Origin Leadership Focus Deck™
A simple 18 card deck that helps leaders choose one behavior for the next 90 days and practice it in real work, from Go and See to huddles, PROVE Loop™ checks, and one to ones.
Part of the Origin Thinking™ operating system: Origin Problem Solving™, OPS Tools™, Origin Leadership Focus Deck™, and PROVE Loop™.
One focus. One quarter. Real work.
Most performance reviews and leadership models talk about leadership in vague terms. The Origin Leadership Focus Deck™ forces a sharper question: what specific behavior will you practice this quarter. Once per quarter a leader and their manager sort the deck, choose one behavior to focus on, and turn that choice into a short ninety day plan tied to real work.
- Sort the fifteen behavior cards into three rows: very much like me, sometimes like me, and rarely like me.
- Choose one focus card that matters for safety, reliability, quality, cost, or team health.
- Capture a simple ninety day plan in the leader’s normal one to one or development notes and use it as a lens during Go and See, huddles, PROVE Loop™ checks, and coaching. The focus lives in those notes, not as a public scorecard on the wall.
Example scenario
A supervisor and their manager sort the deck and choose the Create Conditions for Problem Solving card.
For the next quarter, the supervisor protects one specific block of time each week for the team to work on a real gap from their Action Board. In weekly one on one meetings between the supervisor and manager, they review whether that time was actually protected, what the team learned, and how those learnings showed up in PROVE Loop™ observations and daily decisions. None of this becomes a score or rating. The card is used as a practice lens to check the supervisor’s behavior, not to judge the team.
What is in the deck.
The Origin Leadership Focus Deck™ (used inside the Origin Thinking™ system as the OPS Leadership Focus Deck™) is a physical set of 18 cards. Fifteen cards describe concrete leadership behaviors. Three helper cards show how to sort the deck, choose a ninety day focus, and connect the deck to Origin Problem Solving™, OPS Tools™, and the PROVE Loop™.
- 15 core behavior cards: Built around the Clarity, Cause, and Control pattern from Origin Problem Solving™ so the behaviors match the way you solve problems.
- 3 helper cards: Simple instructions for ranking the cards, choosing a ninety day focus, and linking it back to Origin Thinking™.
- Practical links to real work: Each card includes examples tied to Go and See visits, huddles, PROVE Loop™ checks, and one to one coaching.
- Private by design: The focus choice and notes stay in the one to one between leader and manager, not as a visible rating on the Tier 1 board.
- Abstract imagery: Each card uses a symbolic image. The artwork is intentionally abstract to create visual interest and memorability, while subtly suggesting the tension or idea behind the behavior. For example, Assign Clear Accountability shows a clear objective surrounded by many possible actors, reflecting how outcomes drift when ownership is unclear.