Implementer Posts
Leaders rush to patch problems. Great leaders hunt the cause.
🚨 Stop trying to fix things so fast. Most leaders think quick action equals progress. It doesn’t. The smartest leaders slow down and ask “Why?”, again and again. until the real issue shows up. Recently I’ve been showing leadership teams how asking “Why” uncovers the root cause. When something breaks in a business, most teams want to fix it fast. But speed is not the same as progress. The real power comes when you pause and ask one simple question: “Why?” Not once. Not twice. Keep asking until you uncover what is really going on. Example Why did the job run late? → Materials delayed. Why delayed? → Supplier did not get specs on time. Why? → The team assumed someone else sent them. Why? → Roles and handoffs are not clear. Why? → We have never defined them. 5 “Whys” later, the real issue is clarity and accountability, not
The Power of Problem Solving as a Leadership Team!
Overview Topic: Solving Problems Well as a Leadership Team Time: 5 minutes Takeaway: Ask “why” five times at the beginning to get to the root issue faster. Tool: IDS Quick Guide PDF Tip: 3-Word Issues (keep them short, clear, and simple!) Try: Next time someone rambles, kindly cut in and say: “In one sentence, what do you need from the leadership team?” Intro In the promo industry, I’ve seen it again and again: business owners are too reactive, too distracted, and too exhausted to meet consistently and solve problems well. They’re firefighting (reactive) instead of building a fireplace (proactive)! If that’s you, constantly putting out fires, wondering why the same issues keep resurfacing, this article is for you! What: The Power of IDS The EOS® tool for problem solving is called IDS (Identify, Discuss, Solve). It’s simple, but it’s not easy. It takes discipline, clarity, and courage to slow down
Do Your Meetings Score a 10 Out of 10?
Meetings are essential—but too often, they waste more time than they create value. Research shows that, on average, we spend 31 hours a month in unproductive meetings. No wonder some of the world’s most successful leaders set strict rules to keep meetings effective. Jeff Bezos famously only holds meetings small enough to be fed with two large pizzas. And at LinkedIn, Jeff Weiner eliminated presentations altogether. Yet many businesses still suffer what the BBC calls a “meetings epidemic”—hours spent that don’t move the company forward. Ending the Epidemic At EOS®, we help business leaders put structure into meetings so they become productive, focused, and results-driven. A simple framework can save valuable time, improve communication, and ensure your team spends time on what really matters. Rate Your Meetings One of the most effective tools we use is the Level 10 Meeting Agenda. It keeps meetings on track, ensuring the leadership team
Are You Implementing EOS or Making It Harder on Yourself?
Over the years, I’ve worked with many business owners who’ve read Traction or watched a few EOS videos and thought, “We can do this ourselves.” They get their team together, start setting Rocks, hold meetings, build a Scorecard – & for a while, things feel exciting. But a few months in, something starts to feel off. The team gets busy, but progress stalls. Meetings feel repetitive. Everyone’s working hard, yet the results don’t seem to match the effort. That’s when the lightbulb usually goes on. A while back, I was in a 90-minute session with a self-implementing client who’d been running EOS for about a year. Their Strategic Coach looked across the room and said, “You’re not implementing EOS – you’re self-inflicting it.” It was spot on. And it’s something I see often. Teams start out trying to self-implement EOS with the best of intentions, but they end up making
The 12 Hidden Gaps Blocking Your Growth (and How to Fix Them with EOS®)
As a business owner, you’re pulled in a hundred directions—people, clients, operations, finances and growth. But often, what you’re not focused on is what quietly limits your ability to scale, delegate and lead with clarity. After working with hundreds of owners and leadership teams, we’ve identified 12 common gaps that show up in nearly every business—and how to close them using the EOS® framework. 1. You Don’t Know What Your Business Is Worth Your Scorecard should give you clear, weekly visibility into the health of your company—but if you don’t know what your business is worth, you’re missing a critical number. A business valuation isn’t just an exit tool—it’s a Data Component must-have. It gives you a baseline to set your Rocks, track progress, and make smarter, more strategic decisions. Action: Use a valuation tool like the Value Builder Score. Reassess annually and review it as part of your quarterly
Overcoming Entrepreneurial Setbacks and Building Sustainable Success
I spent years as a serial entrepreneur, building AP World Marketing into a firm with major retail partnerships at Costco, Walmart, Target, and Amazon, achieving sustained double- and triple-digit growth. But true freedom didn’t come from the hustle. It came from structure, self-awareness, and eventually discovering EOS. In this episode, I share how a rude awakening shaped my path, how I thrived through the 2008 downturn, and why implementing EOS changed everything, personally and professionally. Thank you to John Corcoran and the Smart Business Revolution team for having me. Watch the full episode →