Have you ever had that feeling of overwhelm in your business or career?
You know, too much to do and not enough time?
That same feeling smacked me again recently. Then I read this quote:
“Don’t say you don’t have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michaelangelo, Mother Teresa, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein.”
― H. Jackson Brown Jr.
Great. Now what can we do next?
IF YOU DO WHAT YOU’VE ALWAYS DONE…
I’d tried check lists, time management programs, etc. Everything seemed to be another form of a list. And those busy days can be full of “things you got done” but did they need to get done? Did that phone call need to be made? Did you have to have that meeting? How can you determine productive activities vs. just “getting things done”. If you have hours and hours of activity in your day, why does the end of the day always leave you feeling like there’s even MORE to do? Then I came across an answer in a book…
THE GAPS ARE WHAT WE’RE MISSING
On page 7 of “Execution: The Discipline Of Getting Things Done” the authors mentioned: Gaps. They say “We talk to many leaders who fall victim to the gap between promises they’ve made and results their organizations delivered.” Powerful and simple. A little “gap” in the ice or your professional life could crack… and deepen… and leave you floating out at sea. SO: Rather than write report about the rest of the book here I’d like to share a few simple ways you can use that sentence. I went to work the next day, armed with that, and made changes.
FOCUS ON THE GAPS INSTEAD OF THE TASKS
It seems where many of us go wrong is starting with the checklist. What if we started with the question: What promises have I made to my clients, staff, coworkers, business partners, committee members, etc that I HAVEN’T fulfilled yet? Write those out. Then build a task list around them. Start by creating tasks that will fulfill your promises. Start by creating tasks that will help your professional reputation, grow your career and build your business.
Get those done first. This includes having meetings to get results to fulfill promises, making calls to get those things done, sending the right emails and even spending time on the right social media channels (if they apply to getting things done).
Try that for a day or better yet a week. Chances are great your stress levels will drop a LOT because you’re not feeling the pressure of things you need to get done (because they’ll be done) AND you’re not wasting (as much) time just running around doing random activities. You’re keeping your word; you have a map.
You’ll have a method to your madness.
TODAY
What 2 gaps can YOU close TODAY with a few action items?
