WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.660 So, today we're going to be talking about a very powerful concept called deciding what 2 00:00:07.660 --> 00:00:09.400 done means. 3 00:00:09.400 --> 00:00:16.960 This is a way to help you find the end point of a project and to coordinate with your team 4 00:00:16.960 --> 00:00:22.880 when you discover what done means for them or they discover what done means for you. 5 00:00:22.880 --> 00:00:28.000 What if there was a way for you to do your very best work and for it to feel somewhat 6 00:00:28.000 --> 00:00:29.360 effortless? 7 00:00:29.360 --> 00:00:32.360 For it to feel easier than it is now? 8 00:00:32.360 --> 00:00:38.240 It turns out that your great work can be done and not feel exhausted at the same time. 9 00:00:38.240 --> 00:00:40.360 This is entirely possible. 10 00:00:40.360 --> 00:00:42.980 So, what causes the problem? 11 00:00:42.980 --> 00:00:45.240 What problem here are we solving? 12 00:00:45.240 --> 00:00:49.440 We're solving the problem that some projects never seem to get done. 13 00:00:49.440 --> 00:00:51.160 They just drag on. 14 00:00:51.160 --> 00:00:56.400 You know, maybe you've moved home recently and it's a year later and there's still boxes 15 00:00:56.400 --> 00:00:57.440 in the garage. 16 00:00:57.440 --> 00:00:59.000 You know what I mean. 17 00:00:59.000 --> 00:01:05.319 Perhaps perfectionism or procrastination or vague goals or just tinkering, that constant 18 00:01:05.319 --> 00:01:07.120 tinkering with the project. 19 00:01:07.120 --> 00:01:12.960 So, we have found that if we can address those issues, we can get past perfectionism, we 20 00:01:12.960 --> 00:01:18.040 can get past vague goals, get past tinkering and get past procrastination. 21 00:01:18.040 --> 00:01:19.600 Here's the key concept. 22 00:01:19.600 --> 00:01:25.960 So, let's go back for a minute to a previous training we did when we talked about that 23 00:01:25.960 --> 00:01:32.800 one vital thing, that one contribution you make, that 80% of what you do is in 20% of 24 00:01:32.800 --> 00:01:33.800 your time. 25 00:01:33.800 --> 00:01:35.200 We know this from the Pareto Principle. 26 00:01:35.200 --> 00:01:41.960 So, that means technically we surmise that if you could arrive on Monday and did your 27 00:01:41.960 --> 00:01:45.160 20%, that would be 80% of your contribution. 28 00:01:45.160 --> 00:01:50.000 Your organization would still move forward because you're bringing that core thing you 29 00:01:50.000 --> 00:01:53.160 do to bear. 30 00:01:53.160 --> 00:01:59.360 But we also know that practically that we need the other 80% of our time to do non-vital 31 00:01:59.360 --> 00:02:00.360 tasks. 32 00:02:00.360 --> 00:02:03.880 One might say trivial tasks or supportive tasks. 33 00:02:03.880 --> 00:02:10.320 But in reality, it's these small trivial tasks that take up 80% of our time that really weigh 34 00:02:10.320 --> 00:02:11.320 on us. 35 00:02:11.320 --> 00:02:16.880 They really take the energy, if you like, out of the thing we do. 36 00:02:16.880 --> 00:02:19.600 Because most of us love the core thing we do. 37 00:02:19.640 --> 00:02:25.040 By the way, if you don't, you definitely need to find that A-seat, that number one contribution 38 00:02:25.040 --> 00:02:26.040 you make. 39 00:02:26.040 --> 00:02:28.720 Because that's what gives you energy. 40 00:02:28.720 --> 00:02:35.600 A quick example that really helped me understand this is, as we try to go past the Pareto Principle, 41 00:02:35.600 --> 00:02:37.600 the cost gets astronomic. 42 00:02:37.600 --> 00:02:42.360 So, 80% done by somebody else is a great idea. 43 00:02:42.360 --> 00:02:45.680 That's not to your standard, but it gets things done. 44 00:02:46.200 --> 00:02:51.280 A quick example of this is, I used to spend a lot of time on a track where you can take 45 00:02:51.280 --> 00:02:55.120 your car and you can drive around the track as part of a club I belonged to. 46 00:02:55.120 --> 00:02:56.840 You know what I discovered? 