The 3 pillars of progress

Read Time: 3 min

I made this post on LinkedIn a while ago saying that having systems is not enough.

In fact, each of the three pillars- goals, systems, and experiences alone is not enough.

You need all three progress pillars to easily and sustainably achieve your goals.

Today, I want to show you how you can build your three pillars of progress.

You will see how they interact and why they can't stand alone.

Let's jump right in.

The three pillars you need to reach your goals

Pillar 1: Goals

I learned how to set goals years ago.

Chances are that nowadays, you already learn how to set goals in school.

Let's recap what's necessary for a good goal:

1. It describes specifically what I want to achieve so I know when I'm done.

2. It has a timeline telling me when I need to have reached this goal.

3. It is achievable (e.g. physically possible).

4. It is relevant to you. Why would you do the things necessary if you don't care about the outcome?

5. If it is possible, make it measurable.

A million different frameworks exist, like SMART, HARD, OKRs, and many more.

But all of them answer the same core question:

Do I know exactly what I want to achieve?

If I don't know my destination, I won't be able to create systems that drive me to my destination.

So this is the first pillar you need to make insane progress.

I return to this step of clarifying my goals regularly.

This is like checking a map to see if the car I'm driving can still bring me to my goal.

If there is water in front of me, I may need to leave my car and get on a boat to continue my journey.

Pillar 2: Systems

To continue the travel metaphor:

I now know where I want to go.

Next, I must plot a path and determine how to get there.

This is where systems come into play.

Systems describe what steps I need to take to achieve my goals.

I can do random things and hope to get closer to my goal.

Or I build systems that drive me straight towards them.

I define systems as processes that produce a measurable output to a measurable input.

For example, I have a system for writing this newsletter.

Where I put in some hours of work and get an output in the form of email opens and link clicks.

These are the characteristics of a good system:

1. It is documented so that everyone could do it.

2. One person is responsible for it, so I know exactly who needs to do it.

3. The output has a measurable effect on my goals, so I know if I should do this.

The awesome part about such a good system is that it can be used by anyone with minimal training.

And the new person will be able to do as good of a job as I would.

This multiplies my output potential.

Pillar 3: Experiences

Goals and systems are the two pillars everyone is talking about.

But they're missing a crucial piece for long-term success — the human experience.

This step is irrelevant if I design systems and goals executed by machines only.

But even in our high-tech world today, humans are still involved in most of our systems.

For humans, the "how” we reach our goals is very relevant.

If the “how” is ignored in systems design, it leads to burnout and other injuries for the human cogs in the machine.

As a human, I want the journey to my goals to be fun and rewarding.

I don't want to go on a long, painful journey.

I need the right incentives to put in all of this effort.

And no, money is not enough incentive in most cases, especially long-term.

Everything I do is long-term because most goals worth pursuing take time to achieve.

If I plan my systems and goals only for the short term, I will either end up in a world of pain or abandon the long-term goals.

I use the following techniques to make my journey pleasant:

1. I connect emotionally with my goals and only pursue goals that are relevant to me personally.

2. I remove everything that drains my energy from my systems by automating or delegating it.

3. When I delegate, I delegate to someone who is gaining energy from this task instead.

4. I add steps to my systems that charge me with energy. It doesn't matter if the process becomes less efficient as long as it still contributes to my goals.

I hope this helps you build your three pillars of progress and crush your next big goals.

If you want to read more from me, subscribe to my newsletter below.

I send one of these articles every two weeks on Thursday.

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Thanks for reading to the end!

You rock!

Cheers,

Marcel