Nothing going your way? + being proactive + adding an element of play
Hi there,
I’ve got three short topics for you today. Take your pick:
When nothing seems to be going my way, this is what I do. (Yes, I had a rough week.)
I try to carve out some time to be alone. Even if it’s just for a short walk. Simply realizing I need time for myself has already given me so much more peace of mind.
I revamp my calendar, throw out what’s too much, and remind myself that it’s ok if some things have to wait.
I drink more coffee if I feel like it. The limits and “rules” that normally help me be at my best are better set aside on days like these. Don’t be too hard on yourself.
I put on music that gives me energy.
I make myself get started on a given task. It’s fine if I get distracted, but I keep coming back to this job. I know that wrapping it up will give me a boost.
When my energy level’s low, I’ll often take on the urgent things I need to do that aren’t all that important. If I don’t have any of those, it’s fine to do an email session. Anything you manage to get out of the way is a bonus.
I get asked this question a lot: How can you be more proactive in your work when your job is largely demand-driven?
Make time in your calendar for your work. Start small: an hour a day or a morning a week.
Turn on your out-of-office reply, to let people know when you’ll be available again to respond to their queries.
See to it that over time, incoming questions and issues will take less of your time. The simplest way to start is to see if you can write down some of your recommendations somewhere. Then you can point people to them whenever they come up.
Next, see if you can get at the root cause of their questions. I often got questions from people who’d bought my Dutch book and wanted to know where they could find the bonus material. I now email the link to readers again automatically one week after purchase.
Here are more things you can do today that will help you tomorrow.
A reader asks, How do you add an element of play to dull and repetitive work?
Can you set yourself challenges in the form of a limitation? Maybe you could limit the resources you use. Or you could (when you have the same aim with a number of different people) try to avoid saying or typing the same thing two times in a row.
Can you add a competitive element of some sort? Compete against yourself (top your earlier accomplishments) or as a team. Make sure this doesn’t negatively impact the quality of your work.
Can you create a byproduct from your work? Maybe you can share your insight and experiences in an article or a series of Tweets or a presentation for coworkers.
Have a question you’d like to see answered here? Try me.
Have a good week,
Rick