I work with leadership teams to run better businesses and live better lives using the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS). One of the most powerful tools in the EOS toolbox is the 90-Day World. Every 90 days, teams step out of the day-to-day, reflect, reassess, and reset priorities.
What if we did the same thing for our personal lives?
Every quarter, I take myself through a Personal Quarterly Session using many of the same tools I use with my clients—along with a few from Strategic Coach and other frameworks. The goal? To leave with a clear vision and a clear plan for the next 90 days.
Here’s the structure I currently follow. Each quarter, I tweak the process a little more. Feel free to adapt it for your own personal quarterly:
1. Check-In
Based on The Gap and The Gain by Dan Sullivan and Dr. Benjamin Hardy, I start by reflecting on my “bests” in personal, family, and business areas. Then I ask:
- What’s working?
- What’s not working?
The key is to write everything down. Anything from the “not working” list becomes the start of my issues list.
2. Review the Prior Quarter
I pull up last quarter’s Rocks and financial targets and mark them “done” or “not done.” I reflect on what I learned and add any missed goals or weaknesses uncovered to my issues list. Then I assign the quarter a letter grade. If it’s not an A, I ask: What would have made it an A? Those answers go on the issues list too.
3. Revisit My Personal V/TO
In connection with the EOS Life book, EOS created a Person Vision/Traction Organizer (V/TO). I review my V/TO section by section, and ask:
- Is this still my vision?
- Am I living in alignment with it?
Any changes to the vision or misalignments go onto the issues list. This review also re-centers me on my long-term vision before setting new Rocks.
4. EOS Life + Four Freedoms Assessments
I rate myself from 1–10 (10 being best) in each of the EOS Life areas:
- Doing what I love
- With people I love
- Making a huge difference
- Being compensated appropriately
- Having time for other passions
Then I do the same for the Four Freedoms (money, time, relationships, purpose) from Strategic Coach.
For any score under 10, I write what would make it a 10 and add those ideas to the issues list.
5. Leadership & Management Review
How to Be a Great Boss outlines 5 Leadership Practices and 5 Management Practices. I review each and ask: Would the people I lead and manage say I’m doing these things? If the answer is “no,” I ask: What would make the answer a yes?—and record that on my issues list.
6. Delegate and Elevate
The EOS Delegate and Elevate Tool is a fabulous tool for gaining clarity about how I'm spending my time and what I could change to be more effective and live a better life. I categorize all of the things I do into four buckets:
- Don’t like / not good at
- Don’t like / good at
- Like / good at
- Love / great at
The first two buckets become a goldmine of things to eliminate, automate, or delegate. I capture these on my issues list.
7. Set SMART Rocks
With a clear vision and a full issues list, I ask: What are the top priorities that will move my life forward over the next 90 days?
I narrow these down to the 3–7 most important. I set a due date about 90 days out and write SMART Rocks—Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Timely goals. These become my personal focus for the next quarter.
8. Next Steps + Schedule the Next Session
I make sure I have a system in place to stay on track:
- Weekly check-in: A weekly 15 to 30-minute review of my rocks and any issue getting in the way helps me stay focused and solve issues before they derail my progress. I block this on my calendar.
- Next quarterly session: I schedule 3–4 hours on the day my Rocks are due for my next personal quarterly session.
This process helps me stay aligned with my long-term vision and make meaningful progress—not just in business, but in life.
If you’ve ever run a business on EOS—or want to live more intentionally—I highly recommend trying a Personal Quarterly Session. The clarity and focus it brings is remarkable.
If you're curious about any of the tools mentioned, feel free to reach out. I'm happy to share digital copies or talk through how you could adapt this process for yourself.