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If your job requires skipping back and forth between several (and vastly different) roles – diverse clients, competing business units, or multiple projects – keeping up with disparate responsibilities can become a major issue. Reacting to each request while setting aside time to proactively research and execute new programs is an unrealistic proposition at best, and flat-out unattainable at worst. As Scott discusses in his "reactionary workflow" tip, more think-based tasks end up relegated to the bottom of to-do lists as immediate requests become more and more urgent.A lack of focus is at the root of this problem. Constant shifts mean that no task receives the proper attention. Instead, each is carried out in the most automatic (and quick!) way possible. In an effort to gain control over my own reactionary habits, I decided to experiment with segmenting my focus out by day.
Each responsibility was designated a day – Mondays for project management, Tuesdays for finances and HR, and so on – taking care to group like with like, if necessary. From there, I reassigned each of my upcoming tasks to the appropriate day and began working within the framework.
Although adapting to the idea of delaying tasks was initially jarring, this system became a great framework for outlining my days. Allowing myself to focus on only a few topics a day vastly increased my ability to innovate within those areas and created an important sense of control over workflow.
That said, I’d offer a few tips to anyone looking to adopt this system:
1) Inform those around you that you’ll be switching to this workflow, lest your co-workers (or boss/clients!) become completely befuddled by your inability to deliver on a project in your typical up-to-the-minute fashion.
2) Stop thinking of yourself as “on-call.”
Certain tasks (like email) will always require more immediate attention; however, you’ll be completely surprised by how many of the things you need to do are elastic – and consequently, how much more quality your output is when focused.
3) Do something to get yourself in the day’s mindset.
Try reading an article on your day’s focus topic, or set up your email filters in such a way that you can review related messages only. Setting the scene is crucial.
4) Allow a bit of flexibility.
Emergencies will inevitably pop-up, so don’t be completely thrown when you need to shift focus. Simply re-center (see #3) when you’re ready to dive back into the day’s tasks, or shift your energy to the new project by reassigning days.
Implementing this kind of structure takes a bit of up-front work, but once you've mastered your system, you'll become more present for both the day-to-day emergencies and the larger projects you'd really like to tackle.
Each responsibility was designated a day – Mondays for project management, Tuesdays for finances and HR, and so on – taking care to group like with like, if necessary. From there, I reassigned each of my upcoming tasks to the appropriate day and began working within the framework.
Although adapting to the idea of delaying tasks was initially jarring, this system became a great framework for outlining my days. Allowing myself to focus on only a few topics a day vastly increased my ability to innovate within those areas and created an important sense of control over workflow.
That said, I’d offer a few tips to anyone looking to adopt this system:
1) Inform those around you that you’ll be switching to this workflow, lest your co-workers (or boss/clients!) become completely befuddled by your inability to deliver on a project in your typical up-to-the-minute fashion.
2) Stop thinking of yourself as “on-call.”
Certain tasks (like email) will always require more immediate attention; however, you’ll be completely surprised by how many of the things you need to do are elastic – and consequently, how much more quality your output is when focused.
3) Do something to get yourself in the day’s mindset.
Try reading an article on your day’s focus topic, or set up your email filters in such a way that you can review related messages only. Setting the scene is crucial.
4) Allow a bit of flexibility.
Emergencies will inevitably pop-up, so don’t be completely thrown when you need to shift focus. Simply re-center (see #3) when you’re ready to dive back into the day’s tasks, or shift your energy to the new project by reassigning days.
Implementing this kind of structure takes a bit of up-front work, but once you've mastered your system, you'll become more present for both the day-to-day emergencies and the larger projects you'd really like to tackle.
So, my ideal plan is to look at email in the morning, and leave it on just long enough to get responses to anything pressing. And then it's off again until after lunch. Check and await responses, then off for an hour or two. This isn't every day, but just days I need to actually do some design! Flipping back and forth between a design and email every few minutes is crippling to the creative process.
Here's to New Year's resolutions!
I have found that only opening my email client every 30 minutes and having to manual select to download email helps to avoid distraction while not being such a delay that you receive telephone calls from concerned clients.
The 30 minute rule also applies to anything I am working on. After 30 minutes I take a 5 minute break to help my brain rest. The break often results in clarifying and resolving any issues / decisions I was having in the previous 30 minutes. To get back in the zone I then re-scan the project brief.
It's definitely something I struggle with but also realize that it requires determination and well, focus, to do this well. Definitely a lot to take note for my own process.
Instead, I have tried to segment my work life into 2 parts: the 'thinking' and 'the doing'. The thinking is writing books, coming up with ideas for clients, writing blog posts, brainstorming ideas for my business development. The doing is project management, admin and running assignments for my clients. Each is totally different and requires different approaches and tools. The thinking i can do on the move, in coffee shops, on trains and planes. The doing I need my iPhone or my office or a meeting room. Segmenting my working day between these 2 mindsets works really well, allocating a coffee shop session for that all-important ideas generation and means i am never more than a couple of hours away from being able to dip back into a client project if something time-critical arises.
[More on all this from my perspective in my book 'Juggle! Rethink Work, Reclaim Your Life'.]