Let's not even think about resolutions right now. (I don't really believe in them, anyway.)
Today and tomorrow, just think back about 2009, take the lessons you've learned and the good memories, and do your best to leave the rest behind like an extinguished sparkler.
Have a safe New Year's Eve, and I'll see you next week. Happy 2010!
Last week, we talked about what people can do on their own in the office during the holidays. This week is the "in-between" week from December 26 to January 2, a week when many businesses have a lot of down time. What can a whole office do with down time? Lots!
Stephen Covey recognized the value of downtime in his bestseller The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. Covey’s designated seventh habit is the one that ensures all the other six work. He named it “sharpening the saw” after the parable of a lumberjack who exhausted himself trying to cut down a tree with a dull saw, wasting hours of backbreaking work rather than taking a few minutes to sharpen his blade.
After this year in particular, we're all feeling worn down and worn out. The economy has forced the downsizing of most businesses, which means the average worker’s workload has increased. Everyone in your office could probably use a bit of sharpening.
Some options:
In this economy, many managers might be reluctant to spend overhead dollars on activities that don’t seem essential to the business. Think of it this way: In operations management, a line’s maximum production is always greater than its optimal production. Similarly, your maximum heart rate is always larger than your training heart rate. The reasons for both are identical: a system can run at its maximum, but not for very long before it breaks down.
Investing some overhead in sharpening the saw now can yield rewards in the new year (and a hopefully improved economy).
Does your company have any plans to sharpen the saw? Let me know in the comments!
If you celebrate Christmas, please accept my wishes of a most merry Christmas. May you spend the day with your loved ones in celebration of joy and love.
If you don't celebrate Christmas, may you also enjoy a day of joy and love, with the added bonus of much less traffic on the streets than usual.
Merry Christmas!
I might go to hell for that title, but there's a lot to be said for being the only one in the office during the holidays.
Yes, you'll probably have to take on some additional work from your coworkers who are out on holiday travel, but you'll also be much more likely to get all that work done without the usual interruptions from managers, coworkers and direct reports.
Once you've gotten your workload squared away, here are some suggestions for making the most of your empty office (solopreneurs and telecommuters, you can sing along too!):
Clean your computer. As in, with a spray cleaner and a low-lint cloth. All year, those fingerprints on the screen and crumbs in the keyboard have been an eyesore (and a health hazard). Time to get them outta there!
Clean off your desk. It's nobody's idea of a good time (except maybe mine), but filing away the stuff you don't need will perk your workspace up. This is also a good time to check your office supply levels and see what you need to order more of.
Check your professional development plan. You don't necessarily need a 15-page document specifying every move you plan to make, but when you've got some down time, give a thought to what you want the next stage in your career to be. Then start figuring out the steps to get from here to there.
Take an online class. With training budgets almost nonexistent, you might be on your own in terms of keeping your skills up-to-date. So consider getting that training online as part of the "university" programs offered by many companies.
What about you? When it's just you in the office and you've got some time to spare, what do you like to do? Tell me in the comments!
1. Remember, the weather is, in a word, crappy. Try to leave a half-day barrier on each side of your travel plans for preparation, unpacking and general things-go-wrong-ery. If you’re crossing a lot of time zones, keep the power of jetlag in mind, and consider increasing that barrier into a full day on each side.
2. Know what needs doing. Make a list of every unfinished thing in your office. Identify all the stuff that needs to get done before you leave, then separate it into two lists: what you can realistically get done in that time, and what you’ll need to delegate or push back.
3. Keep other folks' holiday plans in mind. When you contact clients or colleagues to ask for extensions or to delegate tasks, be prepared for them to have their own holiday-related requests. If you can help them out by accommodating them, they'll be more likely to help you and your working relationship will only get stronger.
4. Know what's awaiting your return. Make a list of everything that will be waiting for you when you get back. If the deadlines are too close to your return date, again, delay or delegate.
5. Communicate and stay in communication. Begin reminding everyone you work with that you’ll be out of town. Find a way to stay in the loop, whether that's lining up a contact person for your absence or making sure you'll have cell phone reception at your destination.
6. Make your return to the office easy. Don’t schedule anything too heavy for your first day back. No major meetings, no client reviews, etc. Catch up on your email, add new tasks to your “waiting for my return” list and prioritize them. And be sure to thank everyone for their help while you were gone.
Do you have any holiday travel plans this year? How are you preparing your office for them? Let me know in the comments!
This'll have to be quick, because I'm running late (rimshot!).
The key to managing your time during the holidays is to remember that you are not the only person trying to do these things right now, and that the weather is likely to be crappy.
Last week, I had to run some errands: go to the bank, get some new candles to replace the ones that melted in the attic over the summer, get some pet stuff and see if I could find some longer-waisted t-shirts at a couple of my favorite stores.
All the errands were within the same 3-mile radius, so I budgeted 60 minutes for my tasks. And that would have been just fine in May. In mid-December, not so much.
