Address The Big Elephant Of Choices Before Prioritizing Your Day

Have you ever been to a restaurant that has a really big menu? You have lots of choices and options to pick from. As you begin to look through the menu, you’re thinking, “Wow, so many things look good. There’s too many things to choose from.” And then all of a sudden you realize the waiter is standing over you waiting for you to make a decision?

I’ll share a strategy I learned several years ago that helped me manage my restaurant choices: when you see a menu loaded with delicious sounding foods, scan through and immediately pick 3 items that sound the most appealing. Then, choose between those 3 items. That narrows the decision making down to a manageable 3 instead of an entire menu of options, which makes it a much simpler process and makes for a happier waiter.

The same “menu” strategy can be applied to how we prioritize our day: what tasks and activities are we going to engage in? We tend to look at our menu of choices for the day and begin to feel overwhelmed with so many potential possibilities. The question then becomes, “How do I reduce that number so it’s easier to choose?” You can implement a simple 4 — D Process.

DELETE

What are you calling priorities that really aren’t priorities? Are they things that yesterday were a priority but the time has passed for that? Are you giving too much attention to tasks that are no longer relevant? Priorities can often change as time goes on, and it’s important to recognize when shifts in focus may be necessary.

DELEGATE

A key to successfully managing your workload is knowing when and how to delegate tasks. As you think about things you’re going to work on, should somebody else be working on them? Take this opportunity to think about what you could pass on that would free up more of your time for high-priority items. Start the process by training someone else or having a discussion with them. This not only frees you up in the moment but in the future as well.

DELAY

You probably have some things that you’re thinking about being priorities that aren’t time sensitive, they don’t immediately contribute to accomplishing the goals of your department. Could your organization wait? Consider delaying those projects that are low priority and focus on more timely initiatives with larger impacts. By carefully considering what is most important, you can ensure maximum efficiency towards achieving departmental goals.

DO

Delaying sets you up well for what you are going to DO. Make the most of your potential by focusing on those goals that only you can accomplish and that will have the greatest impact on your success.

While avoiding becoming overwhelmed can be daunting, following the 4-D Process can help you cut down your menu of choices by Deleting what isn’t needed, Delegating tasks that can be done by someone else, Delaying decisions until later and Doing what needs to be done now. By taking these few small steps, you can begin to focus on what is most important to you.