Why Progress is Worth Measuring

I’m Melissa Shanahan, and this is The Law Firm Owner Podcast, Episode #197.

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Well, hello, everyone, welcome. How's it going? I've been thinking about you a ton lately, as listeners and of course, my clients and my members. We tried something new inside of the company last week, which was a week where I had no outside calls with clients or members. Really, my chance to be head down and make some real headway on things that otherwise just don't make the cut.

When I do my Monday Map, they don't get put in because I do have obligations to clients and members. And so, we cleared this week a while back, so that I had space for the things that I really want to make headway on.

One of those things is something really special we're going to do around Monday Map/Friday Wrap pretty soon, probably towards the end of Q2. When we roll that out, it's going to look like an intensive or a challenge or a way for anyone interested in bettering themselves when it comes to how they manage the time that they have to give to work. And what is able to come out in terms of productivity of that time. It's really getting organized.

If you know anything about Monday Map/Friday Wrap, then you know what I'm speaking about. It's how do we actually make really great plans with what we're going to get done and honor the plan. That's tough. That is not easy.

However, it is simple, and working with people would be such a joy for me. To get to really dig in and be nuts and boltsy and be helpful with people in real time. So, we're working on some sort of fun events that people can take part in, that will give them some leverage with how they move through time and the results that get produced within that time. I'm looking forward to that quite a bit. You'll hear more in the next month or two in regard to them.

And also, what's going on over here, is that Strategic Planning is happening. We're right at where it’s starting to turn, it's rounding out Q1. And so, the retreat for mastery group members is happening this Friday. The new members that have come in, we've really just worked to get them situated, to get them familiar, they've been able to take part in the coaching calls so that they find their footing.

And now, they have what they need in order to prep and bring the right data. And have thought through a few things prior to Strategic Planning day. Now it's about to happen, on March 17th. I'm recording this just before it's going to be happening. By the time this airs, they will have already been through it. Actually, the day that this air is our Office Hours day.

We have a retreat once a quarter, and people typically would love some help dialing in their plans, tying them up with a bow. And so, we do a full day of office hours where people can sign up for time slots, and they come, and I work with them on their plan.

The day that this airs, it'll be a day of magic around that. Really looking forward to that. I love those days; it really lets me dig in with people on the things that they're thinking through and want to get clarity around. It's a lovely, useful, productive day.

One of my teammates brought up to me that they thought maybe it would be a good idea for me to do a podcast episode around what Strategic Planning entails. You guys have heard me drop bits and pieces of concepts that are covered or used in Strategic Planning. And those are episodes about the podcast.

But what would it look like to be able to share with you all the things that we move through? How do we move through the day? What do people think through prior to coming? And then what do we focus on with them that day?

I thought that was probably a really good idea. However, that episode will take me some time to really put together and think through an outline and be thoughtful about how to present that in a way that's not overwhelming and is easy to digest.

So today, we're going to talk about another topic that I think is really important, that I am prepared to present, and then next week, the following episode, will be the episode about Strategic Planning and how we move through the day. Looking forward to preparing that for you all and recording it and releasing it to you all.

Well today, we're going to talk about something that is seemingly insignificant, like, almost not would be worth an episode. However, it is. Because of how impactful it can be when you implement this. There's a lot of talk around goal setting. And as all of you know, I'm a huge believer in having goals. Having something very specific that you are aiming for, very clear.

And then once you know exactly what you're aiming for, that is your chance to do the work to create a very well thought-out plan, a strategic plan to get there. There is no one route to that version of success, whatever it is that you're shooting for, there are many routes. And you get to design this.

You are the owner, and really putting that owner hat on to be strategic for your business, to be the brain that helps shape it and form it and inform where you're going, how you're going to go there. And, of course, the destination in mind.

Now, we've talked about many times before, that when you make a really great plan towards whatever success looks like for you, whatever you're aiming for, it doesn't go as planned. That's not the point of making the plan. The point of making the plan is lining yourself up and being extremely intentional with your thinking, with your actions, with your influence of those around you, all of it. So that you are remaining as intentional as possible towards the goal.

