Taking Control of Your Work Life
Whenever the chaos surrounding me seems to be growing beyond control, I do three things: 1) Find a quiet spot, 2) Take a breath, and 3) Remind myself of what is within my control. That may sound familiar to any Stoicism fans out there (and if you’re unaware of Stoicism, learning about it would be a good resolution to add to your list). It’s usually the feeling of being out of control that makes your stomach try to implode in on itself. So, focus that imploding energy towards something you can influence.
The same philosophy applies to our work lives. There will always be more work that could be done than the time we have to do it. If we can’t control the amount of work, then we’ll have to refocus our attention onto how we do the work. And to do that you’ll need to remember your A,B,C,D’s:
- Automate: Make the computer take on more of the burden (look at it, just sitting there goofing off. Remember, you can only see the top of a lap (a laptop if you will) when you’re sitting down). Think through the steps you have to do to complete your latest assignment. Are there any steps that could be automated? Scripts can be written to pull data for you. News services can scrape the interwebs for key words or topics. Excel can store templates to make writing and sending similar documents a snap. I guarantee at least one of those steps could be done by a machine instead of you. Don’t know how to build that automation? Make a new friend in your organization that does know how or ask your dear uncle Google for help.
- Buy more time: Put your negotiating skills to good use. Does every assignment on your list have to get completed ASAP? Well, ASAP ends with the word Possible, and possible is what you say it is. Timelines typically get created without safety nets, and any slips at the beginning just compress all of the subsequent steps. Plan for stumbling blocks and you won’t need to work all weekend because Sylvester forgot to hit send on an email.
- Combine: Kill (well, lightly concuss anyway) two birds with one stone. I would bet a marginally large sum of money that another person in your organization is working on something very similar to what you’re working on. They’re probably on your team right now. The brands or format might be different, but the approach is likely the same. What if you combined those similar projects together and spent less time completing both? Are there any steps that a computer could do that would benefit both of you?
- Delegate: The hands down favorite of managers everywhere. Are you the one and only person in the world who can tackle this project? How about every piece and step of that project? If you said yes, then you’re either a sole proprietor or you’re not thinking like a boss. Most of us absolutely suck at asking for help. We assume that everyone around us is as swamped as we are, so we buckle down and push through. Unless you’re a complete jerk, your coworkers will want to help where they can. Let them help you. Choose something easy to explain and then let them give it a shot. I’m betting they will surprise you.
The most important next step is Z, as in Zip your lips on all of the time you just saved. You may get a few brownie points with the boss by exclaiming how crafty you are, but you also raise the bar for future assignments. Build your own time buffers so you can go through the ABCD’s for your other to do items. And don’t forget your coworkers who helped you automate and took on your delegated tasks. It’s time to return the favor.
-Philip
