Yesterday we revisited why tuit culture is bad for companies and I commented that it even worse when it grabs you personally.
Round tuits are the visual symbol of procrastination, something I have intimate knowledge of and experience with — years ago I was even crowned Queen of procrastination by a delegation of friends and family.
While it is possible to tame the tuits in your life, it’s important to be aware when the ROI changes from positive to negative.
I posted this mantra around my home years ago that helped — Do it when you think about it; Don’t think about doing it.
I forgot to put it back up when I moved 15 years ago and I seem to have backslid badly.
Something else I learned long ago and previously wrote about. It applies to the tuits that sabotage your best efforts of prioritization and it goes like this, why do today what doesn’t need to be done at all?
Back then it referred to so-called busy work, but these days the worst offending tuits that don’t need to be done involve the constant alerts, social media, FOMO, and TMI.
In other words, all the stuff we convince ourselves must be done to keep the sky from falling.
Which it won’t.
Tuits are much like dragons, you can’t slay all of them at once and some don’t need slaying; they can just be ignored.
Some need only a little kick to disable them, as opposed to the concentrated effort required to slay them, and some can even be flipped, making social media stuff into round tuits.
Have they seeped into your personal culture and infected your values?
Tuit culture is insidious; it usually starts with small inconsequential stuff and then quietly spreads.
If not dealt with immediately it can delay projects, impact vendors, damage customer relationships, substantially increase turnover, especially among your best and brightest, and ruin your street rep.
Are you familiar with the warning signs, so you can take action before tuit culture takes root?
Be warned if you notice any of the following:
Small tasks aren’t done on time or just aren’t done.
One or more of your team are slow to respond to requests.
Individuals and teams find ways of bypassing one or more of their members or bosses.
The best antidotes to tuit culture are vigilance, awareness, transparency and open communications.
Poking through 11+ years of posts I find information that’s as useful now as when it was written.
Golden Oldies is a collection of the most relevant and timeless posts during that time.
This post dates from 2013. I think it’s a safe bet that the number of half-assed things being done now vs then have increased by several orders of magnitude. The year is nearly over, so this may be a good time to take a step back and ask yourself, “am I whole-assing my life or…”
LikeHack founder Jane Smorodnikova pointed me to an excellent video about productivity on a blog called Sparring Mind that is owned and written by Gregory Ciotti, the marketing director of a Boston startup called Help Scout.
Some of what’s included
Why worrying about having “more willpower” is a fool’s game
How world class experts stay productive… and what they do differently
The science behind why better energy management = a more productive you
Big pitfalls that lead to busywork and procrastination
I especially like Ciotti’s closing line, “Multitasking is your enemy: Treat it as such. Block out unwanted distractions and as Ron Swanson would say, “Never half-ass two things, whole-ass one thing.”
Based on today’s love affair with multitasking, the number of half-assed things being done could fill the cloud.
The holidays are fully upon us and we are immersed in responsibilities to friends and family, at least I am. My family is spread all throughout the country and, as a result, it can be quite an orchestration to have more than a few people in the same geography.
I tend to be a people-pleaser as well, so, if there are multiple parties involved, I find myself pulled in various directions, all to keep them happy. I will tell you that this is not fun and does not benefit anyone.
The capstone holiday, of course, is New Years. It is a chance to renew and rebirth yourself into the desired image you have set forth.
My desired image would include not worrying as much about keeping people happy and more focus on my long-term goals.
Which brings us to the question, why wait? Why wait ’till that magical stroke of midnight to enable us to be our best selves?
In one regard it can be easier to wait until the tide of society is on board with us when making good decisions. I made a decision some time ago to no longer drink alcohol; I realized I could be a better version of myself by cutting it out. I will tell you that it can be a lonely walk when you are the only one making a decision like that. It wasn’t a New Year’s choice, but done during an off time of year. As a result, I really didn’t have anyone to share in the decision.
So perhaps that’s it?