It's very easy to get sidelined or busy and forget about certain things that you had intended to be intentional around. It's like we fall prey to our defaults, we fall prey to the hustle. And s one of my favorite quotes by Elizabeth King says, “Process saves us from the poverty of our intentions.”

I really liked that, because planning things out is you mapping a process that you're going to move through for the next 90 days, right? And so, that is what we work really hard to do.

Now, there is this third piece of what I teach that is all about honoring the plan that you made, to the best of your ability. But when you're planning, and then of course when you're honoring, there is something that many people forget to do. Which is, plan out how you are going to measure progress against your goal.

Oftentimes, we set goals and then we just put our heads down and we go-go-go. I really am a firm believer that you have to put blinders on. You have to put your head down. You have to constrain to the things that you said you were going to do in your plan.

But measuring progress is oftentimes not included in people's plans. And I think, not because people don't think it's important enough, although maybe, I think more, that people underestimate there is prep involved in getting something set up so that you can see your progress all along the way.

And because they didn't think that through, it gets pushed out. They never really create the thing. And there are some things you need to think through, which we'll talk about today.

So, why is measuring progress important? There are some canned answers that we all know that we can point to and are valid. Which is, “What's measured gets managed,” I think that's Peter Drucker. Also, Peter Drucker has something very similar, “if you can't measure it, you can't improve it.” So, there's a lot of ideas out there that we certainly don't disagree with, we probably would all say we agree with those things.

However, they aren't sticky enough. People don't do this very well, unless there, oftentimes, is accountability or this enthusiasm that is a fire within to be able to look at data consistently against, and track the progress towards the goals you have set specifically.

One reason I want to talk about this is because, I've mentioned on the podcast before, there is a difference between tracking data in the business and looking at metrics, and actually determining KPIs or set goals, specifically around some numbers.

You shouldn't have very many of them. You should only have like, certainly one, maybe two, maybe three, maybe four. And it depends on your ability, and/or if you have help and support with your team, to be able to stay on top of those numbers and really be engaged with those numbers.

If you have too many numbers, then you're not going to be able to be engaged in all of them. You'll be watered down and you'll probably not look at them as often, because it's hard to influence a bunch of different numbers.

However, if you have a few that you've chosen, then it's worth measuring because it keeps you engaged towards the goal. It keeps you engaged in progress, in being intentional towards exercising where you have control, when it comes to effort and execution, to affect the measurements, to affect the numbers, to affect the progress towards the goal.

And so, one of the main reasons I wanted to do this podcast is because even if you are the kind of person who sets specific goals, and you do that correctly. Which means you choose one. Certainly, revenue should be in there because everything trickles down from revenue. So, revenue should be in there. Maybe you also have one around profit margin or number of cases opened or whatever. So, you have some other number goals.

This is not the podcast to go into, that I've done that before. But you have some specific number goals, you have those set. And then, we sort of set and forget, and we put our heads down. And at some point down the road, we lift our heads just to see, are we on track or are we off track?

Usually two things will happen: More time has passed than what should have for you to check in on the data, or not enough time has passed. And so, you're obsessing over the fact that numbers haven't budged that much. And it's been like two weeks, right? “I'm off track. Two weeks in, I should have been here, and I'm not.” That is useless towards actual progress.

So, this all points to a very important structure or discipline for yourself as the owner, on your schedule at looking at the progress towards the goal; you should have a schedule. My recommendation is weekly. We will talk more about where you look at these things, where you track these things. We'll talk about that in a moment.

But there should be a schedule where you're going to go look at the numbers, you're going to go look at the data, every single week. Just to keep your finger on the pulse of what is happening in the business. Having this schedule will prevent you from just getting caught up in the work, and then not looking at a certain cadence.

