Electric Hand Dryer

Normally, I talk about being more productive during the day.  The premise is that you’ll enjoy your day and your career more when you’re more in command of your workload. Well, today ain’t gonna be a normal day.

Setting the Stage

I travel a lot – two to three times a month – giving presentations and seminars. As a result, I’m constantly in and out of airports. Now, there are many entertaining works on traveling and airports - for example  Dear American Airlines and Up In the Air - which I commend to you.

This piece focuses on a new aspect of travel that I find particularly irksome - the signage on electric hand dryers in airport restrooms imploring us to save trees by using the electric device instead of paper towels. Every time I see one of these, I want to take a sledge hammer to the electric hand dryer and swing for the fence!

Separating the Truth from the Marketing Speak

The stated benefit of electric hand dryers is that they reduce our use of paper products, which come from trees and fill up landfills. Simple enough, right? Truthful too, on it’s face. But let’s dig just below the surface to see if there’s a real benefit here or only a perceived one.

The Facts about Paper Towels.  We know that paper towels are paper products and that paper products come from trees. What we tend to forget is that trees are a renewable resource. When a tree is cut down, a new one can grow in it’s place.  It may take some time, but both public and private efforts to farm trees are long-standing mature endeavors.  Check out How Trees Are Grown For Paper to learn more about tree farming.

Second, while it’s true that paper towels fill up landfills, it’s also true that paper is highly biodegradable.  It breaks down quickly – in about two to four weeks - returning nutrients to the soil to feed new growth. 

So, the verdict on paper towels is that they come from a renewable resource that is biodegradable.  There is definitely a cost, but it fits relatively well into the bigger ecological picture.

The Facts about Electric Hand Dryers.  Electric hand dryers are powered by electricity, of course.  Electricity is a source of energy that produces little to no pollution when it is used.  That’s good.  What’s not good is that U.S. electricity is currently produced in a very harmful way. Presently, 78% of U.S. electricity is produced in coal- and natural gas-fired plants.  That means that we’re using fossil fuels to produce our “clean” energy! 

That’s a problem on just about every level imaginable, including the depletion of fossil fuels and the pollution that results from their extraction and generation. Fossil fuels take thousands, even tens of thousands, of years to create.  They are not renewable in any reasonable sense of the word.

But the more egregious foul comes from those little signs in airport lavatories.  They lead us to believe that we’re “doing our part” by drying your hands differently.  The truth is that we’re not “doing our part” at all.  Instead of doing good, we’re doing harm by using technology powered by fossil fuels!

No doubt you’re asking yourself why? Why are those signs put on the hand dryers?  The answer is simple enough.  It costs more to purchase the paper towels, store them until needed, load them into dispensers, and haul away the used ones than it does to mount an electric hand dryer on the wall and plug it in. 

Don’t get me wrong here.  I’m fine with capitalism.  I’m also fine with organizations finding ways to reduce costs.  It’s the misleading marketing that sticks in my craw.  Note, I’m not pointing the finger at “them.”  What I’m pointing out is that we can each make a choice about what we do about the misleading information being presented to us. 

To dry with paper towel or not?  That is the question.  The answer needs only to align with your sensibilities.

What Lessons Learned?

There are several lessons to be learned here.

• Keep using the paper towels to dry your hands.  It’s really the better thing to do.  Yes, I realize it took resources to produce the towels too, but I’m convinced that duping the population into “feeling good” about the hand dryers will not solve the underlying challenge of producing electricity without using fossil fuels.  And yes, this is an issue much larger than paper towels, but there are entire countries that have addressed it successfully in the last decade. Check out this article on Portugal’s energy make-over for more on what can be done.
• Always ask yourself why something is being advanced instead of just believing the marketing speak.  The higher the purpose being promoted, the more you need to question the proposition.  Just an opinion based on experience.
• Speaking up when things aren’t right is the best way to promote the idea that we all have a responsibility and that’s it’s never really “their” problem.  That’s because “we” are “them.”  You always have a choice.  I am just encouraging you to exercise it.

Oh, And about the Hygienic Thing

Many of you will point out that using electric hand dryers is more hygienic.  There’s an entire article in the subject of modern American germaphobia, but here are several thoughts to consider.

