leadership dot #2077: little

I had a client who was lamenting the fact that she never seemed to have time to work on strategy development or the big issues that her department faced. Where could she find the time to do so?

The notion of “found” time is a misnomer; there are only so many hours in a day. instead of finding ways to add strategic time to her schedule, I suggested that she focus instead on cutting out a few of the little things that were consuming her minutes. It is less overwhelming to stop doing a few things – through elimination, delegation, or efficiency – than it is to feel daunted by the task of finding a few solid blocks of time.

And basic math would tell you that if you stop doing little things there will, in fact, be more disposable time. The trick is to bundle those minutes into something meaningful instead of letting them be frittered away by other little tasks in their stead.

It may seem like a mind game, but managing some small things is always a good start to getting control of the bigger things – with time, weight, emails and just about any cumulative task.

A bunch of little things equals a big thing – but the little side of the equation is easier to impact.