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Get A Grip

Get A Grip

An Entrepreneurial Fable . . . Your Journey to Get Real, Get Simple, and Get Results
by Gino Wickman 2012 320 pages
4.20
1k+ ratings
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Key Takeaways

1. Implement EOS: A Holistic System for Entrepreneurial Success

"Vision without traction is hallucination."

EOS foundation. The Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) is a comprehensive framework designed to help small to mid-sized businesses achieve their full potential. It provides a set of simple, practical tools that enable leadership teams to clarify their vision, gain traction, and create a healthy organization.

Key components. EOS consists of six key components:

  • Vision
  • People
  • Data
  • Issues
  • Process
  • Traction

By strengthening these components, businesses can overcome common challenges such as lack of control, people issues, lack of profit, hitting the ceiling, and losing momentum. EOS helps companies create a clear roadmap for success, align their team, and consistently execute their plans.

2. Master the Six Key Components to Strengthen Your Business

"When you become 80 percent strong or better in each of these Components, you'll be running a truly great organization."

Vision Component. This involves getting everyone in the organization 100% on the same page with where the company is going and how it will get there. It includes defining core values, core focus, 10-year target, marketing strategy, and 3-year picture.

People Component. Ensure you have the right people in the right seats. Use tools like the Accountability Chart and People Analyzer to assess fit and performance.

Data Component. Establish a set of 5-15 measurables that provide an absolute pulse on the business. This helps manage objectively and predictively.

Issues Component. Create a culture where it's safe to raise issues, then use the IDS process (Identify, Discuss, Solve) to permanently resolve them.

Process Component. Document your core processes to ensure consistency and scalability.

Traction Component. Foster discipline and accountability by setting Rocks (90-day priorities) and establishing a Meeting Pulse.

3. Develop a Clear Vision and Communicate It Effectively

"Core Values are a small set of essential, enduring principles that define your culture."

Vision/Traction Organizer (V/TO). This tool helps crystallize your company's vision by answering eight essential questions:

  1. What are your Core Values?
  2. What is your Core Focus?
  3. What is your 10-Year Target?
  4. What is your Marketing Strategy?
  5. What is your 3-Year Picture?
  6. What is your 1-Year Plan?
  7. What are your Quarterly Rocks?
  8. What are your Issues?

Effective communication. Once developed, the vision must be consistently communicated throughout the organization. Use tools like the Core Values Speech and regular State of the Company addresses to reinforce the vision and ensure it's shared by all.

4. Build the Right Structure with an Accountability Chart

"When you have two people accountable, nobody is accountable."

Clear roles and responsibilities. The Accountability Chart is a supercharged org chart that defines the right structure for your organization and clearly outlines roles, responsibilities, and reporting relationships.

Key positions. Identify key positions such as Visionary, Integrator, and leaders for major functions (e.g., Sales/Marketing, Operations, Finance). Ensure each seat has clearly defined roles (typically 5) that the seat holder must excel at.

Right people, right seats. Use the GWC (Gets it, Wants it, Capacity to do it) framework to ensure you have the right people in the right seats. This helps identify and resolve people issues quickly and effectively.

5. Set Rocks: Prioritize Quarterly Goals for Focus and Traction

"We set 'em to hit 'em."

90-day world. Rocks are the 3-7 most important priorities for the company and each individual over the next 90 days. They create a "90-day world" that helps maintain focus and momentum.

SMART goals. Ensure Rocks are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely. This clarity helps increase accountability and achievement rates.

Regular review. Review Rocks weekly in Level 10 Meetings and quarterly in leadership team sessions. Aim for an 80% completion rate to drive continuous improvement and traction.

6. Establish a Meeting Pulse for Effective Communication and Problem-Solving

"When you master the Level 10 Meeting, you'll spend two-thirds of your meeting each week solving problems with IDS."

Weekly Level 10 Meetings. These 90-minute meetings follow a specific agenda designed to keep the leadership team connected and focused on what's most important. Key components include:

  • Segue (5 minutes)
  • Scorecard review (5 minutes)
  • Rock review (5 minutes)
  • Customer/employee headlines (5 minutes)
  • To-Do list review (5 minutes)
  • IDS (Issues, Discuss, Solve) (60 minutes)
  • Conclude (5 minutes)

Quarterly and Annual sessions. In addition to weekly meetings, hold quarterly and annual planning sessions to review progress, reset priorities, and align the team on the company's vision and plan.

