There is an incredible amount of time spent in the office. . .trying to make better use of time at the office. My observation? In the midst of all of these efficiency discussions, we manage to pass over some of the biggest wasters of (all) time. We just don't want to talk about them - because it may rile someone - but heck, let's do it anyway.
Red Herrings. You may be in the midst of a really good discussion, or even a tense discussion - but at least you may be getting to the root cause. . .until. . .someone throws the reddest, most herringest of red herrings. A completely unrelated idea. . .a thought that originated on some far-off planet - that has absolutely no relationship to the topic at hand. And now you spend the next half hour, 3/4 day or seeming lifetime discussing something that has no relativity to business in the very least.
The Lack of Specifics aka The Inglorious Generalizations. You will instantly recognize this. The statement that is made to seem powerful through the very lack of facts. "Everyone says." "All of the store managers agree." "Lots of people are saying." Well, who would want to disagree with a seeming majority like that? The challenge is when you start to drill down, "So, who exactly have you heard that from?" "Well, uh, I know that Sue from accounting said that her sister-in-law said something about it." The amount of business intelligence that is sacrificed and the amount of time wasted through such rumors are equally frustrating.
Martyrdom. It is both a waste of time for the martyr ("look how much time I had to spend on the Spencer project") because really, nobody cares; and it is a waste of time to transfer the pain to those who are seemingly sympathetic enough to listen. Move on.
The Table Grenade. You may be in the midst of a very productive conversation and then someone (who obviously isn't getting enough attention) throws the "gonna burn hell down" statement on the table and an equally guilty party reacts. Anything that has been constructive is lost in a conflagration of Real Housewives charges and counter-punches.
The Refusal to Go Have a Conversation Already. E-mail is awesome; you can relay information in a quick manner and have a record of it. Some items, however, are too complicated, or too contentious, or too sensitive for e-mail to really be a good tool. Yet, we persist - and the lack of understanding piles upon itself until everyone is frustrated. Get out of your chair and go have a conversation already. Things will get done a lot of faster.
The point is this - with all of the talk about efficiency - often we ignore the greatest efficiencies of all. Be a great team player. Be honest. Have integrity. Use emotional and business intelligence.
You will save a lot of time.
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My book "Courageous Questions, Confident Leaders" is available on Amazon Kindle.
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