6 Tell-Tale Symptoms Of A Broken Workflow
Are any of these things part of your normal day-to-day?
- You are constantly being pulled in a million directions.
- You are constantly reacting to the "emergency of the day."
- You are constantly needed for approvals and reviews.
- You can't get your own work done because you are a slave to others'.
- You start early and finish late but still can't seem to get everything done.
- You feel busy all day, but you can't really point to anything specific that you finished at the end of it.
If you experience any one of these on a day-to-day basis, you could be in trouble.
We all experience these symptoms from time to time, but if it happens for too many days (or weeks) in a row, something is broken.Don't panic.It's normal to ebb and flow like this. What's not normal is experiencing these symptoms chronically.
Here are some things you can think/do/remember that will help alleviate these symptoms:
There is always an infinite amount of work to be done--so working harder or longer isn't a feasible long-term solution.Just because it's urgent doesn't mean it's important. Define what's important first, then go after what's important AND urgent.I can admit, it feels good to be needed, but if people can't move forward on their work because they need something from you, YOU are the bottleneck. Your team is counting on your to empower them with the tools and resources to move faster without you overseeing every little thing.Being busy doesn't mean you're productive. Productive means you have a measurable output. Busy is just an "energy consumption" metric that tells you your RPMs.
2 Minute Action:
Here are some options for today.
- Look up the Eisenhower Decision Matrix and use it to prioritize your tasks for today.
- Schedule a "retrospective" with your team, partner, colleagues, or clients. In it, you should ask "what went so well that we should keep doing it?" and "what should we stop doing or could be improved?"
- Create a Scrum board that makes it really clear what is done and what is still being worked on.
It's your responsibility to identify and solve problems in yourself, for your clients, for your patients, for your students, or for your team.Until you train and empower them to, no one else is going to do it for you.
How To Find Your Optimal Productivity Zone
The Comfort Zone
Where things are predictable, safe, and boring. It’s unlikely you’ll grow here, because there isn’t enough stimulation.
The Learning Zone
Where your senses are heightened enough to absorb new information, and things are exciting, challenging, and new. This zone is right on the edge of anxiety but not quite there, yet. It needs to be close enough that all of your senses are stimulated and online, but not so close that you're incapacitated.
The Panic Zone
Where things are tense, frustrating, and exhausting. Symptoms of living a life in the panic zone might be chronic stress or anxiety, freezing up when looking at your task load, and constantly feeling like your life is in chaos or out of control. "Fire of the day" management style creates a work environment in the panic zone.
Get it?
Everyone is different. It's up to you to figure out how you're feeling and responding to your work.By understanding yourself better, you can make decisions about the work environment you put yourself in and the people you surround yourself with.It's up to you to know enough about yourself and TAKE ACTION to put yourself in the best position for success.No one else is going to do this for you!Not your boss, project manager, your mom, no one.
Where did this come from? Did you just make this up?
No, I didn't make this up.This is based on Vygotsky's Proximal Zones of Development, coined sometime circa the 20th century.
2 Minute Action:
On a scale from 1 to 10, how anxious are you at work?1 would be bored and 10 would be tearing your hair out.If you're between a 1 and a 5, you're in the comfort zone. You need to step it up if you want to move forward.If you're at a 6 or a 7, great! You're pushing your comfort level which means you're learning and growing.If you're consistently at an 8 or higher, you may be at risk for chronic stress, which has a bunch of nasty side effects.If your work environment changes a lot, like mine does, you may want to consider setting up an iOS or Android reminder to do this exercise every couple of weeks. You might find that you're stressed out no matter the environment, which would suggest that you need to work on some personal growth--or you might find out that there's really nothing exciting about your job, even at it's best.This isn't a cure-all, it's just a tool you can use to improve yourself.The point isn't for me to keep hitting you over the head with this stuff, it's for you to start asking yourself how you can use these tools/insights in your own unique life.