It still surprises me that despite all the advances we’ve made in the 21st century, there still isn’t an easy, no-fault approach in managing competing priorities. However, maybe, therein lies the issue – with all the advances we’ve made, the list of priorities and stakeholders has risen and so what was once mastered, falls through and we have to figure out a new set of rules.
I’ve worked in the corporate world for last 15 years and the one consistent feature of every role has been the lists of projects and, of course, “URGENT” stamped all over them. Prior to that, academic and personal aspirations always seemed to compete for my time and attention. Here’s some ideas that worked for me and even though, I may still tweak them occasionally, they continue to help me work through current demands:
1. No meetings scheduled before 10am
And if possible, no meetings after 4pm. I learnt this trick from a CEO I used to work with. He used the mornings to review his list of things to do. He didn’t switch on his emails until after 10am – logic, if it’s was important enough, they’d call. Once he had his list, he’d prioritise his top 3. How did he prioritise? He’d look to the strategic plan for direction on the ranking order. The next 3 on his list, he’d delegate to appropriate staff. Anything else on the list would remain but would not be looked at until the top 6 were under control. This first 2hrs of the day would allow him to get started on the right track, and not be distracted. Now, you may think – it’s easy when you are the CEO and have the ability to delegate. However, the concept applies if you are sole-charge or starting out – I guess the only add-on is to check in with your manager to ensure that you both are on the same page and then go for gold! (apologies for the Olympics pun!)
2. The ones that make the top 3
These are the items you focus on. At the end of the day, you need to ensure you have made traction on these tasks. How do you do this? Break it down into sub-parts. What do you need to do get the task done – it may mean booking a meeting with the team, or reviewing work papers or meeting with HR. Use the morning session to sub-divide the tasks, and who the responsibility is with. I love whiteboards – it provides an excellent visual of tasks at hand, with priority attached and persons responsible. The whiteboard is positioned where my team and I had to see it every day. It gave us a centre point and certainly a sense of achievement when we crossed it out – in fact, we used to play this crazy loud $2 guitar when we were done. Also putting up your key focus areas means you let the rest of the business know your priorities and makes you accountable for them.
3. Communicate to stakeholders & business partners
When you let people know what you are doing and why, it is lowers the tension when you have to say NO. I’ll talk more about saying no in the next paragraph. By ensuring you are linking your order of priorities to the strategy/vision, you are coming from a stronger standpoint. And if there is tension around this, then this is a fantastic opportunity to engage the team around direction. If companies and business teams are not working on a common path to deliver the agreed strategy, well, then a very different conversation is required and quickly! Stick to your list. It’s easy to get pushed into different directions, especially when your business partner wants something done now. Discuss your current prioritisation with your business partner. It’s amazing how the conversation can change from confrontational to negotiation when they understand what will suffer if you need to re-prioritise. Remember, it’s not that the list is fixed in stone – if the IRD suddenly informs you of a review or the CFO needs analysis done for business acquisition, then go back to your list and re-prioritise. Like most things in the business world, the plan is a living document – it remains agile in this ever changing business environment.
4. Learn to say NO
This is an interesting one, albeit uncomfortable. However, learning to say no is a powerful skill to master, in business and life. Now, I wouldn’t adopt an aggressive stance because, with most things, I believe, diplomacy is often the better route for success. My approach would be, ensure you have understood the requirements properly, given the requestor your full attention and evaluated how it fits into your current requirements/strategy fully. If you need to take time to consider, convey that. It is vital that the requestor knows and feels that you have completely understood their request – a good technique is to summarise the request back to the requestor and its requested priority. Assuming that the request doesn’t have enough importance to skip to your top priority, explain to the requestor, that at this stage, you are required to do XYZ and this is your top priority as it links to goal A. Suggest that you can add to your list and revert back when you can complete your current task. If appropriate, you can suggest an alternative solution, which may not meet all of his/her request. Stick to your guns. And then, go back to working on top priorities.
Balancing multiple and competing priorities is a facet of business and life. Even if we could do everything (and we really can’t), it doesn’t necessarily mean we will be achieving our highest potential. Taking a few key tasks, and doing it well, is what delivers success consistently. Focus and achievement in key areas brings a sense of satisfaction and energy to what we do! Ok, writing this blog was priority 1 for the day so I can now scratch that off my list – have you managed to do the same?
Prenelle Rungan – 11 August 2016.
Prenelle is a fully qualified CA and lawyer. She has held senior finance roles with global and local companies over the last 15 years. She is currently a Director of BizSync Limited, a consulting company that strives to start businesses on the right foundations. To contact her, please follow this website link www.bizsync.co.nz/contact.