This week I had the privilege of working with two organizations who are doing cutting edge work in transforming lives for people in need. They also have a ton of small details and required expectations to address. All too often, they find themselves bogged down in minutia that impedes their capacity to do the big things.

This week our three tips focus on how to strike the balance.

1. Urgency vs Importance.  It’s critical to know the difference and act accordingly. Urgency is time sensitive. Importance has an impact in the long run. In the ideal world, we’d all be able to focus on the important or at least the urgently important. But when we don’t attend to the details, we end up creating urgent fire drills to address them. What processes can you put in place to make sure details are addressed before they become urgent?

2. Never forget the big goal. It’s what keeps the momentum going while you address the small stuff. Try to take at least one action each day to move towards the goal. Seeing even minuscule progress can help maintain motivation.

3. Triage, triage, triage. What small things actually must be done and which are nice but not necessary? If they need to be done, who is the best person? What can be done to systematize them so they get done consistently as a matter of course?

What works for you?

Have a great week,

Julie