Less is More

Questions of the week: How do we effectively conduct a ME Day? - Part 3

I write this article based on the insight of my conversation with my team in our monthly 1-on-1 call. I speak with each one of my team members. This article is to share this week's question and our working method. You can subscribe to the Building Our Team newsletter (2900+ subscribers)

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How do we effectively conduct a ME Day? - Part 3

For those who are new to this newsletter. We have 1 day a week for each of our team members called ME Day to improve things related to the learning day.

It's what we call our thinking day.

I told my team to use it according to their strengths and means.

However, many start skipping it. So, I created this checklist.

Idea - "What magic can I add?"

Slow - "What am I missing?"

Less - "What can I remove?"

Easy - "How can I simplify this?"

Auto - "Can I automate?"

I will share 20 questions and prompts for Less.

1. What would happen if I halved everything? → Consider cutting the idea, project, or process in half. How would it change?
2. What’s the one thing I could cut and still achieve the goal? → Focus on removing one element while keeping the main objective intact.
3. How can I make this easier for others to understand or use? → Look at ways to reduce barriers, simplifying the experience for users.
4. What can I do to reduce my cognitive load? → Identify a heavy brain work or mental model to execute any part of the process.
5. What is creating unnecessary friction or resistance? → Spot areas where processes or steps are slowing things down and think about reducing or eliminating them.
6. How can I achieve the same result with fewer resources? → Explore ways to reach the same outcome using less time, energy, or materials.
7. What’s distracting from the core message or purpose? → Pinpoint any distractions or side elements that can be removed to sharpen focus.
8. How can I declutter this visually or conceptually? → Look for opportunities to make the design or idea cleaner and more streamlined.
9. What’s the most redundant part of this process? → Seek out any duplicate or unnecessary steps and think about eliminating them.
10. What’s taking up the most time, and how can I reduce it? → Analyze the time-consuming aspects and consider strategies to streamline or simplify them.
11. What part of this is taking the most energy, and can it be reduced? → Focus on reducing energy-consuming tasks while maintaining results.
12. How can I achieve the same goal with fewer people involved? → Find ways to simplify team dynamics and reduce coordination efforts.
13. What is the least I need to do to make this successful? → Focus on the essential actions that will have the greatest effect.
14. What can I stop doing that doesn’t add value? → Identify activities or tasks that are no longer contributing and let them go.
15. What would this look like if I cut 50% of the content? → Imagine halving your idea to make it leaner and more effective.
16. How can I remove dependencies to make this more flexible? → Cut down on reliance on external factors to make the idea easier to execute.
17. How can I eliminate distractions from this communication? → Focus on the key message and remove any unnecessary information.
18. What would be lost if I removed an entire section of this project? → Challenge assumptions by considering the removal of large portions to see what truly matters.
19. Which part of the problem can reduce my anxiety or stress? → See which part of the task or process gives me anxiety.
20. What should be removed that is creating time wasters? → Pick the parts that add time without adding value.

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