• America is one of the cleanest countries in the world and airport restrooms are attended to regularly.
• Low-tech ideas like self-advancing paper towel dispensers solved this problem long ago.
• The people using the paper towels JUST WASHED THEIR HANDS!

© 2010, Paul H. Burton. All rights reserved.

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I’m a productivity guy.  It’s what I do.  As a result there are two cardinal rules in my world.  First, never be late.  It’s not only poor form, it displays a complete lack of command for the concept of time management!  I’ve often had clients joke that they couldn’t believe THEY were late for a meeting with the “time management guy,” but it’s not a reputation someone in my field can survive.

The second rule of thumb is to be responsive - highly responsive. I take it very seriously.  To me, responsiveness is the essence of good relationship management.  When my clients are confident that I will get back to them in a timely manner with information that assists them in their efforts, we have a strong relationship.  Not only is that good for my business, it makes working with my clients a pleasure.

When I talk about responsiveness (in conjunction with its siblings - efficiency and effectiveness), I often find that people confuse “responding” with “responsiveness.” Understanding this distinction is important to your individual productivity and success.  This article outlines some of the distinctions between each, and lists their relative advantages and disadvantages.  Some suggestions for improving both are also included.

Responding

Responding to someone is an acknowledgement.  It’s like nodding your head when someone is speaking to you; you’re acknowledging that they’re talking to you.  For example, a reply to an e-mail with “Will do!” is responding to the request in the original e-mail.  A return phone call with “I got your message and will take a look at the question, then get back to you.” is also a response. 

The primary advantage of responding to others is to assure them that you received the communique they transmitted.  This is generally a good thing, though somewhat contrary to good time/workflow management principles for the reasons stated below.  Nonetheless, a modicum of benefit is achieved if others feel better knowing that you received what they sent.

The primary disadvantage to responses is that they are unproductive.  There is activity but no corresponding productivity.  You did something – responded to the e-mail – but nothing got done in the process.  Consequently, that time is literally lost.  This is especially true in the world of e-mail.  We’ve all received a second e-mail from someone asking us if we’d received the e-mail they’d sent us 10 minutes earlier, right?  Now two people are wasting time!  Responding to phone calls with a brief acknowledgement of having received an earlier call is a similar example of this kind of activity with no productivity.

So the question is, How can we respond to others in a more efficient, yet still effective, way?  Looking at e-mail, there are two options.  First, we can setup an auto-responder that acknowledges that we’ve received their e-mail and will attend to it as soon as possible. Similarly, we can use our outbound voice mail recording to communicate the same message.  (Note, for voice mail recordings, it’s a good idea to give callers an alternative to just leaving a message, which further demonstrates a desire to “respond” to their needs.)

Second, if you are working with people collaboratively, you can suggest that they set their e-mail program, or even each individual e-mail, to send a “read receipt” that gets returned to them when the e-mail has been opened.  This puts the onus on them to determine when they need a “response” to a message they’ve sent.

Responsiveness

Being responsive is delivering a substantive communication.  I liken this to moving the ball down the field.  We didn’t just acknowledge that someone communicated with us, we actually provided them with information that advanced the effort.  An example of responsiveness is to reply to an e-mail with “I received your e-mail, took at look at the file and will have a definitive answer for you on Friday.”  In this case, you’ve set a specific time when the sender can expect to hear back from you.  The ball has moved slightly down the field.  (An even more responsive answer is, “I looked at the file and this is what I think we should do.  What are your thought?”)

The advantage of responsiveness is that it’s productive.  Things are getting done, expectations are being managed, and everyone is communicating with each other in a manner that builds strong relationships.  The key point here is that you are managing expectations, which is probably the single most important relationship management skill you can develop for a successful career.  The better you manage expectations, the better the results of every effort will be.

The only real disadvantage to being more responsive is that it usually takes longer to deliver a substantive communication than a simple acknowledgement.  So, the real challenge is learning to execute this skill in a timely “enough” manner.  Here are three ways you can increase your responsiveness right away, along with links to longer articles written on each subject:

• Regularly Surveying All You Command.  At least three times each day, stop and review what’s going on in our world.  This short interlude in our day can be used to re-prioritize what needs doing and gives us a list of things we can update others on in terms of progress made and any changes to deadlines.  More on this here http://wp.me/pvS1W-Bf.
• Batch Process Your E-mail.  New e-mail alerts have created in us a Pavlovianesque twitch whenever a new e-mail arrives in our Inboxes.  This fosters an almost-maniacal need to respond to each one immediately.  The reality is that e-mail is an asynchronous communication technology which means that the communication is not intended to occur in real time.  Thus, we should batch process our e-mails instead of sitting in our Inbox and respond to each one as it arrives.  Check the Inbox as frequently as necessary - every 15 to 30 minutes – but deal with e-mail in batches.  That allows us to be more productive and, consequently, more responsive, throughout the day.  More on that here http://wp.me/pvS1W-lG.
• Rhythms. A further refinement on the batch processing notion is the batching together of work that requires the same type of attention and energy.  There are three basic types of work behaviors we use each day – Rapid Fire, Short Burst, Extended Focus.  By doing like things together, we will be more productive and, again, more responsive.  More on the rhythms of work here http://wp.me/pvS1W-AW.

The Same But Different

Though derivatives of the same concept, “responding” to a request and being “responsive” to one are very different things.  Each adds value to working relationships, but responsiveness adds more value. 

We must seek ways to quell the immediate-response needs of co-workers, clients and colleagues by using the technology at our disposal so we can focus on being more productive and, ultimately, more responsive to them.  The result will be stronger relationahips, which is always a good environment in which to work.

© 2010, Paul H. Burton. All rights reserved.

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Today’s working environments are riddled with interruptions and distractions. Just when we get focused on one task, a new e-mail arrives, the phone rings, or someone stops by and off we go on a new tangent. Later, when we return to the original task, we need to get back up to speed before we can make any progress. The net result is lost time and greater anxiety.

Unfortunately, interruptions or distractions are a part of the workplace. Consequently, we must understand the nature of each to better manage them.

Dissecting Time Bandits

Productivity saboteurs originate from one of three sources – You, Them, and It. Let’s examine the role of each source in diminishing our productivity.

You. The most insidious time bandit is yourself. We each allow, even create, distractions that reduce our productivity and cause our workloads to pile up even higher. A classic example of this is flitting from task to task or place to place during the day. The act of just “touching” your work is a distraction you create rather than actually doing anything substantive on any one task. For example, does this sound familiar?  You’ve got to get a task completed, but you find yourself incessantly checking your e-mail Inbox, your Twitter account or your Facebook updates. Nothing is getting done, but there’s a whole bunch of activity going on! The most productive way to manage this type of self-inflicted distraction is to sit quietly in front of the work you need to do. Yes, just sit there.  Quietly … maybe with a blank screen or pen and paper in front of you. Let your mind settle down and allow yourself to think just about what it is you need to get done. Resist the urge to dart off to some other perceived exigency. As your brain settles down and begins to focus on the task at hand, you’ll discover the path to completion for this project.

Them. Everyone in your workplace is a potential time bandit. Without warning, these folks can pounce on you, delivering up huge interruptions. Some of these interruptions are substantive – they actually require your assistance. However, many of them are unnecessary and do nothing but cause you to veer away from your well-intended and productive efforts. Moreover, keeping an “open door” and managing by “walking around” are highly lauded management practices that must be considered when seeking to manage unnecessary interruptions for fear of communicating an unwanted message – leave me alone! The best tact is to divide your time physically between periods when interruptions are “acceptable” and periods when they’re not. Thus, during “acceptable” periods, make yourself available via the open door, etc. When the interruption occurs, quickly determine its priority and manage accordingly – deal with it right now, schedule time with the interrupter (in the future) to deal with the issue, or stand up (to indicate closure) and accept any physical manifestation of the interruption and place it in the Inbox for future consideration. Conversely, during “unacceptable” periods, make yourself unavailable via a closed door (with or without a note on the door asking not be disturbed) or simply by leaving – go to a place where you’re unlikely to be found such as a conference room or empty office.

It. The “it” to which I refer is most often technology. We are bombarded by various interruptions and easy-to-access distractions via modern technology. For example, take new message alerts! “You’ve got mail” became the banner of the Internet age. Today, busy workers deal with tens, if not hundreds, of e-mails every day, with a corresponding “Ping” and screen flash every time a new one arrives. What’s the point of knowing every time “You’ve got mail”!? If it’s so darn important, why aren’t you calling me or coming to see me? You get my point. The same goes with the onslaught of social media – updates to Twitter and Facebook and their progeny are bombarding us with largely unexamined and generally unimportant information. The best way to handle this particular productivity saboteur is to take command of the technology and drive it, instead of being driven by it. Specifically, turn off all new message/update alerts and visit each technology source as often as necessary to remain in control of the information being delivered via that channel. Thus, you can turn off your new e-mail alert and check it every 20 to 30 minutes to make sure you’re remaining responsive. With social media, check it on your breaks – they’re “social” by definition, so treat them as such!

