I have a wonderful colleague. We'll call her V (because her name starts with a V.; I'm clever with this super-secret name-withholding coding). And she is one of those detailed, list-making, Type-A organizers. We need her. I personally respect her and value her process-oriented method of tackling tasks (because I much prefer to build relationships, market, sell and present rather than focus on the minutiae). Because I only get paid for a certain number of hours/week, I often rely on V. to help me with the process of sales and event management.
All this leads to the title of this post. V. recently shared an article, as she often does: "Don't Manage Your Time, Manage Your Attention" by Wayne Rivers, president of The Family Business Institute, Inc. Much of the article is focused on content from a book written by Lee J. Colan and David Cottrell. I share all this in case you care. Several valid points are shared in the vein of "understand your priorities and do them." I think we all know this. But the nugget that sticks with me is that when we choose to say yes to a project, we pretty likely need to say no to something else that we need and/or want to do.
Most of us juggle 1.2 million tasks every day (statistic attributed to Professionaldawn). Some are big picture steps and others are niggly details that must happen to make something else happen - the deadline-driven tasks. Sometimes we must allocate time to visionary thinking and strategic planning. But, honestly, we have to judge each week and then day what the priorities are. Sometimes it is going to be those annoying details (that V. is so good at and that I just do because it's part of the process). Annoying details can be the priority. The trick is to learn how to be a good judge of priorities.
Colan and Cottrell write, "In the absence of clearly defined priorities, you'll find yourself involved in trivial pursuits [Important side: I love that game]." Identify your priorities - whether grand or minute - and then know when to say no. But please, if you're saying no to a colleague, do it with consideration in the vein of
I'm an optimist and a believer in being open to opportunities. But perhaps I need to kick myself in the buttocks and do some thoughtful priority setting each week and reassess each day. And then I need to follow my friend Larry the Cable Guy's advice and "Git 'er done!"
Bonus! If you want to know how President Dwight Eisenhower managed priorities, click here.
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