47 00:02:56.840 --> 00:03:01.760 I could have 80% of the fun with a $10,000 little Miata. 48 00:03:01.760 --> 00:03:05.760 So I've got a little Miata and a little Mazda Miata, which I loved. 49 00:03:05.760 --> 00:03:10.000 And that 10k gave me 80% of the fun. 50 00:03:10.000 --> 00:03:14.360 Now if I wanted to move from 80% to 95, I had to 10x the price. 51 00:03:14.560 --> 00:03:19.800 I had to go from a 10k Miata to a $100,000 Porsche 911. 52 00:03:19.800 --> 00:03:23.800 When I got the Porsche 911, I did get to 90% of the fun. 53 00:03:23.800 --> 00:03:28.080 But that 10x price gave me only 15% gain. 54 00:03:28.080 --> 00:03:30.080 I'm sure you're getting the point. 55 00:03:30.080 --> 00:03:34.920 In the same way, if I wanted to push it further and get another 3%, I could get a Ferrari. 56 00:03:34.920 --> 00:03:39.240 Now we're at 30% 30 times, so now $300,000. 57 00:03:39.280 --> 00:03:44.800 Or if I wanted to push it another 1%, I could get a race car that costs $1,000,000. 58 00:03:44.800 --> 00:03:49.240 And if I want to get it to that top 100%, I would get a Formula 1 car that might cost 59 00:03:49.240 --> 00:03:52.680 $10,000,000, which is 1,000%. 60 00:03:52.680 --> 00:03:58.720 So to move it from 80, which costs 10k, to 100, which costs $10,000,000. 61 00:03:58.720 --> 00:04:00.720 So I wanted to point out this. 62 00:04:00.720 --> 00:04:06.760 This idea, when you try to decide what done means and you push too far up the Pareto levels, 63 00:04:06.760 --> 00:04:11.240 the cost becomes exponentially higher. 64 00:04:11.240 --> 00:04:14.480 You know, let me give a simpler example. 65 00:04:14.480 --> 00:04:17.880 Perhaps you love washing your car or detailing your car. 66 00:04:17.880 --> 00:04:22.320 You know, in one hour, you can get 80% and just say, hey, that's what done means. 67 00:04:22.320 --> 00:04:24.520 You haven't perfected every little thing. 68 00:04:24.520 --> 00:04:30.360 You know, you didn't put leather on the seats and take care of all the plastics and ceramics 69 00:04:30.360 --> 00:04:32.080 and all that other stuff. 70 00:04:32.080 --> 00:04:36.260 Well I got into this whole car detailing thing because it's something I love doing. 71 00:04:36.260 --> 00:04:41.460 And I found out that I've got a 1-hour version, a 3-hour version and an 18-hour version. 72 00:04:41.460 --> 00:04:47.900 The 18-hour version is literally 26 steps, which involves paint restoration, full ceramic 73 00:04:47.900 --> 00:04:49.380 coatings, etc. 74 00:04:49.380 --> 00:04:52.620 So that lasts for 7 years. 75 00:04:52.620 --> 00:04:59.700 But it takes 18 hours of work, whereas in one hour, I can get 80% or more done. 76 00:05:00.000 --> 00:05:02.000 Think about writing a book, you know. 77 00:05:02.000 --> 00:05:05.840 If I'm writing a book and I got my paragraphs 78 00:05:05.840 --> 00:05:07.480 and I've gone through every paragraph, 79 00:05:07.480 --> 00:05:10.120 the way I do this is I look at every paragraph 80 00:05:10.120 --> 00:05:12.820 and I give it a rating from one to 10. 81 00:05:12.820 --> 00:05:15.600 If I get seven or eight or better, 82 00:05:15.600 --> 00:05:16.960 I'm counting that as done. 83 00:05:16.960 --> 00:05:20.480 Otherwise, I sit there and tinker and fiddle and change 84 00:05:20.480 --> 00:05:25.040 and what happens is I'm paying that 10x, 100x, 85 00:05:25.040 --> 00:05:29.080 even 1,000x in cost and time to get it done. 86 00:05:29.080 --> 00:05:32.680 So that's one of the most powerful editing techniques 87 00:05:32.680 --> 00:05:33.880 that writers actually do. 88 00:05:33.880 --> 00:05:36.440 They go through the paragraph and actually many of them 89 00:05:36.440 --> 00:05:38.760 will actually read the book backwards by paragraph 90 00:05:38.760 --> 00:05:41.600 and rate each paragraph from one to 10 91 00:05:41.600 --> 00:05:45.060 and say if it's above seven, that's what done means. 