Doing What You Can With What You Have

In short, interruptions and distractions can never be eliminated from our days. In fact, some matters are truly urgent and require an interruption. However, if you realize that these emergencies are in the great minority of events and construct mechanisms to efficiently attend to the rest of the productivity saboteurs that come at you during the day, you’ll find that your focus goes up and, along with it, your productivity and sense of accomplishment!

© 2010, Paul H. Burton. All rights reserved.

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Time can’t be managed. It ticks inexorably forward, second by second. The phrase “time management” is really just a catch-all to describe how we get things done. The sum of all we get done is our productivity. Thus, we’re talking about productivity, and, in this case, individual productivity.

Productivity – getting things done – is driven by how much focus we can apply to any one task. The greater the focus, the greater the productivity. Oh, and the net result of increased productivity is not just getting more done, but also the feeling of accomplishment that comes with it. Feeling accomplished is a fundamental component of satisfaction. Thus, getting more done equals feeling better about what we do!

The World in Which We Work

Today’s work environments are fast-paced, noise-filled places where focus is hard to attain and virtually impossible to maintain. Establishing and maintaining a command environment with respect to our workload is the best way to increase our focus and get things done in the most effective and efficient manner. If we allow ourselves to become enslaved by our workload, we will find ourselves constantly reacting to the latest emergency, which is an inefficient way to manage our responsibilities.

Establishing and Maintaining a Command Environment

There is no silver bullet solution to establishing and maintaining a command work environment. It is both a series of disciplined behaviors and a mindset that keeps us in charge of what we need to do. However, there is one simple exercise we can do each day to start us down the right path.

I call this exercise Regularly Surveying All You Command. That is, at least twice, if not three times per day stop what you’re doing and survey all that’s coming at you in addition to what’s already on your plate. In terms of the “when,” I recommend you do this first thing in the morning, at mid-day, and at the end of the day before going home. The purpose of this exercise is to take stock of your workload in terms of what needs doing and what’s likely to get done.

The process itself is simple.

Morning Review:

1. Enter your workspace.
2. Review everything already on your to-do list and calendar first. (Do NOT look at the e-mail that came in overnight first.)
3. Once you’ve reviewed what’s already on your plate, look at the new e-mail, factoring it into your existing priorities. (Note, most people do this in the opposite order – which causes them to be reactionary to both the stuff that’s already on their list, as well as to those things that have most recently arrived.)
4. Get to work on your first effort of the day now that you’ve organized everything in your world based on highest priority instead of most recently received.

Mid-day Review:

Repeat this exercise at mid-day. With the day one-half over, you have a good idea of what will get done today and what will most likely get sent into the future. Make sure to communicate any of these shifts to others to keep them up to speed on your efforts.

Day’s End Review:

At the end of the day, a final review is in order to reprioritize everything left on your to-do list based on what you know of your calendar for the next few days. Again, this is a good time to circle the wagons and communicate any changes to others. Once you’ve put everything to bed, you can leave the office knowing you’re in command!

(Note, I am not suggesting that you only check your e-mail three times each day. You need to do that as often as your duties require. What I am suggesting is that you engage in this prioritization exercise several times each day to remain on top what you need to get done).

Commanding Your Work Makes You Effective and Efficient

If you can train yourself to review and prioritize your work two to three times each day, and communicate changes in deadlines to others, you will find that you feel more in charge of your workload. Moreover, you will likely address priorities in a better fashion, demonstrating to others your command. You’ll not only feel better, you’ll be performing at a higher level!

© 2010, Paul H. Burton. All rights reserved.

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It’s been a rock and roll day here at QuietSpacing(R) central.  Monday’s always are … for most of us.  Between all the things I shoved into this week from last week, the things everyone else shoved into this week, and the collective exigencies that popped up over the weekend, it’s a wonder Monday ever ends!

