Musings from the CU Suite

Written by Anthony Demangone

I wonder how the stock market is doing?  -click-

Hmmm.  The stock market is up based on Mr. Bernanke's remarks.  I wonder what he said?  -click-

(An email notification pops up, noting that the Nationals offer a 2-1 ticket sale.) I wonder how the Nats did last night?  -click-

Well, let me check email.  -click-

***

This might sound familiar to you.  Unfortunately, it sounds familiar to me.  From time to time, the sequence described above takes hold of me.  I start working on a budget projection, and I end up reading an article about how Spain is considering turning bull rings into temporary basketball stadiums for its 2020 Olympics bid.  Click on the link. It's true.

Or better yet - don't click on that link.  While the story is true, and well-written, I bet that it will, in no way, move you an inch closer to completing any meaningful task that sits on your plate. 

Yet, it can be shocking how much time we spend on things that don't get us what we really want.

That issue is front and center in this blog post (Harvard Business Review).  Greg McKeown argues that we focus on too much, which leaves far too much time for trivial things, and far too little for the vital things in our lives and careers. Here's a snippet...

***

None of this would matter if activity and reward were linearly related. But we live in a world where almost everything is worthless and a very few things are exceptionally valuable. This is a counterintuitive idea. After all, the idea that 50% of results come from 50% effort is appealing. It seems fair. Yet, research across many fields paints a very different picture...

Once we unlearn 50/50 logic, a whole set of behaviors become instinctive. We start scanning our environment for what is really essential. We eagerly eliminate the non-essentials. We say no to 1,000 projects in order to say yes to the one that is exactly what we are looking for.

***

So, here is an exercise for you.  Create a list of important things that you'd like to complete or improve upon today.  Set it aside.  At the end of the day, ask yourself this: Did you focus on those things?  Or did you let "intrusions" distract you?  And how many of those intruders were important? 

Now, a new day will bring unexpected challenges that must be conquered.  But few of those demands will include Twitter, Facebook, or an article about Spain's bid for the 2020 Olympics.  

Even if it was an interesting article.  Have a great week, guys.