Good Quote About Prioritizing

After a Juggling Elephants program a few weeks ago, someone gave me this great quote:

If you can't prioritize, everything becomes a crisis.

I got this hilarious picture of a circus where someone would say, "Let's see the animal act," and everyone would race around getting it into the ring. When the act was over, they would talk again and someone would say, "How about the trapeze act?," and everyone would once again move frantically around the floor trying to get the act ready as soon as possible. The ringmaster is stressed because they know that any minute of performance lost creates a less than enthusiastic audience. And the performers are frustrated because they have no idea what to do next.

What's your circus like when you fail to prioritize? Chances are, it's not your best performance.

Out of Your Control

 The Ringmaster has the greatest impact on the circus.

(Juggling Elephants, page 30)

 

Yesterday I talked with someone who really understands their circus and their role as the ringmaster. They make a living taking transcriptions. They are responsible for transcribing official meetings, court proceedings and other discussions where every word must be captured correctly.

In asking about her schedule, she told me that she previously had tried to sometimes schedule 2 appointments per day. The challenge came when one meeting ran longer than expected. She couldn't leave her current location to get to the other meeting. If she missed the other meeting, it caused a myriad of problems for the other group. Her solution? In her words, "I only schedule one meeting per day because I have no control over the length of the meeting." The additional stress and possible loss of business was not worth it.

  

If we are honest with ourselves, there are some things over which we have no control. Whether it's the length of a meeting, time of a project, or an uncertain economy. In those moments, we have to make the conscious decision to limit our lineup and not keep adding acts that we most likely will not be able to perform. As the ringmaster, we need to add them to the lineup when it best fits our opportunity to perform them.

The Two Hostages of Too Much To Do

Too much to do... rushing through our days tackling one task after another, checking them off our list, and then forging ahead to the next one without delay. We may even take pride in being called a workaholic. We believe that all this hurried pace will one day offer us freedom from the rat race-when everything is done. What I have found, however, is that in this process we often hold hostage two essential elements required for success. Two things that in a reflective moment we would acknowledge should NEVER be neglected, but in our ever increasing pace of life, we cast them aside to hyper focus on getting all this "work" done. The two hostages you ask? Personal well being and relationships.

Merriam Webster defines a hostage as, "A person who is captured by someone who demands that certain things be done before the captured person is freed." How close does that sound to what we do when we are trying to get it all done? We "tie up" our wellness and relationships, demanding that everything else be accomplished before we will allow wellness and relationships to be "free" to be a part of our lives again. Two aspects of our lives that are the building blocks of productivity, and we limit their presence in our lives. Does that seem ironic to anyone besides me?

One of the quotes from the book, Getting the Blue Ribbon, is You are growing something every day. What grows, and how it grows is up to you. Ironically, what you don't choose to grow begins to die-or grow in a manner that is not desirable. While tasks that contribute most heavily to our sense of being productive may not seem like living organisms, how about our personal well-being and relationships? They ARE living breathing organisms that need our daily attention if they are to thrive.

An uncomfortable but effective solution to jolt us out of our denial may be to imagine those closest to us locked in a room, because we are mentally and emotionally doing that when we neglect the opportunities to engage in time with family, friends, and even coworkers. They really want to be a part of our day and support us, but we keep the door locked because we falsely reason that there will time for such things later. Or just as startling may be to think of ourselves being trapped in a place that is not pleasant because we refuse to take time to focus on activities that will recharge and renew our sense of purpose in life. Just as those who hold hostages pay a price for their crimes, so do we. And just like many hostage situations, the people being held are hurt as well.

Our personal wellness and relationships are just too important to neglect while we fervently try to get everything else done. What are you holding hostage today in your struggle to be productive? How much more effective would you be if you set those things free?

The Lost Relationship Ring

This poem is an oldie but a goodie:

"Around the corner I have a friend,
In this great city that has no end;
Yet days go by, and weeks rush on,
And before I know it, a year is gone.
And I never see my old friend's face,
For Life is a swift and terrible race...
But tomorrow comes-and tomorrow goes,
And the distance between us grows and grows.

Around the corner!-yet miles away...
'Here's a telegram, sir...'
'Jim died today.'
And that's what we get, and deserve in the end:
Around the corner, a vanished friend."
--Charles Hanson Towne

Poems and songs like this (think "Cats in the Cradle") hit home with some of us. We get caught up in the "terrible race" and before we know it, time has come and gone. Call that person that you haven't talked with for years. Spend time in the relationship ring! Before it is too late.

Planning and Three Questions To Ask

"Do It Yourself." It's a mantra shared by many of us as we seek to reduce the cost of auto repair, home improvement or even tasks within a small business.

Bruce Johnson, author of 50 Simple Ways to Save Your House, asks himself three questions before taking on a project-or leaving it to a pro:

• Do I have the time?


• Will the job require specialized tools and skills?


• Is there a safety risk?

What difference would that make if you did the same before attempting to add a "do it yourself act" to your lineup?