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and lots more. We can review spreadsheets,
video conference, edit documents, read
reports, message clients, book trips, record
podcasts—the list is nearly endless.
George Jetson called his boss a
“slavedriver” because he had to press a
button a few times that day. We chuckle at
the joke while we unthinkingly press a mil-
lion. Was the joke on us?
The funny thing is that a lot of this
amounts to worthless activity. We’re not
using our time to accomplish big and
important projects. We’re being tyrannized
by tiny tasks.
“The problem is that, as every individual
task becomes easier, we demand much more
of both ourselves and others,” says Tim Wu
in
The New Yorker
.
Instead of fewer difficult tasks (writing
several long letters) we are left with a larger
volume of small tasks (writing hundreds of
emails). We have become plagued by a
tyranny of tiny tasks, individually simple but
collectively oppressive.
Our devices, apps, hacks and tools make us
think we’ll save time. In reality we just overload
it with low-value, repetitious, wasteful activity
—usually motivated by anxiety and fear.
My team and I are near the end of a
major launch for Platform University. It’s all
hands on deck. But we all recognize that a
relentless pace is not only unmanageable,
it’s also unproductive, unprofitable and not
any fun either. Winning is a blast. Burnout
is a bummer.
There will be times for all of us when we
have to drive hard. But it can’t be permanent.
We know this, right? The stress is robbing us
of health, emotional wellbeing and a lot more.
How many of your 50 to 70 hours are
spent complying with the tyranny of tiny
tasks? Here are five simple ways to identify
and defeat your terrible little tyrants:
Evaluate.
Look at your daily rou-
tine and the tasks that make it up.
How much are moving the needle vs. filling
time? Parse them out and rank them. I talk
about how to do this in my free ebook
Shave
10 Hours off Your Workweek
.
Eliminate.
How many low-return
activities and time-drains are on
your list? Which ones could you just strike
out now? And by that I mean
right now
.
There’s no point waiting while more tasks
multiply. Start hacking.
Delegate.
If you can’t ditch it,
switch it. Delegate as many of your
leftover tiny tasks as possible. This could be
to an admin or other people on your team
better suited to the job.
WHAT’S YOUR BIGGEST TIME WASTER?
Kim Bakalyar, chief compliance officer/vendor relations, PromoShop, Inc.
“Email! Why? Technology has allowed us to move faster. Responses are expected
immediately. The ability to cc and forward an email has removed responsibility from
the sender and moved it to the receiver. It is then up to the receiver to decipher the
information and take action.
A cc used to be for information only. Forward should be used
only
if the sender
explains what action he or she wants the receiver to take. Too much time is wasted
reading through email threads trying to figure out what is needed.”
Ronn Allen, MAS, executive partner, Allen & Goel Marketing Company
“My biggest time waster is when I get dragged into meetings that I don’t need to
be in. Of course, I find participating in meetings an important part of my role of
growing our company, but I’m just more aware now and more selective of the ones I
attend. I will also politely leave meetings when I find I don’t need to be there. The
key word of course is politely. This has been working well for me and I continue to be
more selective when possible. It also frees me up to prepare for the meetings and
interactions that truly matter.”
Francesco Indrio, CEO, Alpi International Ltd.
“Generally speaking, it is interruptions by people in the office—jumping from one
subject to the other quickly can leave tasks unfinished. Sometimes it is hard to finish
a more complex task because people keep interrupting.”
Jessica Hutwelker, MAS, account manager, Sunrise Identity
“I actually think my biggest time waster isn’t responding to emails immediately.
I remember Catherine Graham suggesting at a seminar to read an email once and
respond right away, rather than having it sit in the inbox and rereading it several
times. It’s one of my key procrastinations as often times I believe that I have to sit
and reflect on the perfect words—meanwhile my inbox expands. Last week I decided
to employ a “read it, respond, file” method to see how it helps the clutter in my
inbox and in my head as well.”
Rick Greene, MAS, regional vice president, HALO Branded Solutions
“My biggest time waster is email—the constant barrage of emails—adding up to
several hundred every single day. Having to sort through and delete them interrupts
my thought flow and attention span. For every important email, there are 20 that are
spam, specials, alerts, inquiries, advertising and clutter. Some days I’ll drive from my
Chatsworth office to my Culver City office and receive 55 emails during the drive.
It’s crazy!
Readers: What’s your biggest time waster?
Post your comments at the end of this
article at
pubs.ppai.org.44 •
PPB
• JUNE 2015
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