Before we move onto the scorecard section, I just want to mention the difference between leading and lagging indicators.
In the 12 Week Year, leading and lagging indicators are important concepts for tracking progress and ensuring that you’re on course to meet your goals. They help differentiate between the actions that drive success and the outcomes that result from those actions.
Lagging Indicators
Definition: Lagging indicators measure the results or outcomes that occur as a result of your actions. These indicators reflect the end result and typically show up after the work has been done. They are the "lagging" effect of your efforts.
Examples:
Weight loss (e.g., pounds lost by the end of 12 weeks)
Sales revenue (e.g., £s/$s earned in a quarter)
Number of new clients acquired
Role in the 12 Week Year: Lagging indicators help you assess whether you achieved your desired outcome at the end of the 12-week cycle. However, since they reflect the result, they don’t provide insight during the process. They are backward-looking and cannot be changed once the outcome has been realized.
Leading Indicators
Definition: Leading indicators measure the actions or behaviours that are likely to lead to your desired outcomes. These indicators track the efforts and progress that will drive the results. They are "leading" because they occur ahead of the outcome.
Examples:
Number of workouts completed per week
Number of sales calls made daily
Number of articles written
Number of hours spent writing
Role in the 12 Week Year: Leading indicators are predictive and help you stay on track toward achieving your goal. By monitoring them regularly, you can make adjustments to your tactics if needed. They allow you to course-correct before it’s too late, making them essential for guiding daily and weekly actions.
Key Difference
Focus: Lagging indicators focus on the end result, while leading indicators focus on the actions that lead to those results.
Timeframe: Lagging indicators appear after the fact (after the work has been done), whereas leading indicators are tracked during the process (while the work is being done).
Control: You have control over leading indicators (because they are your daily actions) but only limited control over lagging indicators (because they are the outcome of your efforts).
Example:
Goal: Lose 10 pounds in 12 weeks.
Lagging Indicator: Total pounds lost at the end of the 12 weeks.
Leading Indicators: Number of workouts completed each week, daily calorie intake, amount of water consumed.
Focusing on leading indicators helps ensure that the actions driving your goals are happening consistently, while lagging indicators confirm whether or not those actions resulted in the desired outcome.
How to Score-keep Your Progress in the 12 Week Year
Scorekeeping is a powerful tool in the 12 Week Year that helps you measure how well you’re executing your tactics and driving progress toward your goals. In this lesson, you’ll learn how to effectively track and score your performance, using it to maintain focus and make adjustments where necessary.
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