You need a system around this. You are the owner, someone, someone, and it should be you, should be looking at these things on a very regular basis; the most important numbers, the goals that you have set. Should be looking at progress towards those every single week. And at the turn of the month, looking from a little bit higher level view, more of a bird's eye view, just to review the month. And what the progress has been like over the month.

Being able to use what you're learning, if there's any learning to be had, which there typically is, and so being able to use the learning to figure out what you're going to shift or tweak in the next month, so that you can see what you want to see out of those numbers.

And if everything is working, the numbers are going up. And that's fantastic. And you have to remember, when I am working with members and with clients, when I say if everything is working, they always set goals, right. But after they set goals, they ask themselves, what are the things that I need to do? What is the effort?

What are the things that are in my control, I'm going to constrain down? And I'm going to pick a couple of a few things, three to six typically, that I'm going to focus on this quarter in order to drive the numbers in the way that I want to see them.

Some of these are longer term projects that won't necessarily impact the numbers that same quarter, but they're extremely important. And it will have an impact on the numbers over a greater period of time. And some will have a more immediate effect on the numbers.

And so, what I'm saying, is at the end of the month, when you're looking at the numbers, and you start to see patterns, or they aren't quite where you want them to be, and this is your chance to say hmm, what can I tweak? How can I make the efforts that I'm putting forth more effective?

And that's where you have to be able to be willing to think through these things for yourself as the owner. This is development of yourself as an owner, when you think about, what people can I pull into place? What new initiatives can I put forth? What announcements can I make? What resources can I put forth that I haven't been putting forth yet? In order to increase effectiveness with your efforts to produce the numbers that you want to see.

And I'm saying “you” as in your firm. It may just be you if you're solo. It may be you and a team of two, I don't know. But what can you all do? What can happen inside of the firm that will shift to increase effectiveness on the thing that you said you were going to do this quarter, so that you could hit your goal?

Every once in a while, but this is so rare, I want you all to hear this: It's so rare that you use the data in the middle of a quarter to decide to abandon the effort, the project, the thing that you said you were going to get done, the Rock, and switch focus entirely to try to get to your goal, to try to hit the number or influence the number.

This is so common for a human to want to flip to something different because they can't quite see the results, yet. Instead of doubling down and figuring out what they need to do to increase effectiveness with the thing that they were already working on to achieve the number.

I want to say that and be very clear about that, because this is where people they flip-flop from thing to thing without really completing and really finishing an experiment. I mean, that's the way you can look at it, as an experiment. And giving yourself 90 days for that, which is a Rock. It's a project that is your hunch that if you actually get that implemented, it will affect the numbers in the way that you want it to see. And so, people give up on that too early.

There's so much learning. And there's a richness that comes with staying true to the thing that you said you were going to do. And using the data, and your experience and the wisdom and the knowledge that you're gaining that quarter, to continue to refine how you execute on the thing that you said you were going to do at the beginning of the quarter. The effort that you said you were going to put forth, in order to see that number through.

Now, at the end of the quarter, you'll be checking along the way, if you didn't get to the number that you thought, then okay, let's reevaluate and learn some lessons so that as you move forward, you are more effective as an owner with how you move forward, because you really did go all in on it, and you really stayed the course.

Everything that I've just shared with you here is why it's important to measure progress, to track progress, towards the goals that you have set. If you don't have any reason to learn, there's no growth needed. And why are you even setting goals, right? We set goals so that we can stretch ourselves and grow and pay attention all along the way for signs, for signals, for lessons, for realizations, so that we can tweak and shift our efforts.

Not abandoning the project, or the effort that you're putting forth to get to the goal. Not abandoning it but shifting or adding an element or asking a different question, or adding an extra step to the process, or whatever. Tweaking and getting better and better and better and more refined with the effort that you said you were going to get done, in order to hit your goals.

So, goals and Rocks is really kind of what we're talking about here. But I'm telling you, tracking your progress towards your goals and looking at it along the journey is great for this reason: So that you stay engaged in the progress and you stay engaged as you're developing yourself and your team. If you've got a team, developing yourselves with the stretch.