7. Use Data to Drive Decisions and Keep Your Business on Track

"With Scorecards and measurables, you'll cut through feelings, subjectivity, personalities, opinions, and egos and instead manage objectively."

Scorecard development. Create a company Scorecard with 5-15 weekly activity-based numbers that provide an absolute pulse on the business. These leading indicators help predict and influence future results.

Measurables for all. Ensure every person in the organization has at least one number they're accountable for keeping on track each week. This creates clarity and drives results at all levels.

Data-driven decisions. Use the Scorecard and other data points to make objective decisions and quickly identify and address issues before they become major problems.

8. Solve Issues Permanently with the IDS Process

"Most leadership teams spend all their time discussing. Rarely do they ever identify anything and almost never solve anything."

Issue identification. Create a culture where it's safe and encouraged to raise issues. Maintain an Issues List to capture all problems, challenges, opportunities, and ideas.

IDS process. Use the Issues Solving Track™ (IDS) to resolve issues:

  1. Identify the root cause
  2. Discuss (once)
  3. Solve with a clear plan of action

Prioritization. In meetings, quickly prioritize the top 3 issues and tackle them one at a time. This ensures the most important problems are being addressed.

9. Document and Simplify Core Processes for Consistency and Scalability

"Magic occurs when you combine a spirit of entrepreneurialism with a culture of discipline."

Core Process identification. Identify the handful of core processes that make your business run (e.g., HR, Marketing, Sales, Operations, Accounting, Customer Retention).

Documentation and simplification. Use the Three-Step Process Documenter to capture the 20% of steps that yield 80% of the results. This creates a clear, simple guide for how things should be done.

Consistency and scalability. Once documented and simplified, ensure processes are followed by all. This creates consistency, improves quality, and allows for easier scaling of the business.

10. Create a Healthy Leadership Team Through Trust and Accountability

"If you trust one another—if you're truly open and honest and you're willing to be vulnerable in front of your fellow leaders—all these other things become effortless."

Build trust. Use exercises like the "One Thing" feedback session to increase vulnerability and openness among team members. This forms the foundation for a healthy, high-performing team.

Encourage healthy conflict. Create an environment where team members feel safe to disagree and debate ideas openly. This leads to better decisions and stronger commitment.

Foster accountability. Use tools like the Rocks, Scorecard, and Level 10 Meetings to create clear expectations and hold team members accountable for results. Regularly provide both positive and constructive feedback to drive continuous improvement.

Last updated:

FAQ

What's Get A Grip about?

  • Entrepreneurial Fable: Get A Grip is an entrepreneurial fable that follows a fictional company, Swan Services, as it implements the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) to overcome business challenges.
  • Team Dynamics: The book emphasizes the importance of team health, accountability, and clear communication among leadership to drive the company towards its vision.
  • Practical Tools: It introduces practical tools and frameworks like the Vision/Traction Organizer (V/TO), Accountability Chart, and Level 10 Meetings essential for business success.

Why should I read Get A Grip?

  • Real-World Application: The book provides a relatable story that illustrates the real-world application of EOS principles, making it easier to implement these concepts in your business.
  • Improves Leadership Skills: Readers can learn valuable lessons about leadership, team dynamics, and the importance of having a clear vision.
  • Actionable Insights: It offers actionable insights and practical advice that can be immediately applied to enhance business operations and team performance.

What are the key takeaways of Get A Grip?

  • Importance of Vision: A clear vision is crucial for guiding a company’s direction and ensuring team alignment, with the Vision/Traction Organizer (V/TO) being a key tool.
  • Right People in Right Seats: Emphasizes ensuring team members fit the company culture and have the capacity to excel in their roles.
  • Regular Check-Ins: Highlights the significance of regular check-ins, like Level 10 Meetings, to maintain accountability and track progress.

What is the Vision/Traction Organizer (V/TO) in Get A Grip?

  • Strategic Planning Tool: The V/TO helps businesses clarify their vision and outline steps to achieve it, including Core Values and Marketing Strategy.
  • Alignment and Communication: It serves as a communication tool that aligns the organization around a common vision.
  • Regular Updates: The V/TO should be reviewed and updated regularly to reflect changes in the business environment and goals.