I felt myself ease into the groove right way, first reviewing the landscape of the day, then triaging all the e-mails that had arrived overnight.  The collective pulse rose as people started calling and the activity level all around me increased.  Soon, I was responding to client and employee requests for my attention, while I also re-scripted a presentation I wanted to record for the web. 

The middle of the day heaved over and as the afternoon drew out in front of me, I found myself contending with several technical issues.  By mid-afternoon it was time to get a number of things done out of the office, so into the world I went.  The relative quiet of the outside world was a welcome relief to the mounting pressure building in the office.  E-mails weren’t quite as urgent as keeping my eyes on the road and phone calls were taken more selectively.

With the errands complete, I returned to the office for a final triage before heading out into the drizzle for a run. 

While I slogged through the rain, I reviewed the day from the 10,000 foot level.  There had been much activity and even a fair amount of productivity, but what struck me the most was the rhythms I’d experienced during the day.  The more I thought about what I’d done all day, the more I realized that we (all of us) work in three distinct rhythms – Rapid Fire, Small Burst and Extended Focus.  Each rhythm has its own pace and its own benefits. 

Breaking Down the Day

From a productivity standpoint, the longer we can stay in each rhythm, the more we’ll get done.  It’s not just that multitasking is inefficient, it’s that batching like tasks together reduces the need to change the type of focus and energy you need to remain highly productive. 

To achieve this higher level of productivity, group like tasks together based on the three categories below, then organize your day around addressing them in batches.  Not only will you get more done, you’ll enjoy the benefits of accomplishing these associated tasks.

• Rapid Fire – You’re Needed.  The best example of the Rapid Fire rhythm is powering through e-mail.  It’s so reassuring to have all those e-mails waiting for us.  Way deep down, our egos are screaming, “You like me!  You really like me!”  (Apologies to Sally Field, but it was just too opportune!)  On a more serious note, the reality is that we get a lot of e-mail and we need to get through it all.  It’s also true that most e-mail is some form of junk mail – stuff you don’t really need to know or do anything about.  Thus, it’s a perfect place to get into a Rapid Fire rhythm and slice and dice your way to the end of them.  Proper setup of for Rapid Fire processing is vital, so check this article out on how to do that – Setup For Power Processing Your E-mail – then select a couple of times each hour to bust a move on that e-mail.  Don’t stop until you’ve covered all the unread ones, then move to the next thing that needs your attention.
• Short Burst – You’re Gettin’ ‘Er Done.  The Small Burst rhythm is reflected in the incremental efforts you make all day long to move the ball down the field.  These are the 10- to 15-minute projects/phone calls/meetings that consume most of your day.  Each time a small task is completed, the project is that much closer to getting done.  Whenever you get a bunch of these done in a day, you feel really productive.  This rhythm is evidenced by the lines through things on your To Do list and the associated feeling of accomplishment you get looking at that list at the end of the day.  The best time to seek out this rhythm is first thing in the morning – right after the initial e-mail triage – and right before going home.  These activities tend to generate mental energy as opposed to deplete it, so fill that tank up first thing when you get to the office and right before you go home!
• Extended Focus – You’re Contributing.  Undoubtedly the most rewarding experience – personally and professionally – is when we feel as though we’re contributing to the effort, whatever that effort might be.  Getting into the Extended Focus rhythm is the most likely place to capture that feeling.  This rhythm is quieter mentally and physically than the other two.  This is when your focus dives deep into a task or project and you begin to see all the connections you’re pulling together.  We’ve all felt proud and satisfied with ourselves when we see a project we’ve worked long and hard on come to fruition.  We’ve made a difference; we’ve contributed.  This rhythm is not something we can enjoy every day, but it’s a rhythm that is necessary to get the big tasks done.  Thus, you need to make time and space for it in your schedule.  Sequester yourself away physically if necessary to get into and be able to stay in this rhythm.  The reward is worth it.

Manage Your Day to Get the Most From It

The three rhythms of the day come and go.  Some days are all Rapid Fire. Some are mixes of Rapid Fire and Short Bursts.  A few include Extended Focus.  Each rhythm is natural and each delivers a reward.  Your assignment, should you decide to accept it (nod to Mission Impossible), is to organize the work that needs doing to best leverage these rhythms.

© 2010, Paul H. Burton. All rights reserved.