That quote comes to mind, that I share on here every so often, which is, “The smartest people on the planet are always reaching for the next rung on the ladder.” In terms of that's what you're aiming for, it's the goal. But they know it's not about the next rung, it's about the stretch.

So, it's not about the number, it's about developing yourself so that the number becomes inevitable. That's the work. And so, tracking your progress along the way can help you stretch better. Can help you be more effective and efficient in the journey. And as you're evaluating at the end of the quarter, it's all really helpful when you track your progress. And not just tracking data, actually tracking progress against the goal.

So, one way you can do this, if you have a central tracking dashboard, when you log into that have a column that also lists the goal so that then you can set up another column that does the math to subtract the difference between where you are right now and your goal; which we call “the gap”. That is tracking progress against the goal.

Let's say, at the top of the quarter you decide for a number of new cases open; you're setting a goal for number of new cases open, and that number is 12 per month.

So, for the quarter, you need 36. Well, on your dashboard, if you have it, I always recommend you have your stats listed by month. For three months in a row, you'll have an opportunity to track how many new cases came in. But I also recommend that you do put, by month, the goal for the number of new cases.

And then, you also have a column that tells you how far you are between where you are right now and where you want to be for the month. And then of course, you could tally these up to be by quarter in your tracker.

But when you just track data, and let's say one month, you hit eight. And so, you set the goals at the top of the month, and then you forget about them. So, then you get into your quarter, not that you forget about them, but they're not in front of your face. So, as you get into the quarter, then maybe the first month you got eight, maybe the second month you got 10, and maybe the third month you got nine.

All right, if you would have actually tracked that data against the goal, so it's right in front of your face along the way, you can look at it and it incites something different out of you than if you weren't looking at it against your goal. When you're not looking at against a goal, it's just data.

But all of us, no matter how tuned in you are as an owner, you don't need to rely on your memory at any given point. And for your brain, it's about your brain, this isn't about you, for your brain to actually have in front of it. That where you are versus where you want to be, in the gap, like what is between you and where you want to be?

It automatically incites something different from within. You get ideas, you start generating ideas, you can ask yourself questions about, how can we close this gap? That, otherwise, you are less likely to ask yourself. And tracking the data against the goal, right there in front of you, is really helpful.

Now, if you don't have one central hub for a dashboard or tracking, and at the moment, you have data over here in this piece of software, and then data over here in this piece of software, and then somewhere else, right? People have the data, it's not oftentimes that they're missing the data, but it all lives in all these different places.

So, I strongly recommend that you have one central hub for that. If you don't have that right now, that's not what this is about. You can still track against the goal like I'm suggesting, without first formulating this central hub or dashboard for your tracking.

Here are some ideas for you. If that is the camp that you are in, where you don't have a dashboard yet of any kind, track it visually. The best way to do this is to have something in front of you, on your office wall or something close by, where you can always look at where you are against the goal.

I have seen clients get these thermometers that you can buy and fill in with a marker showing your progress towards the top of the thermometer, which is whatever number it is that represents your goal. You can get those on Amazon, you can get them on Etsy. And I think, usually, it's easiest to get the most options come up if you type in “fundraising thermometer.” Then it comes up. But you can have one of those hanging on your wall. There are all kinds of them out there.

You could have one for each goal that you have set. If you have three goals, maybe you have three different thermometers tracking progress against or on three different things. If you have a whiteboard in your office, you can also create a bit of a scoreboard and you have your goal and you have the actual put up there and it's updated every week.

And if you work remotely, maybe you take a snapshot and send it to your team with a weekly message to them about the progress that's being made and/or ideas that you have, and/or asking them for what they're seeing and what ideas they have.

But it's a way to keep the engagement towards the goal high, which is tough to do with the busyness of work, as one of my clients said. Shout out to Theta, she calls it “work-work.” “Work-work,” meaning the lawyer work in the business work. I keep telling her one day, I hope that she refers to work-work as the “on the business work”. But we'll see.

