For people who want regular personal or professional development advice from a qualified executive coach.
Your Calendar is Diagnostic, Are You Sick? đ¤
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I heard something shocking last week. Since Microsoft launched Office 365, they have been able to gather statistics on when people use the different software tools. What they have discovered is that, more and more, tools like Excel & Word are being used on a weekend. Whereas Teams is used during the week. In other words, people are spending so much time in meetings, dealing with chat messages and managing their inboxes during the working week, that they have to do anything that looks like productive work on the weekends. And so, take a look at your calendar. If it is a sea of meetings, with short breaks to catch-up on all the chat and email, you are designing your week to be unproductive. That's right, you are letting your calendar control you. I'm not saying it is easy to swim against the tide, because this is increasingly, unthinkingly, normal in modern workplaces. But, please, try to take back some control. And if you want any tips on how to do that, ask. Have a productive day, Stephen -- If youâre curious whether coaching could help you find more clarity or direction, book a free 15-minute Clarity Call and weâll explore it together. If you want help to think about where problems might be arising in your organisation, try my Complexity Pressure Check. For anything else, hit reply. I answer every email personally. |
HeRO Chronicles
For people who want regular personal or professional development advice from a qualified executive coach.
You should be steady, not certain. Thatâs your job, as a leader. Anyone who works in a complex environment cannot bring everything under control. If you run a production line, to a certain extent, with the right investment and attention, you can bring that under control. You will still need to monitor it, so you can spot when a belt is getting tired or a printer needs replacing. And you still canât have absolute certainty it will work tomorrow as it did today. The roof might leak, a forklift...
You're in a meeting and everyone is talking, but you feel as though they are holding back. It has become performative, rather than honest. Do you recognise that? I've seen it lots of times. Often you spot it when you realise there are lots of urgent conversations in the corridor after the meeting. And you don't know why people didn't speak in the meeting. It probably is a sign that people are uncertain. That they are trying to read signs to know what they ought to do, say or think, but those...
Letâs talk about the meeting that shouldn't exist. Pick one recurring meeting in your calendar. What is the single, clear, mutually agreed purpose of that meeting? If you donât know, cancel it. Itâs a waste of everybodyâs time. -- If youâre curious whether coaching could help you find more clarity or direction, book a free 15-minute Clarity Call and weâll explore it together. If you want help to think about where problems might be arising in your organisation, try my Complexity Pressure...