The Best Fluffy Pancakes recipe you will fall in love with. Full of tips and tricks to help you make the best pancakes.
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Jim Becker is CEO of Becker Logistics LLC.
Success is a state you can briefly achieve by having all your goals completed and your results met. But goals, once completed, need to be reset or realigned so that you can continue the path of growth. In my experience, this involves realigning who you are and examining where your new goals lie. This builds a framework for you and establishes how you must act in pursuit of that goal. And finally, with the plan in place, you can determine what you will achieve.
It all boils down to a simple framework: Who you are determines how you operate, which drives what you achieve. By understanding and aligning these elements, you can get to the state of success on an ongoing and reliable basis.
The Foundation: Who You Are
At its core, “who you are” represents your identity as a leader. This includes your values, your “why” and your mindset. It’s easy to get lost in the noise of day-to-day tasks and lose sight of your next goal, which is why knowing who you are is so important.
When I work with new managers, the first thing I ask them to do is reflect on their “who.” I ask them to answer three questions about themselves:
• What is my current and end state as a leader?
• What is my “why”? What motivates me and gives my work meaning?
• What are the values and motivations of my team, and how do these align with mine?
These questions provide the foundation for how a person will lead. I have found that when you know who you are, you can lead with authenticity and purpose. This should help build trust within your team, which is the first stepping stone to success.
It’s also important to note that this is not a one-time exercise. Everything is constantly evolving, so ensure that you and your team revisit this question of identity regularly, preferably at least once a quarter. Are their actions still aligned with their values? How have their current state and end state changed? What about their “why”? By keeping these questions front and center, you can maintain alignment in order to continue on your team’s path toward success.
The Execution: How You Do It
If identity is the foundation, execution is the framework. This is where processes, habits and systems come into play. Your “how” is the bridge between your identity and your outcomes.
I ensure alignment within my team by meeting with my managers weekly to review their processes. These meetings aren’t just about spotting inefficiencies; they’re about ensuring that the way we operate reflects who we are as leaders and what we want to achieve.
It’s also important to recognize that processes aren’t static. What works today might not work tomorrow, so regular reviews and training are important. By staying proactive, you can adapt to changing circumstances and ensure that your “how” continues to serve your identity and goals. Taking the time to align processes with your values can help you create consistency and purpose, all of which provide a framework for success.
The Outcome: What You Achieve
Finally, we come to the tangible results: KPIs, revenue growth, team engagement and more. This is where success happens—where you can see with your own eyes what you have achieved.
I like to make sure that outcomes are consistently visible and up to date. My team can see their progress in real time, which I’ve found fosters accountability and a results-driven mindset. Additionally, I hold myself to the same standard. I maintain my own dashboards to track the KPIs tied to my accountabilities. These might be daily margin percentages, team performance metrics or progress on new strategies. By checking in on these several times a day, I can ensure that I stay focused on the outcomes that matter most.
This level of visibility can not only keep you accountable but also reinforce the connection between identity, execution and results. It’s a constant reminder that success isn’t just about hitting numbers but rather achieving results that align with who you are and what you stand for.
Bringing It All Together
Leadership isn’t just about doing the right things but about being the right person. When you align your identity with your actions and outcomes, you can create a powerful foundation for success.
The “Who/How/What” framework is a simple yet transformative way to think about leadership and achievement. By starting with self-awareness, developing effective processes and tracking meaningful outcomes, leaders can create a ripple effect of success that benefits their teams, organizations and themselves.
So, I challenge you to reflect on your leadership journey. Who are you? How do you operate? And are you achieving the results that truly matter? By focusing on these three questions, you can unlock your full potential and lead with purpose.
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