GOOD IDEAS FROM CAROL - 121

I thought this week I’d do something on the concept of ‘chunking’.? This is about considering different size elements.?? See what you think:

GOOD IDEA 1

If you have a large task, think about breaking it down into smaller parts (chunking down).? For example, contacting existing customers.? You may have a huge database, but you can group people by various elements, such as previous spend, recency of last order, geographical location etc.? Then you can take just one category and contact those people first – sub-dividing that group even further if it’s still very large.

GOOD IDEA 2

To avoid getting tired or bored, break down the time you spend on a task into small amounts (also chunking down). Perhaps twenty minutes at a time, or perhaps ten minutes on one aspect and ten minutes on another aspect.?? Or perhaps five minutes for thinking, five minutes for planning and five minutes for ‘doing’.? Splitting time into small elements can be really useful.

?

GOOD IDEA 3

If you can’t quite work out what to do about something, consider ‘chunking up’.? In other words think bigger and then come back down again.?? For example – can’t decide what software to get; think about ALL the things you want it to do and then see which works best.? Or if you can’t decide whether to take on an assistant, think about how your business might grow over the next year and then come back to what help you might need in order to cope with the expansion.? Chunking up is about considering what your current issue is part of.

?

GOOD IDEA 4

If you’re getting stuck with something, think laterally (‘equivalent size chunks’).?? So if you can’t decide on a colour for a product, think about its other features and then come back to colour later.?? Considering other aspects can sometimes make it easier to put things in context.

?

GOOD IDEA 5

Consider the whole picture.? When you have a task or a problem, draw it as a diagram.? Put your current issue in the centre.? Above it put what it’s part of (bigger chunk); below it put its component parts (small chunks), to each side of it put various things that parallel it (equivalent chunks).? Continue in each direction for as much as you need to get perspective, ideas and potential solutions. ??Here’s a non-business example: If you want to design a garden, put ‘garden’ in the middle of your diagram.?? Above it put various potential purposes (sunbathing, exercise, food-growing etc).? Below it put smaller elements (grass, plants, hard surfaces, sheds etc). And to each side put parallels – allotment, swimming pool and so on).? That way you can consider the project as? a whole and make sure you’re going in the right direction.

?

Comments on this process welcome..... ??

?

?#Chunking #ManagingTime #Diagrams