ORGANIZING SELF

Last evening, I was having an animated chat with some friends, and we talked expansively about everything that is happening around us - the social impact of the current crisis, economic challenges facing us, emotional drain-outs, and everything else.

Among other topics, we discussed life in a virtual work mode. Even a professional like me, who has been a proponent of flexible work arrangements, is finding it difficult to acclimatize with this pattern. Am sure that all of us are flexing our mindset, and behavioral patterns to adjust to the new normal in some shape or form.

One of those patterns is "ORGANIZING SELF" (OS) - Earlier office gave segregation to what were office hours and what was personal and one largely worked with those boundaries. Now, all life's puzzle pieces are intertwined in the 24 hours and, if you read my last article (A..B.C.D.E.), each one of us is juggling with multiple priorities - all at the same time.

Therefore, in these testing times, it's more so important to focus on "ORGANIZING SELF" (OS) and practice cum preach the 3Ds. Let me walk you through each of them -

D1 - DELEGATE

There are many self-assessment tools in the world that could assess your ability to delegate in an office setup. If you aced at it - that was great! ...but - think twice - before proclaiming that you will / are as good in the virtual delegation zone.

"Virtual delegation" is far more complicated and difficult as you are not around your team members in-person. The anxiety of not overseeing the work happening around you, perceived deadlines pressure hovering over the mind (as you also have to prove to your boss that you have been working:-)) and most importantly, lack of trust, are big drivers of leaders feeling challenged to delegate in the virtual format.

One classical way of finding out whether one is really delegating in a virtual work format is to see the number of times you follow up for a particular goal or set up "governance meetings" to track progress" or generally call to see how are things going on. If the total calendar work spent is 30%, or more / week, on governance-related activities - maybe its time to brush up your delegation skills and organize yourself.

D2 - DEFER

In the virtual work format, the urge to prove worthiness has increased like never before. This has also got heightened due to constant news of job losses and reduction in force around us. Therefore, it's very understandable to have the urge to load one's calendar and work zone with everything possible under the sun - new initiatives, process improvements, department work-cleanups...anything that gives a sense of accomplishment - however tactical it may be.

This is where the classical URGENT-IMPORTANT grid needs to take a backseat and the IMPACT-HORIZON grid needs to come into real-time action. With businesses under extreme pressure for sustenance, it's extremely critical to prioritize short-medium term goals which have a very high impact on driving the bottom line.

Take a step back, evaluate everything on your plate, and correlate the time involvement vis-a-vis its return on investment (ROI) to the business, especially in the short-run - cash! Spend at least 50% or more calendar time in generating short to medium term cash avenues, whether top line or efficiencies, for the organization. Defer everything else!

D3 - DROP

This is the most difficult part of work - LETTING GO. Now I can correlate "letting go" to many things @ work, but the purpose of OS lets stick to goals and tasks at hand. By utilizing the IMPACT-HORIZON grids, one can easily ween-out areas/zones which can be dropped from the calendar time. Its easier said than done and involves one to rise above personal gains and contribute to the larger purpose of the organization.

Another important factor related to DROP is one's ability to SAY NO. 8 out of 10 people @ work find it extremely challenging to SAY NO - to their colleagues and more importantly, their bosses. This chain starts from the top and percolates down to the last mile, wherein the junior-most employees don't even have a clue about the purpose of their work and how it correlates to the business goals & impact.

I am sure the 3Ds - DELEGATE: DEFER: DROP, in isolation, would have worked wonders for you, but used-together for "Organizing Self", they can have a significant impact on one's FOCUS and PRODUCTIVITY especially in the virtual work mode.

Here is a consolidated view of the 3Ds as you start sharpening your calendar!

Hope, in these testing times, you find value in OS through the 3Ds. Would love to hear your thoughts on how do you ORGANISE SELF amidst the new normal!

Credit for the 3Ds goes to my friends, who narrated its value in the animated chat last evening! Juhi & Vishal Sinha - Thank You:-)

Cheers - MANUScript