92 00:05:45.060 --> 00:05:47.360 So when you decide what done means, 93 00:05:47.360 --> 00:05:50.120 it's extremely powerful if you're working with a team. 94 00:05:50.120 --> 00:05:52.800 So let's say for instance, you started a project 95 00:05:52.800 --> 00:05:55.160 or you want a project done and you're handing that off. 96 00:05:55.160 --> 00:06:00.160 Explaining what done means to you is huge. 97 00:06:00.480 --> 00:06:01.960 If you're given a project, 98 00:06:01.960 --> 00:06:05.500 then ask what does done mean to you? 99 00:06:05.500 --> 00:06:08.040 Because the word done means different things 100 00:06:08.040 --> 00:06:09.360 to different people. 101 00:06:09.360 --> 00:06:13.620 So I might say, hey, I want you to take on 102 00:06:13.620 --> 00:06:16.100 launching this new marketing campaign 103 00:06:16.100 --> 00:06:20.120 and I want to sell this book. 104 00:06:20.120 --> 00:06:24.260 Well, what done might mean is that to one person 105 00:06:24.260 --> 00:06:28.880 might be write out the emails, create the click funnel, 106 00:06:28.880 --> 00:06:31.980 make sure the book publisher has everything 107 00:06:31.980 --> 00:06:33.940 at wherever the logistics and the shipping 108 00:06:33.940 --> 00:06:36.180 and warehousing is all taken care of 109 00:06:36.180 --> 00:06:37.740 and I'm starting to sell the books 110 00:06:37.740 --> 00:06:39.280 and I want to see a live dashboard 111 00:06:39.280 --> 00:06:40.980 where I can see all the information. 112 00:06:40.980 --> 00:06:43.420 That's what one person might consider done. 113 00:06:43.420 --> 00:06:47.340 Another one might simply mean I will create the click funnel 114 00:06:47.340 --> 00:06:49.140 where somebody could go and buy a book. 115 00:06:49.140 --> 00:06:51.980 What happens once you click buy a book, 116 00:06:52.020 --> 00:06:55.180 it doesn't know, doesn't know where that order goes 117 00:06:55.180 --> 00:06:56.860 or to somebody else it might mean 118 00:06:56.860 --> 00:07:00.240 I'm just gonna jump onto Shopify and create a little block 119 00:07:00.240 --> 00:07:05.240 and put the picture of the book and a link to buy the book. 120 00:07:05.820 --> 00:07:07.300 And so once I've bought the book, 121 00:07:07.300 --> 00:07:09.260 who ships it, where it goes? 122 00:07:09.260 --> 00:07:10.540 Oh, that wasn't part of the project. 123 00:07:10.540 --> 00:07:12.140 Is that what done means to you? 124 00:07:12.140 --> 00:07:15.700 So what we found is this is a very powerful way. 125 00:07:15.700 --> 00:07:19.140 Explain what done means to you 126 00:07:19.140 --> 00:07:20.700 and if somebody gives you a project, 127 00:07:20.700 --> 00:07:22.860 find out what done means to them. 128 00:07:22.860 --> 00:07:25.660 Let me give another approach to this. 129 00:07:25.660 --> 00:07:28.140 You know, one of the big things for leaders 130 00:07:28.140 --> 00:07:31.540 is the ability to give a project away to someone else 131 00:07:31.540 --> 00:07:33.220 because many of us feel like, 132 00:07:33.220 --> 00:07:37.380 hey, hang on, only I can do it to this level. 133 00:07:37.380 --> 00:07:41.420 Well, what if that level costs too much? 134 00:07:41.420 --> 00:07:43.940 And I love what Dan Martell says, 135 00:07:43.940 --> 00:07:48.180 80% done by someone else is amazing, right? 136 00:07:48.180 --> 00:07:50.600 80% done by someone else is fantastic 137 00:07:51.500 --> 00:07:53.880 because it's freed you up or in Dan's terms, 138 00:07:53.880 --> 00:07:55.880 you've bought back your time. 139 00:07:55.880 --> 00:07:58.680 So you being able to buy back your time 140 00:07:58.680 --> 00:08:01.440 to free yourself up and give projects away 141 00:08:01.440 --> 00:08:05.200 means your willingness to see done 142 00:08:05.200 --> 00:08:08.120 at what you would consider 80%. 143 00:08:08.120 --> 00:08:10.480 So this means hitting, you know, 144 00:08:10.480 --> 00:08:14.080 and sometimes even as simple as helping visualize 145 00:08:14.080 --> 00:08:15.800 what done means. 