Do we like the positive peer pressure of making informed choices together? It is a lot more fun going to the gym when out of shape if other folks in the same boat are there. It can also be fun to indulge in that extra piece of chocolate during the holidays’ guilt-free in the knowledge that next week you will be your best self.
How do we apply this to work?
Do you sit at your desk on a Friday and think, “I’ll get to that next week?” I know I do and it can be destructive if left unchecked. Or perhaps you are the type of person who embraces all tasks with gusto and will work to solve that problem regardless of time.
First off, I want whatever you have, and secondly, how do you sustain it?
Either approach has its benefits and risks, but which can lead to our best self.
An article a few days ago made me a happy camper for three very different reasons. Here they are in the order of their importance to me.
Reason 1: It provided a scientifically acceptable reason for having a messy desk and gave me permission to quit trying to clean it up. This was especially nice, since ‘clear desk’ is a constant item on my to-do list.
Reason 2: The clinically tested reason for having a perennially messy desk is creativity. How cool is that?
Reason 3: I beat the pattern because I have creativity, yet I eat healthy and go to the gym daily (not on weekends).
Essentially, the study showed that “Those in messy spaces generated ideas that were significantly more creative, according to two independent judges,… people that are organized and predictable, typically eat better and live longer than people who are disorderly. They also tend to have immaculate offices.
Dr. Kathleen D. Vohs, a behavioral scientist at the University of Minnesota and the leader of the study, seems to think that the only way a messy desk person could develop healthy habits is to clean up their desk.
“My advice would be, if you need to think outside the box” for a future project, says, then let the clutter rise and unfetter your imagination. But if your primary goal is to eat well or to go to the gym, pick up around your office first. By doing this, the naturally messy can acquire some of the discipline of the conscientious.
I’m willing to bet that Dr. Vohs is a clean desk person or she would understand that it’s not that simple.
But, as a messy desk person, I will tell you that you can build a healthy eating-gym attending persona without ever cleaning up your desk.
One caveat, in part of the study people were given a choice between chocolate and a healthy snack (carrot sticks?). The messy desk crowd took the chocolate, which meant a messy desk equals unhealthy choices.
However, based on a lifetime of experience with neat desk friends, all with lots of self-discipline, I think it just means they didn’t like chocolate.
LikeHack founder Jane Smorodnikova pointed me to an excellent video about productivity on a blog called Sparring Mind that is owned and written by Gregory Ciotti, the marketing director of a Boston startup called Help Scout.
Some of what’s included
Why worrying about having “more willpower” is a fool’s game
How world class experts stay productive… and what they do differently
The science behind why better energy management = a more productive you
Big pitfalls that lead to busywork and procrastination
I especially like Ciotti’s closing line, “Multitasking is your enemy: Treat it as such. Block out unwanted distractions and as Ron Swanson would say, “Never half-ass two things, whole-ass one thing.”
Based on today’s love affair with multitasking, the number of half-assed things being done could fill the cloud.
Everyone I know is struggling with time management issues.
One of the biggest time management caveats is to prioritize.
I’m happy to say that I learned a lot about prioritization as a result of my procrastination.
And one of the things I learned is now a lynchpin of my time management and my 18th rule.
Prioritize: why do today what doesn’t need to be done at all?
A bit of explanation. This doesn’t refer to that trip to the gym that you’re trying to avoid, nor to the time you set aside to read, think or daydream.
It does refer to all the busy work that we add to our already overcrowded lives; all the stuff that we convince ourselves must be done to keep the sky from falling.
Entrepreneurs face difficulties that are hard for most people to imagine, let alone understand. You can find anonymous help and connections that do understand at 7 cups of tea.
Crises never end.
$10 really does make a difference and you’ll never miss it,
The holidays are fully upon us and we are immersed in responsibilities to friends and family, at least I am. My family is spread all throughout the country and, as a result, it can be quite an orchestration to have more than a few people in the same geography.
