+1 or -1 all day every day

When we work on behavioral changes, we think of personality changes that are big, hairy & scary. For example, becoming more confident, and assertive, influencing & leading people, and many more. These are good qualities to develop but they don’t give us a way to chip away the rough edges. They bind us into an all-or-nothing mindset for personal change. This method won’t work since we don’t know where to start and how to measure changes.

Let’s draw inspiration from this quote from Abraham Maslow.

“In any given moment, we have two choices: step forward into growth or step backward into safety.”

What if we make this a game we play moment to moment? All day, every day of our lives. At each moment of our day, we are either on +1 or -1. Our day is positive when the total score is greater than ZERO and that’s a great outcome for the day, consistently adding up to our future goal.

To illustrate with an example, let’s say you want to become assertive as a leader at work. Here are some +1 behaviors that can help you move forward in the right direction today.

1. Speak up in the next meeting, ask one question
2. If you are running late for the next meeting, exit on time gracefully?
3. If you have a different perspective, share it with confident humility
4. In group meetings, make a comment or ask a question
5. Take the opportunity to speak to an audience, don’t pass it?

What behavioral changes do you need to make for your leadership growth?

How can you break them into micro actions today?

Who can help you stay accountable to land those actions?