146 00:08:15.800 --> 00:08:19.100 It could be like in the example I gave earlier, 147 00:08:19.100 --> 00:08:20.860 deciding what done means 148 00:08:20.860 --> 00:08:22.900 for the launch of that book sale process 149 00:08:22.900 --> 00:08:26.620 is when somebody hits the buy button 150 00:08:26.620 --> 00:08:28.380 that a transaction goes through 151 00:08:28.380 --> 00:08:30.180 and a book is being shipped. 152 00:08:30.180 --> 00:08:32.539 So visualizing what that is 153 00:08:32.539 --> 00:08:37.299 is a very helpful way to visualize the end point. 154 00:08:37.299 --> 00:08:39.720 Greg McKeon in his book Effortless 155 00:08:39.720 --> 00:08:41.740 gets into this in great detail. 156 00:08:41.740 --> 00:08:45.900 And so the idea of this is helping you finish a project 157 00:08:45.900 --> 00:08:50.060 is visualizing exactly what done means. 158 00:08:50.060 --> 00:08:53.660 Picture the hitting the submit button or the buy button 159 00:08:53.660 --> 00:08:56.820 or the closing, you know, of a book or whatever it is, 160 00:08:56.820 --> 00:08:59.180 you need something specific. 161 00:08:59.180 --> 00:09:01.380 You know, maybe if you're a software developer, 162 00:09:01.380 --> 00:09:02.900 it's finishing that feature. 163 00:09:02.900 --> 00:09:06.300 And so done means seeing the user's delight of, 164 00:09:06.300 --> 00:09:08.040 oh, that works now. 165 00:09:08.040 --> 00:09:10.100 So something along those lines. 166 00:09:10.100 --> 00:09:12.780 So here's an exercise for you. 167 00:09:12.780 --> 00:09:15.900 Is there a project you're working on right now 168 00:09:15.900 --> 00:09:18.780 that you could look at and decide what done means? 169 00:09:18.780 --> 00:09:19.860 Number one. 170 00:09:19.860 --> 00:09:24.860 Number two, visualize something specific. 171 00:09:24.900 --> 00:09:26.540 Like you're writing a paper 172 00:09:26.540 --> 00:09:29.120 and hitting that submit button or the send button 173 00:09:29.120 --> 00:09:31.620 as you send that off to the publisher 174 00:09:31.620 --> 00:09:35.520 or to your supervisor or wherever that's going. 175 00:09:35.520 --> 00:09:38.500 So visualize something specific 176 00:09:38.500 --> 00:09:43.220 that for you is a visualization of what done means. 177 00:09:43.220 --> 00:09:44.700 Let me make it even simpler. 178 00:09:44.700 --> 00:09:49.700 Let's say, for instance, you need to clean out the garage. 179 00:09:49.700 --> 00:09:50.540 Right? 180 00:09:50.540 --> 00:09:51.940 And it's that time of year, 181 00:09:51.940 --> 00:09:55.620 and you've just, you know, got a little bit of time left 182 00:09:55.620 --> 00:09:58.020 and you're deciding what does done mean. 183 00:09:58.020 --> 00:10:00.100 Does done mean pull everything? 184 00:10:00.000 --> 00:10:05.060 out of the garage and everything that's stored in it and power wash the entire 185 00:10:05.060 --> 00:10:09.960 thing, patch up the wall where there's been damage, repaint all those elements. 186 00:10:09.960 --> 00:10:15.000 You can see where this is going, right? Or does done mean taking the blower, 187 00:10:15.000 --> 00:10:20.560 blowing out the dust and just neatening everything up? Done can mean 188 00:10:20.560 --> 00:10:24.120 very different things. The one can take one hour and the other one can take the 189 00:10:24.120 --> 00:10:30.200 weekend. So this is what we want to visualize. So now I'm visualizing that I 190 00:10:30.200 --> 00:10:35.240 pull into the garage and all the boxes are now, some of the stuff is all packed 191 00:10:35.240 --> 00:10:40.040 to the one side, there's some sort of labeling system and everything's cleaned 192 00:10:40.040 --> 00:10:45.360 and all the cobwebs and all that. And so I'm visualizing the driving and stopping 193 00:10:45.360 --> 00:10:51.400 and that feeling of this is nice, this is organized, this is nice. So I'm 194 00:10:51.520 --> 00:10:55.480 visualizing the walls being repainted or power washed or any of that stuff. I've 195 00:10:55.480 --> 00:11:01.640 just visualized