The movie Rocky has been one of those movies that has inspired me for decades. It is a story of the unheralded boxer from Philly, who gets an opportunity to fight against the champion, Apollo Creed.

As Rocky is training for the big fight, he goes through a grueling regimen to become the best fighter that he could be. Towards the end of his training the entire city is rooting him on. As he runs through Philly, he goes towards the Philadelphia Museum. He climbs the steps to the top to celebrate his training to be the best. If you don’t remember that scene from Rocky II with the music, Getting Stronger (you can watch it here for inspiration.)

It was a sign that Rocky was ready. He was ready to win and compete against whatever, and whoever, he faced.

The majority of my 40 Strategy work have been like Rocky, the small to midsize companies trying to overcome the odds, against beating (or supporting) larger companies with more cash, experience, and talent, like Apollo Creed.

It is Not Easy to Compete Against the Best

But when you train, when you plan your training, you can climb up those steps. To reach the top, there is nothing more rewarding than this level of success.

This was my first time in Philly. So, I had to see the Liberty Bell, climb the Rocky steps, and then, of course, try a Philly cheesesteak. (For the locals, I had a great bite at Shay’s. Which is your favorite?)

In Philly, I spoke at the International Association for Student Planning (IASP), about Strategic Resilience: Embedding Adaptive Planning into Organizational DNA. 

Prior to speaking, I was able to hear a variety of presentations from strategic experts. They talked about  the extraordinary challenges that organizations face while trying to climb the steps to success. 

Most fail miserably. Somehow have partial success. And it’s only the few, 10% or less, that actually see the reward from designing and executing a strategy that works. More importantly, it is doing what it takes to actually get it done. 

(Picture: International Association for Student Planning )

It is the DNA 

I spoke about this DNA. When you’re facing tough odds, it comes down to planning and executing with consistency. You have to do the extraordinary, put in the effort, to actually get things done. 

Although we developed a 7-step CAPTAIN Strategy Methodology, we have found that our clients have been preferring “a done for you” approach. This is where we combine accountability with real support, to assure that our clients will have greater success. 

In this plan, we meet with our clients each week, for 10 weeks each quarter. Each week we review what was completed last week and what is on deck for the next one. Over a year, we conduct 40 Weekly Sprints, to accelerate our clients' success. They climb the stairs faster. They win.

This is part of our 40 Plan+ Strategy and Execution package. Although it’s hard, our clients have confidence as we go through the process. They know that hard consistent strategic execution produces great results.

(Picture: Carl J. Cox, Philadelphia Museum)

How We Get Way More Done

When speaking at the strategic planning event, I asked the audience, “How many of you check the status of your strategic planning on an annual basis?” Roughly 20% of the crowd raised their hand.

The next question, “How many of you keep track of it quarterly?” Half of the audience raised their hand. “How many of you track monthly?” Another 20%. 

Not surprisingly, only 10% said that they are updating their strategic objectives weekly. They were the ones experiencing success. 

Very often we are not working more, but we are reducing it into smaller bite size chunks, accelerating progress, with higher quality results.

We simply have to change habits, change our cadence, and create accountability. We love to work with our clients to help create that accountability. 

We all get the chance to raise our hands above our heads and celebrate victory. While the rest fall down in defeat. Are you ready to climb the steps?