How does the Accountability Chart work in Get A Grip?

  • Organizational Structure: The Accountability Chart visually represents the organization’s structure, detailing roles and responsibilities.
  • Focus on Structure First: It emphasizes focusing on the structure rather than the people in roles for an objective assessment.
  • Identifying People Issues: Helps identify people issues by assessing if individuals are in the right seats, prompting discussions about role fit.

What are Level 10 Meetings in Get A Grip?

  • Weekly Check-Ins: Level 10 Meetings are structured weekly meetings designed to keep the leadership team aligned and accountable.
  • Focus on Accountability: They emphasize accountability by requiring team members to report on their progress toward their Rocks (quarterly priorities).
  • Issue Solving: The IDS (Identify, Discuss, Solve) process allows the team to address and resolve issues effectively.

What is the concept of "Rocks" in Get A Grip?

  • Quarterly Priorities: "Rocks" are the three to seven most important priorities a company or individual must focus on each quarter.
  • SMART Goals: Each Rock should be a SMART goal—Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-bound.
  • Regular Review: Rocks are reviewed regularly during Level 10 Meetings to track progress and ensure accountability.

How does Get A Grip address team health?

  • Building Trust: Emphasizes the importance of trust among team members as the foundation for a healthy team dynamic.
  • Encouraging Conflict: Encourages healthy conflict as a means of addressing issues and making decisions without personal attacks.
  • Commitment and Accountability: Once trust and conflict are established, team members can commit to decisions and hold one another accountable.

What are some best practices for implementing EOS from Get A Grip?

  • Start with the V/TO: Begin by clearly defining your vision using the V/TO as the foundation for all other EOS tools and processes.
  • Regular Meetings: Establish regular Level 10 Meetings to maintain accountability and track progress with a structured agenda.
  • Focus on Team Dynamics: Prioritize team health by fostering trust, encouraging open communication, and addressing conflicts constructively.

What are the best quotes from Get A Grip and what do they mean?

  • “Accountable means doing exactly what you say you’ll do.”: Highlights the importance of accountability in building trust and achieving results.
  • “If you’re trying to delegate twenty hours worth of work each week, delegate it from the lower two quadrants.”: Refers to the Delegate and Elevate tool, encouraging leaders to focus on their strengths.
  • “You have to have both.”: Underscores the necessity of having the right people in the right seats for organizational success.

How does Get A Grip illustrate the importance of having the right people in the right seats?

  • Cultural Fit and Capacity: Emphasizes ensuring team members fit the company culture and have the capacity to excel in their roles.
  • Objective Assessment: The Accountability Chart helps objectively assess whether the organization has the right structure to achieve its goals.
  • Prompting Discussions: Identifies people issues and prompts discussions about role fit if someone is not performing well.

How can the tools in Get A Grip be applied to enhance business operations?

  • Vision/Traction Organizer (V/TO): Clarifies vision and outlines steps to achieve it, aligning the organization around common goals.
  • Accountability Chart: Clarifies roles and responsibilities, ensuring the right people are in the right seats.
  • Level 10 Meetings: Maintain accountability and track progress, focusing on resolving issues effectively.

Review Summary

4.20 out of 5
Average of 1k+ ratings from Goodreads and Amazon.

Get a Grip receives mostly positive reviews, with an average rating of 4.21 out of 5. Readers appreciate its practical approach to implementing the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) through a business fable. Many find it helpful in understanding EOS concepts and their real-world application. Some praise the storytelling, while others find it simplistic or clichéd. The book is particularly valuable for business owners and leaders looking to improve their operations, though some small business owners find it less relevant. Overall, it's considered a useful companion to "Traction" for those interested in EOS implementation.

Your rating:

About the Author

Gino Wickman is an entrepreneur who started his business journey at 21. At 25, he took over his family's struggling business, turned it around, and successfully sold it after seven years. This experience fueled his passion for helping other entrepreneurs and leaders achieve their business goals. Wickman's expertise lies in understanding what makes businesses and entrepreneurs thrive. He has since dedicated himself to developing and teaching the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS), a comprehensive business management system designed to help companies improve their performance and achieve sustainable growth. Wickman's work focuses on practical, actionable strategies for business success.

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