WEBVTT - What matters, not what’s happening 

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.

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<v Speaker 1>Good Morning, This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>Today's tip is to pay attention to what matters, not

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<v Speaker 1>just what's happening. When we look at our days and weeks,

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<v Speaker 1>it's easy to focus mostly on the scheduled commitments. But

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<v Speaker 1>those scheduled commitments probably aren't the sum total of what

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<v Speaker 1>we should be doing with our time. It is important

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<v Speaker 1>to keep them in perspective. For some people, there is

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of alignment between their schedules and their professional priorities.

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<v Speaker 1>Medical professionals, hair stylists, and tutors, for instance, do most

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<v Speaker 1>of their work during appointments with particular people. Sure there

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<v Speaker 1>is some preparation and follow up, but if you perform

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<v Speaker 1>sixteen medical procedures in a day, or cut and style

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<v Speaker 1>a dozen people's hair, what matters and what happens are

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<v Speaker 1>pretty much the same. For many knowledge workers, though this

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<v Speaker 1>isn't the case. We have to focus on what we

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<v Speaker 1>are producing. It is not enough to show up for

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<v Speaker 1>various scheduled commitments. A day's accomplishments are not necessarily the

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<v Speaker 1>four meetings on the schedule. It's what happens as a

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<v Speaker 1>result of these meetings and how you move forward on

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<v Speaker 1>your other ongoing projects that tends to matter most. In

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<v Speaker 1>a recent episode, we talked about asking why before when

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<v Speaker 1>Before you schedule a meeting, you want to know why

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<v Speaker 1>the meeting is happening. This tip is related to that.

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<v Speaker 1>It's about making sure there is a lot of why

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<v Speaker 1>going on in your job, even if there seems to

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<v Speaker 1>be a lot of when going on too. Perhaps you

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<v Speaker 1>have a weekly status meeting about a big project, so

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<v Speaker 1>naturally you attend that meeting every week, but that doesn't

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<v Speaker 1>mean that anything has happened on this project. You also

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<v Speaker 1>have to make progress between the meetings. The fact that

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<v Speaker 1>the meeting appears on your schedule and happens isn't necessarily

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<v Speaker 1>evidence that you've done much of anything. Or maybe you

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<v Speaker 1>have client meetings but your work isn't complete when the

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<v Speaker 1>meeting is over. The question that matters is what are

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<v Speaker 1>you doing that will help the client achieve her goals. Unfortunately,

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<v Speaker 1>as they think about their schedules, a lot of people

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<v Speaker 1>don't flip this mental switch. A day with six meetings

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<v Speaker 1>might be deemed a full day. A day with one

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<v Speaker 1>or none might be a light day. But is it

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<v Speaker 1>if you came up with an idea for a new

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<v Speaker 1>business line or the right way to pitch a new

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<v Speaker 1>client on that light day, you would get a lot

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<v Speaker 1>more done than you might during six chickens. But the

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<v Speaker 1>tendency is to see the hard landscape, as David Allen

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<v Speaker 1>would put it, as the day, and it is part

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<v Speaker 1>of the day, but it is probably not the only

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<v Speaker 1>thing that needs to happen. The key is to recognize

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<v Speaker 1>that you can have back to back appointments all day

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<v Speaker 1>long but still not add much of value for your

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<v Speaker 1>employer or your career. This is a hard truth, but

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<v Speaker 1>if it is any consolation, it is not a new truth.

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<v Speaker 1>I have been reading War and Peace this year, one

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<v Speaker 1>short chapter per day, and Tolstoy writes of a main character,

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<v Speaker 1>Prince Andre, getting himself appointed to a commission to reform

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<v Speaker 1>the Russian military. He spends days calling upon various dignitaries,

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<v Speaker 1>waiting to see them, going to see someone else, dealing

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<v Speaker 1>with everyone's politics, repeating the same information. As Tolstoy writes,

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<v Speaker 1>he was so busy for whole days to gather that

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<v Speaker 1>he had no time to think about the fact that

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<v Speaker 1>he was doing nothing. I don't want you to fall

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<v Speaker 1>into this trap where you're so busy that you are

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<v Speaker 1>getting nothing done. For many knowledge workers, scheduled calls and

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<v Speaker 1>appointments are certainly tools to help you do your job.

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<v Speaker 1>They might be critical components of your job, particularly if

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<v Speaker 1>you're in management, but they are seldom the only component.

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<v Speaker 1>I think it helps to think about this when you

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<v Speaker 1>are planning your weeks. On Friday afternoons or whenever you plan,

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<v Speaker 1>don't just look at your scheduled commitments for the week.

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<v Speaker 1>Also consider what priorities you need to make progress on.

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<v Speaker 1>What projects and deliverables are important for you and your

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<v Speaker 1>organization right now. Know exactly what needs to be done

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<v Speaker 1>by next Friday. Do you need to train a new employee,

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<v Speaker 1>write a report for a client, host the first event

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<v Speaker 1>for an employee, volunteering initiative. All of these might involve

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<v Speaker 1>scheduled commitments, but there is also an outcome to keep

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<v Speaker 1>your mind on, So make sure you don't make the

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<v Speaker 1>mistake of seeing scheduled commitments as the point of what

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<v Speaker 1>you're doing. Ideally, they are helping you get to the

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<v Speaker 1>point if you focus on what matters rather than what's

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<v Speaker 1>happening in the meantime. This is Laura. Thanks for listening

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<v Speaker 1>and here's to making the most of our time. Hey everybody,

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<v Speaker 1>I'd love to hear from you. You can send me

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<v Speaker 1>your tips, your questions, or anything else. Just connect with

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<v Speaker 1>me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at Before Breakfast Pod.

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<v Speaker 1>That's b E the number four, then Breakfast p o D.

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<v Speaker 1>You can also shoot me an email at Before Breakfast

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<v Speaker 1>podcast at i heeart media dot com that Before Breakfast

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<v Speaker 1>is spelled out with all the letters. Thanks so much,

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<v Speaker 1>I look forward to staying in touch. Before Breakfast is

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<v Speaker 1>a production of I heart Radio. For more podcasts from

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