Work ... and then release

Put yourself under some pressure, focus on the thing to be done ... work.

Focus so you have no other distractions.

Focus because it’s not forever. (You will get a break.)

Focus because it’s so effective in getting the thing done.

Better than advancing on six different tasks, inching forward on each one, our mind switching erratically, losing time to get back up to speed. It’s such a waste to persist with this old way of thinking and working. Is it connected with the beliefs, ‘If I work hard and long: - I’ll get the results - I’ll look busy, be seen as indispensable - I’ll be seen as dedicated?

But what about the outcome? What is being achieved? How long is it taking? And do you know?

Try pressure (focus) ... and then release (break). Set a time to focus on a task and only that task. This is the pressure or constraint. Then work. . . . And then release. Walk, stretch, get a drink, move yourself, do something else. Avoid the ‘mixing-it-all-up-into-one-big-day-of-endless-work.’

Pressure. And release. You’ll feel better, work better and do better. 

Waiting until the facts are in

In times of crisis, smart leaders in customer-focused organisations know they can't wait for all the facts. Not ALL. They need to act based on what they know.

The same thing can apply in our work, business, as entrepreneurs, leaders, team members. Being in the red zone, waiting and hesitating, not doing anything until we know more is fine… to a point. But how much MORE do you need? At what point will you go with what you’ve got? What are you expecting will come along that WILL make you feel like you’re good to go?

It’s usually better to get started when you have a few facts, ‘enough’ to get going. Then you can adapt - green zone - as more information becomes available.

This ability and willingness to be more in the amber zone of acting with some knowledge, is part of newer ways of working. It means we respond and adapt when more information comes in, when more things are known.

For many it certaintly IS a new way of thinking and working. It’s about working in uncertainty and in a changing environment, to put perfect or expectations of perfect aside. It’s time to act… and adapt as things change.

What reading will you do to prepare you for the future

The Institute for the Future continues to urge us to prepare for the future skills we'll require to cope with uncertainty, change and new ways of working. If you can't zip out of the office to complete a 'Future of Work Diploma', what are you doing to educate yourself so you're ready? Over the weekend, during the week, on holidays, people often find gaps in the day - after breakfast, waiting in the car, in airport queues, after dinner, waiting for the weather to change/clear/change again.

All of these times - and more - are opportunities to be taking on bite-sized chunks of insight and learning.

Our brain loves this; much better than cognitively overloading ourselves or filling up our sponges with too much information in one hit.

So, what are you reading... and planning to read?

Here are some ideas for you I've worked on over the past six years...

(Hey pssst! The purple one is available for FREE download via my website; the others, where you usually get your books or via my website).

What’s the new-A-U

Business as usual has been, well, business as usual (BAU) for ever!

In the business world it’s the stuff that’s done to make everyday operational activities happen.

So ...what’s the NEW A U ? What new things are happening that will bring about change? What’s planned up ahead that will continue to challenge thinking, challenge convention and bring a new mindset and behaviour to how things are done?

Whether you’re a leader of a team, a team member in an organisation, or a solo operator running yourown show, what's your ’new as usual’?

How are you bringing new things into your business regularly? The new can be scary, untested, untried. I heard someone recently say, ‘I’m not trying something new unless it's guaranteed to work’. But how will you know it could work, unless you try it?

New ways of thinking and working help you gain the benefits of those new ways sooner, delivering advantages and value to your customers, gaining the advances of first and early movers. Want to wait until more or the majority of people are doing something, because it’s less risky or safer? Great. Go line up and wait... over there. I’m moving along to NEW-A-U. See ya!

The person with the most spontaneity wins

As leadership evolves from command and control to consultative/coaching and beyond to facilitative, those who can handle what happens are well placed.

We can’t predict what people will say, what will happen at a meeting, how a client will respond or what the board might ask for, so we may need to respond in the moment.

Spontaneity is a strength that's incredibly powerful in times of uncertainty. We can spend so much time though, rehearsing scenarios trying to cover all of the possibilities, to try to prepare for the future.

Do we fear we wont be able to handle things, that we will lose control?

Maybe we don’t trust ourselves to handle what happens.

But improvisers have known it for decades: we have incredible resources in us and we need to trust that we can handle so many situations. Could you be more spontaneous, you know, go with the flow? Responding to what happens rather than trying to control what happens?

🔆To build spontaneity, notice your response when things DON'T go as you hoped, expected or planned. What you do next is spontaneity. And it's a SUPER SKILL for the uncertain future.