VitAL PROCESSES
I
S IT just me, or is a year shorter than it used to be? Before you know it, another
year has come and gone on the calendar. And, of course, with every new calendar year comes another round of resolutions focused on self-improvement. On formal spreadsheets, backs of envelopes, or just via mental note, most of us started off the early days of 2012 with lists of promises to ourselves to change our behaviour, modify our life styles, expand our minds, flatten our stomachs, spend more time with our loved ones, while at the same time transforming ourselves into absolute business powerhouses. I know I do it every year – make that long list of all those things I am going to do to make this next year a real winner. But ‘going to do’ is an interesting phrase. I’m reminded of the old FedEx ad of the late 1970s that trumpeted their delivery services for packages that “absolutely, positively have to be there overnight.” It was a bold claim – it was their “we’re going to do it” resolution. And it was a great success – but not without a lot of work. They created a delivery network, an integrated technology platform, and a multi- national workforce that was committed to the cause. They backed it up with action and built a $40 billion company with nearly 260,000 employees world-wide by doing what they said they would do. However, ‘going to do’ can also have a very different meaning. It can be a mechanism for delay, for putting off those things that really need to be done. I’m ‘going to do it’ is a promise of future action – I’m going to do it after I fi nish what I am doing now, or tomorrow, or next week, or if and when I remember it at some point in the future. And the longer our intended actions remain future intentions, the less likely it is that we will actually do anything at all. If we are really honest with ourselves, isn’t that what often happens with our resolutions – our going to dos?
Honour the intention As I am regularly reminding my kids (now young adults), “Yeah Dad, I’m going to do it” isn’t the same as “Dad, I’ve done it!” At Bates Communications, we express this concept a bit differently. We encourage our clients to adhere to the following simple mantra: “Plan the Intention - Schedule the Intention - Honour the Intention.”
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Success is often about prioritisation and focus. This requires discipline, but not in the way one often thinks of discipline. It isn’t about getting up at dawn seven days a week, or making every minute count, or constantly multi-tasking. It is rather about putting your energy into what matters, about working with laser focus on the most important things and not being distracted by all of the less important peripheral issues that constantly pop up in our lives. And it’s about tackling those most important challenges and tasks with a sense of urgency.
One of my former clients, a rising star at
a Fortune 500 company, had built a solid reputation in sales and marketing and he was great with customers, quickly gaining their confi dence. He rose steadily within the company and eventually was rewarded with a signifi cant leadership role. Now, in addition to continuing to be personally involved in a few of the company’s most important relationships, he also had an increased administrative burden. And, as a leader, he was also expected to be thinking and acting strategically – looking ahead and charting and executing a progressive growth strategy for the next three to fi ve years.
This was new territory and he struggled with meeting his boss’ expectations. Not because he wasn’t capable of doing strategic work, but because he repeatedly failed to prioritise – he failed to concentrate his energy and attention on the most critical strategic initiatives and opportunities before him. Instead, he fi rst did all the other things that cluttered his desk and life. He ‘cleaned up’ all the little things, all the routine tasks that accumulate in any leadership role, telling himself that, by clearing the decks, he was freeing himself up to really concentrate on the big, important challenges. As a result, of course, there was just never enough time to give is full attention to the most critical issues. But by working with him over several months to fi rst identify and then articulate the importance of the key strategies, projects, and decisions that would have the greatest effect on his business, and thus on his business leadership, he was able to break his old pattern of “cleaning up” the little things and instead use his experience and expertise to deliver decisive leadership and vision. His stock rose as he was increasingly seen as someone who could look to the future and drive change.
March / April 2012 : VitAL 45
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