Procrastination: Getting Things Done!

"The world is full of human lobsters; men stranded on the rocks of indecision and procrastination, who, instead of putting forth their own energies, are waiting for some grand billow of good fortune to set them afloat."

Orison Swett Marden 1850-1924 Author

19th century language talking about the evils of procrastination. 

Whether it be starting a diet, an exercise program, reading a book we know we should read, or cutting the grass, to most of us putting things off is as natural as breathing. 

Doing so in our personal lives leaves us fat, less informed with unattractive yards, but the consequences in business of not doing today what should be done can be more severe as well as exponentially bad because our lack of action affects others. 

One of the hallmarks of a good plan is due dates; a key performance metric along with detailed description of what will be done, by who at what cost. Without that we simply wait to be "set afloat" the only remaining question being, to what fate? (I would have posted this sooner but I've been really, really busy.)

Meetings: The Cost of Time

"Unfaithfulness in the keeping of an appointment is an act of clear dishonesty. You may as well borrow a person's money as his time."

Horace Mann

As one who sells consulting services to others I am used to clients being late for our meetings and calls . Not sure but I think there is some federal law that says they must; the same law that says consultants like me have to be on time.

So I adjust but what about the rest of you who just work together? Is everyone always on time or as I suspect often late? What is the cost in terms of inefficiency and lost production?

What works and what doesn't in terms of minimizing the problem?

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Planning: What Yogi Thinks

"It's tough to make predictions, especially about the future."

Yogi Berra Philosopher, Baseball Player

Actually Yogi, making predictions is easy; the hard part is making ones that come true and for that reason most managers don't like to be asked what they think will happen.

Predictions.

They live at the heart of every business plan which in terms of outcome is, from the day it is completed, a failed attempt to see the future. Managers are asked to commit to what they will do, timing, cost and expected outcome and because they assume someone will look at how things turn out, they don't want to do it.

So change what people think the business plan is about.

Let them know that their commitments are expected to evolve and that the ultimate review of their performance will be based on their ability to react and change as conditions around them change.

Do you plan for the future or are you simply a part of it?

Young and Older Workers: Getting the Best of Both

"The first forty years of life give us the text; the next thirty supply the commentary on it."

Arthur Schopenhauer
19th Century German Philosopher

There is much truth in this. Moreover it is this "commentary" that has tremendous value for organizations.

It is the rare (young) individual who can put their knowledge in useful context. Almost all and certainly all the smart ones provide the greatest value only if they learn to learn from those older than them.

How (does?) your company combine the new knowledge and energy of youth with the irreplaceable experience of its older employees?