How to Apply EOS (Traction) to Your Personal Life, Part 1

EOS (Traction) isn’t just for businesses or organizations; it can do wonders for your personal goal setting. Here’s part 1 of a 3-part series on how to set it up.

Over the years, I’ve used various goal-setting formats and programs. Really, the power is in having a system, not in which system you choose.

However, it wasn’t until stumbling upon EOS (Traction) in 2019 and subsequent modifications from an EO connection that I encountered what I consider the best personal goal-setting system available.

Over the next three weeks, I’ll walk you through this system. It does not require books, digital courses, podcasts, or the like. It’s simply a spreadsheet you can download here. (Excel, PDF, or Google Sheets)

This week, I’ll provide a brief overview of the system, and then we’ll dive into setting up page 1 of the spreadsheet, covering the mega themes that will guide you in the next 3-10 years.

Next week, we’ll look at breaking those long-term goals into annual and quarterly goals.

Then, in week 3, I’ll show you the “cadence” of running the system. And don’t worry, once this system is built, the time commitment to maintain it is:

• 5 minutes a day

• 30 minutes a week

• 2-3 hours a quarter

• 1 day a year

That’s a pretty small investment of time for such a powerful tool.

Here we go!

What This System Will Do

Setting up a “personal” Traction system will align your long-term aspirations with your daily activities.

Yes, it’s that simple.

What separates those who realize their dreams from those who talk about them? Intentional daily action.

Those who take daily steps towards their goals become “10-year overnight successes.” Everyone else is in awe because of what happened “all of a sudden.” But peel back the onion, and it’s likely this “overnight success” was thousands of small steps for years if not decades.

And that’s why I love Traction: it tells me which small steps I need to take today to “win the week.” And what I need to do this week to “win the quarter.” And then from quarter to year, year to 3-year, 3-year to 10-year, and 10-year to lifetime. Laddering up, laddering down. Repeat.

It’s nice to wake up in the morning and not spend an hour thinking about what I should do. I simply jump in!

Setting Up Page 1 of the Personal V/TO

The overall spreadsheet is called a V/TO. It stands for “Vision/Traction Organizer.” It simply means you’ll create a vision and then get “traction” towards accomplishing it.

Let’s jump into tab 1 of the spreadsheet you downloaded. (Excel, PDF, or Google Sheets)

Set aside a few uninterrupted hours to work on this page. Better yet, carve out an entire day or weekend and have a mini Think Week.

And please, do not fall into the trap of getting stuck, fearful that every answer is your final answer. When we walk through the “cadence” of this system in week 3, you’ll see how incredibly flexible it is, not only allowing for but encouraging adjustments along the way.

Now, begin in the ‘Vision’ tab and walk through each empty cell, filling it in as follows:

Core Values - What are you “about?” What do you believe in? What are your foundational attributes? What do people rely on you for the most? What are things you believe so deeply you’d never compromise? These values will often stem from a religious perspective, be heavily related to those you love (family, friends, etc.), and be things that make you unique.

Passions - Don’t overthink this: If you woke up on a random Tuesday and were excited about what you would do that day, what would you be about to do that excited you? Who would you be seeing? Where would you be going? Another way to look at it: at the end of a “great” day, what would have made it great? These are your passions.

10-Year Target - Enter a target date in the gray cell 10 years from now. (Feel free to “round up” to 12/31 of that year to keep things simple.) Now, close your eyes and imagine your life on that exact date. On a separate piece of paper, jot down what you “see” in your mind. Where are you? Who are you with? What experiences will you have had? How will you be spending your weekdays and weekends? Now, turn those notes into 1-3 sentences describing who you are on that day. Start with “I am…” and let it roll!

Lifetime Wishlist - There are things you want to accomplish in life that likely will not happen in the next 10 years. Sort of a “bucket list.” Write as many of these down as come to mind. Make them bold, audacious, scary, and challenging. After all, you don’t have to worry about them for another 10 years!

3-Year Picture

• Future Date - Enter a target date three years from now. (Feel free to “round up” to 12/31 once again.)

• Income - If you like to use income as a personal metric, or if income is important to you, fill this in. Otherwise, delete it!

• Net Worth - Same here. Some people love to use this as a personal “scoreboard,” and others could not care less about such silliness!

• Measurables - What numbers or metrics would you need to meet to consider your 3-year picture having been completed? Maybe you’re a runner: might this be a 5k pace? Perhaps you love to read: might this be a number of books read? Perhaps you adore connecting with others: might this be a certain number of 1:1 interactions in a given year?

• What does this look like? - Once again, close your eyes, bring out a piece of scratch paper, and “see” yourself on the “future date” you entered above. Spend 20-30 minutes on this, jotting down anything that comes to mind. Now, return to your V/TO, and list 5-15 phrases describing what life looks like on this “future date.”

Congratulations! You’ve now spent a few hours (or maybe even a day) designing your future. Isn’t that cool? I think it’s one of the joys of life: the ability to dream of a future and then work to make it happen.

Next week, we’ll dive into pages (tabs) two and three of the spreadsheet, taking us from our 3-year picture to our quarterly “rocks.”

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[Jump to Part 2 of this series]

Books of Note: OK, I’m going to hit you with a heavy dose of non-fiction here: Edmund Morris’s Theodore Roosevelt Series. Three tomes of savory prose about one of the more interesting men in American history. We all know him as a president, but this guy’s life pre and post-presidency is even more fascinating. If you’re a history buff, check it out!

I’d love a follow over on X (Twitter) and Linkedin, as I post things there that are either too brief for the newsletter or are just entertaining things I come up with over a responsibly-sized serving of Blanton’s.