The point is visualizing this stuff so that you can stay engaged to the goal. Because as life takes over and things get busy, it's easy to have the efforts that you wanted to put forth with the level of commitment that you wanted to have, that you said you were going to have, it's easy for that to sort of fizzle out, for normalcy to take over, default mode take over.

And then, turn to the quarter… If you're with me and my crew, my group, then at the turn of the quarter, we do evaluate. And I can see new people, where they feel all of this promise and vigor around what they're putting into place for the upcoming quarter, and having accountability and being around people where the level of engagement is staying high for a high portion of the people around you, has an effect on you.

So, it keeps you engaged all the way through the quarter instead of just at the beginning. I hope this is helpful. Also, tracking in a dashboard and visualization, is incredible. I highly recommend it.

If you use Excel, they have the functionality to be able to show a thermometer in the spreadsheet to represent the data that you have in the spreadsheet. I used to use that a lot at my old firm, when I was on the road consulting most of the time. I loved that thing. It just totally kept me glued in because all my data was right there. I could see the thermometer continually increasing.

But if you are in Google Sheets, you don't have the thermometer. They do have representation, it feels like a speedometer, more like a speedometer, or whatever they call it. But the representation is not, to me, nearly as fulfilling. So, I don't use it, but I use mostly Google Sheets now.

But you can have a visual representation on your wall. It doesn't just have to be in your computer. I think the more you set yourself up to have in front of your face, where you are against and where you want to be, the more engaged you'll be with the effort part of it, the work that you do.

Making sure that you are smart and working smart towards that goal and thinking about how to work smarter towards the goal and how to be more effective towards the goal. It makes a big difference.

That is the point of today's podcast. It’s not just tracking data, but tracking data against the goal, so you can measure your progress and you can see in real time your progress. And doing it in a way that doesn't require your brain to have to do some work to figure out where it is against the goal.

That's the point of this podcast, is how can you tee yourself up so that you always know where you are against the goal, you always see the gap that you have there. And you always are celebrating your progress, of course, and thinking in a smart way about how you're going to close the gap for yourself.

As always, remember to be lighthearted about this stuff. Be curious about this stuff, and sort of fascinated. And experiment, treat this as experiments. Because the more you do that, the faster you will move towards progress.

People who take themselves too seriously with this stuff. They can't find the perfect way to do it. And so, then they just drop it. No, that is not what we're doing here. I'm telling you; I have worked with so many people.

And I know for sure that those who take themselves more seriously move slower than the ones who approach this with curiosity and a lightheartedness, steadfastness, and commitment. No doubt. But it's more lighthearted. It's not the weight of the world.

As someone once said, which I thought was brilliant, it was someone at the consulting firm I used to work with, and she was my teammate. She used to tell clients, “We're not making oxygen here.” It was such a good reminder; just take a breath, relax a little bit. We're on a trajectory, you're doing great.

Stop beating yourself up so much and stop having so much tension around everything. You are literally strangling the possibilities here. And so, if I can offer anything at the end of this is, as you embark on this and what this looks like for you on how to track against the goal, have iteration one, and be okay with iteration one.

And then, as you get used to your first iteration of tracking against the goal, then you can have a second iteration. After you learn about what you need and what would be more helpful. Then just go from there. Be lighthearted, be agile, and curious about what would make the most sense for you and your firm, to get your brain on track and to stay committed and focused throughout the quarter and beyond.

Alright, everybody, have a wonderful week. I'll see you here next Tuesday.

Hey, you may not know this, but there's a free guide for a process I teach called Monday Map/ Friday Wrap. If you go to velocitywork.com, it's all yours. It's about how to plan your time and honor your plans. So that, week over week, more work that moves the needle is getting done in less time. Go to velocitywork.com to get your free copy.

Thank you for listening to The Law Firm Owner Podcast. If you're ready to get clearer on your vision, data, and mindset, then head over to velocitywork.com, where you can plug into Quarterly Strategic Planning, with accountability and coaching in between. This is the work that creates Velocity.