what done means. Let me make it even simpler. Perhaps you're 196 00:11:01.640 --> 00:11:06.080 trying to lose weight, you know, you've gone through Thanksgiving or Christmas 197 00:11:06.080 --> 00:11:10.920 or some event and you have picked up weight and you want to get rid of it. So 198 00:11:10.920 --> 00:11:17.240 what done means to your diet is, think of the number on the scale, right? So 199 00:11:17.360 --> 00:11:22.560 what's that number that, visualize yourself stepping onto the scale, looking 200 00:11:22.560 --> 00:11:27.520 at the number and saying that's what done means. So all of this helps us and I 201 00:11:27.520 --> 00:11:31.960 think if you go through this you can see that, you know, Greg McKeon gives a bunch 202 00:11:31.960 --> 00:11:36.640 of examples like cooking a meal. Done means the meal is cooked, served and 203 00:11:36.640 --> 00:11:42.760 enjoyed by the guests. It's not just the food is finished cooking. Done could mean 204 00:11:42.760 --> 00:11:46.440 completing a project. Done means delivering the results to the 205 00:11:46.440 --> 00:11:51.480 stakeholders, not just completing the tasks on a to-do list. Subtle but huge 206 00:11:51.480 --> 00:11:57.320 difference. Cleaning the house could mean done means giving, having a clean and 207 00:11:57.320 --> 00:12:03.000 tidy house that feels comfortable and relaxing, not just completing a checklist 208 00:12:03.000 --> 00:12:08.880 of cleaning tasks. Writing a book done could mean having a finished project, 209 00:12:08.920 --> 00:12:13.600 meeting the author standards and having it in your hand, visualizing that first 210 00:12:13.600 --> 00:12:17.040 day you open a book. Any of you have published a book, you know, it's a very 211 00:12:17.040 --> 00:12:20.680 emotional moment when you open the package and it arrives and you've not 212 00:12:20.680 --> 00:12:24.400 actually physically seen it and you open it, it's got your name written at the 213 00:12:24.400 --> 00:12:30.080 bottom and that could be what done means for you. You know, let me add one more 214 00:12:30.080 --> 00:12:35.280 just practical thing to make this even more real. What if you created for 215 00:12:35.320 --> 00:12:41.200 yourself a done for the day list? You've got a long list of different items that 216 00:12:41.200 --> 00:12:46.400 you need to get done in your to-do list and you know not everything can be done 217 00:12:46.400 --> 00:12:52.160 for the day. So why don't you just circle the done for the day. If I hit these main 218 00:12:52.160 --> 00:12:56.960 things, I'm done for the day and that would make me feel satisfied. Now I'm 219 00:12:56.960 --> 00:13:01.760 visualizing myself at the end of the day looking at those few extra items, maybe 220 00:13:01.800 --> 00:13:05.560 there are ten items and I've circled three of them, that for me would be done 221 00:13:05.560 --> 00:13:10.480 for the day. I knock off those three, I'm feeling great, I feel satisfied, I feel I 222 00:13:10.480 --> 00:13:18.120 did and I feel cognitive control. I feel in control of what I'm doing. So I love 223 00:13:18.120 --> 00:13:22.960 this idea that you can really set yourself free. You can buy back your time, 224 00:13:22.960 --> 00:13:28.240 see an endpoint to your projects, be really great in communicating with your 225 00:13:28.280 --> 00:13:33.600 team about what done means and even in your personal life not have that heavy 226 00:13:33.600 --> 00:13:38.600 feeling of projects hanging over you that you know you should get done but 227 00:13:38.600 --> 00:13:43.960 you've never decided what done means. And finally that willingness to allow 228 00:13:43.960 --> 00:13:49.720 someone else to do something to an 80% level so that you don't pay that hugely 229 00:13:49.720 --> 00:13:54.160 expensive cost because only you can do it and what you're doing there is buying 230 00:13:54.160 --> 00:14:01.800 back your time. I hope you enjoyed that and have fun deciding what done means.