I have started using these terms to describe two different types of behavior.
Front Facing Actions: Things in the future such as goals or milestones.
Rear Facing Actions: Things in the past such as achieving a goal. Looking back on something, most likely one of the front facing actions.
These are terms that I just made up because I needed to call it something.
In real life I find things go much more smoothly when these front and rear actions are split 50/50. Meaning you (and/or your team) have the same amount of front facing actions and rear facing actions.
I think everyone will find that following through with rear facing actions is difficult. It takes dedication to stick with it but at the end of the day this is where many of the “ah ha” moments come from.
An Example:
A team has worked hard for one month to achieve a software product release goal (front facing). After the release the team goes over what worked well and what did not work well during the month (rear facing). Out of the meeting they created new front facing actions for the next month.