I have been teaching for the last few years a simple (but not easy) technique to create change in your life and business.  It is a process I originally read as an engineer called the Deming Cycle.  Edward Deming was a professor and statistics guru who went to Japan and helped rebuild their manufacturing after WWII.   His original cycle was Plan, Do, Check & Act.  After working for a couple of months on how to teach this concept to developing leaders I made one subtle change.  I like (PDCA) - Plan, Do, Check and Adjust.  With this simple process you can identify any area of life you wish to improve and develop a plan to create the change.  Check your results and adjust where necessary to accomplish the plan.  Anything from losing weight, improving sales, improving relationships, speaking ability etc.—can be run through this process.  In my opinion, this is the single biggest tool to change the results you are currently obtaining in life.  This tool is will produce similar increases in personal effectiveness as the change from horses to automobiles did in travel effectiveness.  In fact, I believe that every great achiever in all areas, sports, business, faith, etc. use some type of feedback loop for personal and professional improvement.  I salute Tim Marks with this post.  In all my years of mentoring leaders, I have never met anyone better than Tim at confronting the issues and making the proper changes to improve.  Thank you Tim Marks for your inspiring example.  Let’s break down each step:

1. Plan – “Those who fail to plan are planning to fail.”  You must have a plan to accomplish practically anything in a positive direction.  It has been said, “Any dead fish can float downstream, but it takes a live one to swim against the current!”  To be a live fish you must have a plan; otherwise, you are floating downstream. 
2. Do – “The road to Hell is paved with good intentions.”   Many would be leaders were planning on doing something great, but never got around to it.  One of my favorite quotes is, “When all is said and done, much more is said than ever done.”  The best plan in the world won’t accomplish anything unless it is implemented.  Develop the plan and then have the courage to begin.  A job well begun is half done!
3. Check –Many people fail at this point.  They set a plan and begin the work, but never check to see if the plan is moving them in the right direction.  Life is more like taking a canoe down a river.  There are many course corrections along the way.   Factors like the river current, obstacles in the water, and bends and turns will make you constantly seeking feedback.  Without feedback you will run ashore and wonder why the plan didn’t work.  By checking your results you will know which factors are different than you originally assumed and be in a position to make the necessary changes.
4. Adjust – After checking your results and identifying areas for improvement—the next step is to make the necessary adjustments.  This does not mean your plan was bad, but only that we are human and cannot predict all the possible outcomes.  By following this PDCA process—the destination will be met by adjusting the plan after you have checked for feedback.  If we were all knowing, our plan would work by planning and doing.  As human beings we must plan our work, do our work, check our work and adjust where necessary.

These four simple (but again not easy) steps can propel you to destinations you never thought possible before.  PDCA is the best way I have learned to accurately assess reality and to make changes to improve.  I have used this process for years in my life and over the last couple of years discovered how to teach it.  PLEASE for your own leadership program reread this and study every area of your life.  Ask yourself do you have a plan in this area or are you merely floating downstream?  Swim against the currents of mediocrity and negativity.  You can dream bigger and achieve bigger with the PDCA process!  God Bless you on your PDCA process.  Orrin Woodward