Many (many) summers ago, when I was in training to be a lifeguard on New York’s Lake George, the first principle I learned was how to safely approach a swimmer in distress. A safe approach included talking to them, letting them know I was there to help them, and giving them instructions.
The second principle I learned was how to get out of harm’s way if I didn’t successfully execute the first principle. Good to know. If the victim locked his arms around my neck, my automatic moves were: my right arm over his arms, right hand under right side of his chin, strongly Continue reading » »
Work-life balance is a call in many organizations that top leaders, who are supposed to lead by example, fundamentally ignore. Of course, at a time when many organizations are struggling just to get by, there is a tendency to view such balance as a luxury, even as many individuals are feeling less committed to their workplace.
In the session, Tony exposed the myths of balance and helped us recalibrate the equation by answering the questions: what’s the reality about leadership and work-life balance, do we need a new definition, and what are the pluses and minuses if your notion of balance changes at different stages in your life.
We recorded and are making this archive copy of the session available for everyone who had schedule changes at the last minute. Of course, anyone who did attend and would like to review the material or share the information with a colleague is invited to do so too. The session handouts are still available here.
After you watch the recording, we would appreciate your thoughts on the seminar and on any other issues of interest to you. Your input will help us shape future free sessions and services, and will help our presenters better target their information in the future. The feedback form is here.
Did you agree with Tony? Disagree with him? Do you have other insights or experiences in trying to keep this delicate balance? Please leave your comments below, and let’s get that dialogue started.
Again, thanks to all those who attended and to Tony for sharing his research and insights with us. We look forward to the next opportunity to cross paths.
Along with Howard Morgan, we hosted a terrific session with David Allen on July 8. Thanks to the magic of streaming recording, it’s not too late to access that discussion.
In David Allen’s own words, his presentation was a seminar in Advanced Common Sense. Of course, common sense is neither very common nor always obvious; and David’s observations and insights were frequently eye-opening and extremely helpful.
(Editorial note: You and your company need to get things done – lots of things, and the right things. Are you maximizing your output? Are you getting critical things done with the least amount of effort and stress? Do you have a sustainable work style that supports your commitment to the organization and yourself? Are your activities, moment to moment, lined up with the strategic focus for viable expansion? In this series of questions, we ask David Allen to talk about the strategic value of personal productivity and supply to answers to a few things on our minds.)
Q: What are the main reasons why people let themselves get overwhelmed at work?
A: People tend to both overcommit and to be inefficient. Few people know exactly how much work they actually have, and therefore must take everything on that they think about and that others ask them to do. Their integrity forces them to agree to take things on because, not being real clear how many projects they already have on their plate, some part of them thinks they actually MIGHT be able to do it. And most people are inefficient because they don’t force themselves to decide what things mean and what they are actually going to do about them when they first show up. So they are constantly rethinking the same things over and over and not making any progress in doing so–only adding to their stress.
(Editorial note: You and your company need to get things done – lots of things, and the right things. Are you maximizing your output? Are you getting critical things done with the least amount of effort and stress? Do you have a sustainable work style that supports your commitment to the organization and yourself? Are your activities, moment to moment, lined up with the strategic focus for viable expansion? In this series of questions, we ask David Allen to talk about the strategic value of personal productivity and supply to answers to a few things on our minds.)
Q: I have a long list of things I think about doing but am unable to commit to actually choosing one. Is this something you can address from your own experience and from coaching others?
Maybe there’s a good reason not to choose. There is probably a fine line between “intuitive holding”, though, and procrastination or resistance to making decisions. But before you think you need to do something about this, you might ask yourself which it is.