If you are like me, 2010 just flew by, and with it many exciting adventures and opportunities came and went. Did you seize the moments? Did you carpe diem? Did you stop and smell the roses?
Well here’s what I’ve been working on… as the President of the University of Central Oklahoma’s Human Resource Society I’ve been utilizing my network connections to bring exciting and knowledgeable HR pros to the society as guest speakers with the objective of enlightening the students to the realities that HR professionals face in today’s ever litigious society. We have discussed topics ranging from ERISA to Social Media and much more!
Now I’m setting my sights on a new project, founding a chapter of The National Society of Leadership & Success on the UCO campus. I’m not just telling you all of this to show why I’ve been too busy to blog lately (although maybe subconsciously I am), but really I have a point to make here. When you have a dozen irons in the fire, you can drop the ball and end up doing none of those things well. (Or such as in the case of my blog, not doing some things at all. They just get pushed further and further back on the priority list.) There is a very careful balance to be had.
Have you ever been so busy at work that you felt like you were always moving another project to the back burner to start something else without every really completing anything? If so, you are not alone. I have a little success tip for you though. This is not some new-found stroke of genius that I exclusively conjured up and trademarked here, but just some age old wisdoms from numerous sources that have time and time again proven true. These are key strategies that I utilize to accomplish so much when I have many hats to wear in both my professional and collegiate realms.
First, if someone else in your circle of influence (a Stephen Covey phrase) can do something that frees up your time, LET THEM! It is okay to delegate! However, it is important to utilize your peers, partners, and networks in a mutually beneficial way. This means, swapping favors. Don’t expect any of your professional relationships to last if they are one sided. Build up your peers for a job well done; sometimes praise is the only reward needed to motivate someone to help you again in the future. Sure you can handle multiple tasks, but don’t over extend yourself. If someone gives you a project, be honest about where you are with availability taking into account your current workload. Finally, I recommend always under promising and over delivering! What does this mean? It means you need to plan appropriately for even the unexpected. If you know that you can get a report done by Tuesday, given everything else in your schedule goes as expected, then tell your boss that you can have the report done by Thursday. This way, if some more pressing issue pops up you still have some flexibility with your time. If however, all goes as planned and you get it done by Tuesday, then your boss will be impressed that you beat your deadline!
Stay tuned for more words of HR wisdom in the coming weeks and months as I shift my focus to stay more connected with my social media outlets.
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