One Step at a Time
When I think of my things-to-do backlog, I can’t help but notice a pattern: They are all multi-step actions, i.e. projects, or actions that would take more than thirty minutes. Here are a few examples,
- Align service score metrics in every operations report
- Plan my birthday party
- Book a cruise vacation
They are easy to say, which I believe is the reason they are easy to commit to! But once I’ve committed, actually getting it done becomes far more complex than I’d considered.
Scenario 1: One of a Kind Project
For some multi-part actions, such as #1 above, it’s very specific to my particular situation. My best bet is to break it down into sub-actions that can be performed sequentially, allowing me to break up the project into a few disconnected pieces of time.
Scenario 2: My Version of a Project Seen Many Times Before
Planning my birthday party is intimidating because there are some parts of it that will be very unique to this particular event. However, on the whole, it’s a fairly straightforward process that has been repeated by others countless times before.
- Find a date (of the calendar)
- Compose guest list
- Consider theme (this is where it gets personal)
- List possible venues
- Consider travel to/from venue
- Consider price per person vs. what you think is appropriate
- Contact venues and make a selection
- Contact guests and arrange RSVP (use evite? facebook?)
- List items needed for the party (cake, balloons)
- Acquire items needed for the party
- Party!
Scenario 3: A Project as Old as the Wheel
Other mega-actions, such as #3, Book a Cruise Vacation, have been executed very well by thousands of people before me. (Note, it is likely that these mega-actions have also been executed poorly in the past - whether it’s paying too much or booking a cruise targeted at seniors. Let’s not repeat any mistakes.) Whereas in scenario 1 I’m the best at designing my own solution, here it makes no sense for me to reinvent the wheel. Especially since when I think about how to best approach it, I’m so overwhelmed that I delay, delay, delay (also known as google - browse, google - browse, google -browse). I don’t know about you, but to me the idea of attempting to do something that has already been done is daunting. By the nature of me trying to reinvent the wheel, I’d surely end up with some 2000 BCE square-shaped piece of wood, rather than a Dunlop high speed, low profile run-flat (tire/wheel… whatever). Frankly, I’d be much better off buying the Dunlop. Likewise, rather than figure out how to plan my first cruise, borrowing a tried-and-true step-by-step approach would be very useful. In the 1900’s, we called this “using a travel agent.” But today, the idea of paying $200 commission for something that can be accomplished with some savvy web-surfing skills seems financially wreckless.
Ativiti will provide you the guides you need to get these Scenario 2 and Scenario 3 projects done, and get them done quickly, easily, and succesfully with the help of others who have done them before.
Comments
Leave a Reply