Short Attention Effectiveness
OffSite Works Newsletter - July 2004  

“Efficiency is getting many things done -- Effectiveness is getting the right things done.”  This desire for effectiveness has fueled best-seller status for a plethora of motivational books. But here’s the problem: You can’t make effective use of time in order to read a book about being effective. I suspect the Cliff Notes helped in high school, so let’s start with abridged tips on an effective start to the day.

BREATHE IN BREATHE OUT
Unfortunately, we have to juggle more things on our lists each year and it can get over-whelming. Take a moment for self-affirmation. “I am fully capable of tackling this day…”

EVALUATE IMPORTANCE
Prioritize tasks. Completing 12 things at once shouldn’t be a goal. David Meyer, a University of Michigan psychology professor, is one of many researchers currently building on studies that show multi-tasking takes its toll not only on the tasks but on the health of the taskers. Multitasking not only creates errors in the tasks performed, it also compromises memory, causes back pain, can give people the flu & indigestion and even hurts teeth and gums!

GET CREATIVE
Effectiveness is commonly learned when our backs are against the wall. (Maybe this explains the back pain.) Instead of waiting for a crisis, exercise some positive creative thinking each day. There’s a reason "think outside the box" is popular: too often we get stuck in a rut of “this is how it’s always been done.” Want to do something quicker, better or not at all? Invest analytical time before proceeding.

DESIGNATE RESOURCES
‘Resources’ can be your best creative tool. Company resources are going unused: people & machinery around us along with knowledge from past research buried in files. And outside resources also go overlooked – from your mail house to staffing solutions like ours. Go past the immediate “its too hard to do differently” and ask yourself if another resource could improve effectiveness in the long run.

Now, ‘going forth’ and staying focused will have to be the next set of these abridged tips. But one last word: If a process worked smoothly, a certain something sparked your creativity or a vendor came through with sterling results, don’t forget it! Document it. Put it in your schedule. Lather, rinse, repeat. Good habits can only be ingrained with repetition.

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