Lines were forming at all four drive-thru lanes at the bank; the pet store was filling up with folks getting their pet's picture taken with Santa; and the candles and potential t-shirts were inside the mall. Plus, it was drizzling outside. My 60 minutes of errands wound up taking almost 3 hours.
The holiday season brings some additional activities and to-dos, but it doesn't bring any more hours in the day. So when you're planning out your day, keep in mind that you'll need 2 to 3 times longer than usual for any task that involves transportation and/or commerce.
You can also use the general time management strategies we've discussed on this blog, such as doing your shopping online, "ganging" errands so you only have to leave the office or house once and reviewing your tasks to see if something could wait until January.
Unfortunately, I can't wait until January; I've gotta go now!
Do you have any holiday-specific time management strategies? Let me know in the comments!
On Monday, we talked about the expectations many of us have regarding the holidays and how those expectations can weigh on us. If we're not careful, it's very easy for an expectation to become an obligation. And those aren't very fun, are they?
If an expectation is a "should," an obligation is a "have to." And it tends to feel more externally imposed than an expectation. "I have to buy a bunch of stuff/drive six hours each way/deal with people I actively dislike, etc." The implied "or..." is that other people will be angry, hurt or disappointed. It's enough to make the holiday season feel like a probation sentence with finger foods.
If you want to relieve some of that sense of obligation during the holidays, try playing the "what's the worst that would happen" game. What's the worst thing that would happen if you didn't send those cards this year? If you didn't drive across the country for a meal? If you didn't do the same things you've "always" done? If you find the consequences relatively tolerable compared to the activity, consider changing the activity or not doing it at all.
Or you could try to find the fun. If there's some element of the stuff you "have to" do that you genuinely enjoy, try to focus on that. Try to make a game out of it, if you can; maybe treat yourself to an extra-large marshmallow (or shot of brandy) in your hot chocolate for every string of lights you put up.
Of course, there is one obligations that I recommend you meet during this season: your obligation to take care of yourself. This applies in the mental, emotional, spiritual and financial senses, but I really want to emphasize the physical sense. We're in the holiday season, yes, but we're also still in the cold and flu season, and I don't think that's a coincidence. Not taking care of your health can render your holiday activities moot. After all, who wants to eat cookies baked by someone with what pharmacists call a "wet, hacking cough"?
What obligations do you have this season, and what are you doing to try to reframe them?
...is to manage your expectations. Of course, that's true of a lot of things, but it seems particularly applicable during the holiday season. Maybe that's because we tend to have a lot of emotions (positive or otherwise) associated with this time, as well as our own personal and family history. Plus, this year, the state of the economy might not allow us to meet our holiday dreams.
What tends to do people in during the holidays are what I call "the shoulds": I should be able to find the perfect gift for everyone (on sale!), I should produce the wittiest holiday newsletter my clients have ever seen, I should find the time to bake these 10 dozen cookies for the company potluck.
What often goes unexamined is that within each "should" is an element of judgment and, usually, shame. What a cruel irony that a time of year intended for celebration and joy has turned into such a handy tool for us to beat ourselves up with!
I'd like to suggest that the next time you find yourself with a case of the holiday "shoulds" that you try to embrace the imperfection that is unique to every holiday season. If it helps (and you're of that faith), try to think of the events that precipitated Christmas and Hannukah. Neither of them occurred in an optimal fashion, but miracles happened nonetheless.
And, as we've discussed here before, perfectionism does nobody any favors, and that applies even more during the holidays. Oftentimes, we find the most joy in unexpected places as long as we're open to it.
So if you can, try to give yourself a break from unreasonable expectations this holiday season. After all, Santa only cares if you're naughty or nice... and that includes being nice to yourself.
This time of year, it's tempting to want to draw up a list of gifts for the organizing enthusiast. But the more I thought about doing so, the more I realized that that might not be the best idea ever had.
For starters, organizing is really personal. I may love certain products, but that doesn't mean they'd work for someone else's space, style or needs. (And remember, if you give someone something that they don't really need or want or could use, what does it become? Clutter.)
Also, most people who are into organizing usually have all the organizing stuff they want (maybe even a bit too much of it!), so there's not the usual gift-giving option of "Well, Frankie likes games and there's a bunch of new stuff coming out this year..."
But the main reason not to recommend organizing stuff as possible gifts is that it might send an unwelcome (and possibly unintended) message to the recipient.
Organizing products, like fitness products and soap, are welcome only if the recipient has specifically mentioned wanting something in that vein more than once. Otherwise, you might as well rent a neon sign that says: "You're a slob/sweathog/big' ol mess." It'll make New Year's Eve more than a little bit uncomfortable.
Now, that said, if you absolutely want to give something with an organizational flair and I haven't managed to talk you out of it yet, you could do a lot worse than the Pocket Briefcase from Levenger. (Just be sure you're not giving it to a vegan. See? It's much better to give Christmas sweaters instead; everybody loves those!)
