as context, activity measurements help you experience the short term victories that sustain your focus and energy. Each action takes you one step closer, and you approach, pass, and celebrate the milestones on the way to the really big goal.

When you have no data

In a new venture, activity measurements help you refine your critical path. Test and measure the results of actions, peeling off the unproductive activities and doubling down on the ones that show promise. When you are using activity measurements to build data, be sure that you have gathered an adequate sample size to make a reasonable assessment. You will probably be able to rule out ineffective activities faster than you will be able to determine the most effective ones.