The xQ

Last Friday I had the opportunity to go to a seminar about managing multiple priorities. It was fascinating and I left really energized. It was based on learning your own values and roles and learning to prioritize your life based on them. Putting the model into practice is not going to be easy, but I would like to try.

Over the course of the day there were several things that related to this Resolution Solution journey that I couldn't help but see. One thing that really struck me was that as we took some time to define our roles, I wrote down obvious things like wife, daughter, sister, manager, coach, volunteer, and then...caregiver. We were supposed to define to whom we play those roles. For "caregiver", I wrote myself. I am learning through this that I have to find time to take care of myself, and I have to plan it into my time, whatever method I use, so I wrote it down. When the leader asked questions after the exercise, among them was whether anyone had identified a role they play to themselves. I had, and it felt weird. But I knew I had hit on something during this journey that is of value. I have to take care of myself. Hmm...why didn't I know that till now? Why did I have to get so far gone to learn that?

So another thing that struck me was when the leader talked about the xQ. The execution quotient. iQ+eQ=xQ. I listened intently. And I thought carefully...and I am still thinking about it. Everyone knows what IQ is - a rating of intelligence. One of the newer buzz items in leadership training over the last decade or so is EQ - the emotional quotient. I had not yet heard of how putting those together gives you the XQ - the Execution Quotient. I sat there looking at the equation and thought about all the times I have said, or heard another person struggling with their weight say "I know exactly what I am supposed to be doing to stop gaining...I know what will happen if I don't, but I just can't seem to do it...why...why? What's wrong with me?"

Since long before I started this, I have been thinking about that gap between what I know and why I am not putting it into practice. Is the gap between knowing and executing understanding the emotions? Or is there more to the equation? But then why during this process do I feel the need to write and get all of this out? Is this exploration of the emotional side the key to long-term success - to finally executing?

I am thinking long and hard about this thing - the xQ. I am going to read and study more and, in the meantime, keep on trying to add it all up.