S.T.A.R – Stop. Think. Act. Review.
Are you quick to react? Do you often respond to an email and after hitting that send button regret it? Do you catch yourself changing your mind or opinion after you start speaking?
The STAR method will help you better plan your decisions, discussions and actions that will save you time, energy and possibly regret in the future.
STAR is a great way to create a culture amongst leadership and your team to drive quality, safety, improved communication and better decision making skills within an organization. Also, it is a great methodology to adapt for us as individuals. Whether it is at the workplace, with your children or in your marriage; the STAR method is a great way to make effective decisions.
It only takes a few minutes and even less after it has become habit for you, this is a simple and easy way to remember and a process that will assist you with any challenge or task.
Stop. Pause, take a deep breath, remove distractions and focus on the task or challenge at hand.
Think. What are you about to do? What would you like the result to be? How should you go about it? Whom does it affect?
Act. Complete the task, have the conversation or take the action as you planned.
Review. Did you get the expected result? What could you have done differently?
Life is all about an action and then a reaction, this method allows us to think about the reaction before taking action. It also allows for a quick review afterwards for you to analyze how it really went.
Next time you are feeling stressed, pressured or are faced with a challenging situation I challenge you to try the STAR method and I’m certain you will find it as useful as I do. It will also save you time and energy on the “reaction” you receive as you put the time and energy into thinking about it before you acted.
