You’d never buy a car without taking it for a test drive. It’s a big purchase and you’ll likely have it for several years. Never mind that it’s guaranteed to work as advertised and get you from Point A to Point B, you’ll still get in, poke around, see how it feels, count the cup holders, and take it out on the road. I’m a big fan of test drives and here are two situations where they should be used. Process Changes When you want to change the way lots of people work together (e.g., establish new practices, create a new form, shift responsibilities), it’s not unlike buying a new car. It’s a big investment and you’ll likely be stuck with the changes for several years. But unlike a car, your changes are not even guaranteed to work as advertised.
Do what you love and love what you do. But not now. Watch this 2 minute video and learn when you shouldn’t do what you love!
Suzanne Bates of Bates Communications attended a presentation I gave in Boston last month. Her summary is excellent: It’s Your Time: Executive Time Management
I love technology, except when I hate it. Today is a good day, however. I’m in love once again! Not since my first iPhone have I been this excited about a new gadget. This time it is my new MiFi Jetpack. It’s about three quarters the size of an iPhone and weighs only a few ounces. And, ironically, it makes that much loved gadget, the iPhone, less necessary! The MiFi provides a wireless Internet signal for my very small MacBook Air almost anywhere. It also provides a signal for additional devices, including my iPhone should AT&T disappear. But right now I am thrilling to the signal it delivers to my MacBook Air. Whenever I travel, whether far afield or to a client no more than an hour away, I’ve been forced to answer emails by typing with my thumbs, postpone tasks that can’t be completed without going online, take risks with public WiFI, and sort out the connectivity hoops found at hotels, airports, and cities. On top of that, there are the disappointment of failed technology. I took the bus to New York City recently, instead of driving, specifically so I could get some work done, but the WiFi wasn’t working. I’ve wandered down too many hotel hallways and taken too many trips to the lobby trying to pick up a strong enough signal to send an important response to a client. No longer! Now I can work efficiently, reliably, and without building my plans around Internet availability. Right now, I am blogging from the New York Thruway, someplace east of Buffalo. Loving it. Smiling. Almost giddy with this new ability to do things when I have the time or when I’m inspired, not when technology makes it possible!
My husband called the plumber. Unfortunately, he did it only after putting off a minor repair for months and then spending a good chunk of the day grunting, sweating, agonizing, and making multiple trips up and down the stairs in search of tools we don’t own. Not only did he not save a dime, he lost a day, and was miserable. Luckily, a couple of hours of phone calls produced a plumber able to come that same day, otherwise the suffering would have been considerably longer, and not limited to my husband! There is a lesson here that some people never seem to learn! And when those people run organizations, the pain and ultimate expense is always bigger than one person and a handful of hours. Instead of getting expert help, too many slog along, making little or no progress. Meanwhile, the entire organization suffers. The problem may be small and well-defined or it may be broad and harder to understand. Things like leaders who can’t lead or don’t know where they are going, managers who don’t know how to manage, too many priorities, meetings that accomplish little, confusion that erodes productivity and employee satisfaction,or improvement efforts driven by fads or the latest customer complaint. So when should you call the plumber or enlist other resources? The answer is pretty simple. Do it yourself only if one of these two conditions exists:
During the women’s gymnastics Olympic team final, one of the commentators mentioned that Aly Raisman doesn’t feel pressure because she doesn’t label it that way. She labels it excitement. Labels matter. We all feel pressures and emotions, but we get to choose the labels we use. If you have lots of work to do and dead lines creeping up on you, you can choose to feel overwhelmed or you can choose to feel in control. If you choose to be overwhelmed, you talk about having too much to do and not enough time. You think about and mention all the disruptions and stress. You hope, unrealistically, for better luck tomorrow. You are a victim of your circumstances. Well, I have news for you. There is ALWAYS too much to do. There is NEVER enough time. Disruptions and chaos are natural occurrences. If you don’t accept these realities, you will ALWAYS feel overwhelmed. You will remain a victim. If you choose to be in control, you think about priorities. You handle or dismiss interruptions quickly. You focus on the important things. You do what you can do and make the best of circumstances. You don’t use phrases like “not enough time” and “too much to do.” You aren’t a victim, you take control, and you are in control. Choose “busy and efficient” instead of “overwhelmed.” You’ll be more successful and have something in common with an Olympian.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Ann Latham Uncommon Clarity, Inc. 800-527-0087 Easthampton, MA – Latham to Reveal Meeting Slashing Secrets Ann Latham, president of Uncommon Clarity, will be speaking at the Massachusetts Nonprofit Network Annual Conference on October 25th in Marlborough, MA. A Master Facilitator herself, Ms. Latham will reveal the secrets of short, powerful meetings in her presentation, Uncommon Meetings – Better Results in Half the Time. Ann is a leading expert in creating the clarity that produces better, faster results. She is also an acclaimed speaker. According to Dr. Alan G. Robinson, author and associate director at the Isenberg School of Management, “Ann Latham is one of the best business speakers I have heard. She is very experienced, the quality of her thinking is extremely high, and she knows how to deliver her message in an entertaining, concise, and convincing way.” For more information on the conference, visit www.massnonprofitnet.org. Early bird discounts end August 24th, so don’t delay! Latham is a resident of Westhampton, Massachusetts, where she lives with her husband.