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I recently had occasion to enjoy a cup of coffee with a client towards the end of the day. It was a perfect time for us to sit back and just catch up. The conversation worked its way into some “big picture” topics and the question was posed, “Why do we do what we do?”  My answer is very simple and it was refreshing to be reminded of it.

The Most Important Non-Renewable Resource

Much is made today of sustainability and moving beyond the use of Mother Earth’s non-renewable resources – oil, gas, coal, etc. These efforts are important, as are the related efforts of reduce, reuse and recycle.  But, in the end, there is one non-renewaable resource that is most important – time. The reason is simple, we measure our lives by the use of time and when your allotment is gone, no more can be had.

Let me be blunt. At the end of your days, you will never wish you had more money, a bigger house, or better cars. You’ll wish you had more time. That’s because you won’t be done yet. There will be things left for you to do. And they will remain undone. Sad? Maybe, but it also presents an opportunity.

Measuring a Life’s Success

Memories are the currency of life. The number of good ones you create is the measure of your success. This applies to the professional and personal aspects of your life.

On the professional side, contrary to what Loverboy said, you should not be working for the weekend. You need to work at a job and with people you like. This is a huge part of the time you spend making memories, so make sure you’re not squandering it. There’s a whole book in describing how to do this, but here are some examples to get you started:

• Get an officemate their favorite coffee the next time you’re out.
• Try incorporating “please” and “thank you” into every conversation.
• Smile as much as you can stand it.

You contribute your half to the interactions you have each day and you can only control that half.

The same goes for your home life. It was recently reported that Americans spend 150 hours each month watching T.V.  That’s five hours a day! I know, I know. It’s not you, it’s Bob in Accounting. But even if you’re only watching two or three hours a day, consider the memories you’re making. More poignantly, what was the plot of C.S.I. last week? Turn it off; do something else. Anything else, such as:

• Go for a walk.
• Call your mom.
• Have a conversation with your significant other, even if it’s your dog.
• Play Solitaire.

Engage your mind. Take a stab at making a memory worth a damn.

Making Every Day Count

Regardless of your spiritual proclivities, the gift of time is a limited opportunity. Simplifying your perspective on how to utilize the time you have makes decision making easier. Stay focused on maximizing the number of good memories you create – a job well done, an enjoyable working environment, a nice walk around the block with your significant other or your dog or both, a long-overdue and heart-felt “I love you” to your parents – and you will quickly feel more successful.

© 2010, Paul H. Burton. All rights reserved.

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Anyway, it was with trepidation that I posted the position on a local online classified ad website.  The results were unexpected, exhilarating and heart-breaking all at once.

Can WOW! be an understatement?

The job posting went live at 6:00 PM.  By 8:00 AM the next morning, we had 15 applications.  We immediately pulled the ad but still received over 30 applications.  Prior to the economic downturn, we could wait for weeks before getting even one application.

Sorting through the applications was an exercise in wonder.  People from all walks of life were applying.  The resumes contained heavy-equipment operators, construction laborers, office staff, first-time job seekers, the gambit.  Remember, this was a job that paid about $950 per month before taxes! 

We selected the six most qualified candidates to invite in for interviews.

A Straight Path Wanders

The morning of the interviews, we received another application. This was from a woman we knew.  She had worked for one of our vendors before being laid off in the downturn.  She had been out of work for six months and just wanted to get back to it, no matter the job.

Catherine (no, that’s not her real name) was not a fit for the position we were hiring, but we had a very high opinion of her from her last job.  So we fit her into our schedule to explore her background and skills.  We were considering … but back to the interviews for the warehouse position.

The first candidate set the bar very high.  He was just a year out of high school, was a local guy, had taken a year off to wander the earth, was considering starting school at the local community college in the fall, and was the son of an owner in another local business like ours.  And did I mention that he’d reviewed our web site and knew a great deal about our business?  And did I also mention that he walked into the interview with a copy of his resume in his hand … just in case?  We could not have scripted a better candidate and interview, but there were others to meet.

The next several candidates were qualified but unremarkable.  I think two of them had looked at our web site and knew the nature of our business.  Two years ago, we would have jumped to hire any one of them, but Candidate #1 had really impressed us with his preparation and alignment with our needs.

The last candidate to interview was the heart-breaker.  He was an out-of-work construction worker.  He was married with a young child, living in the basement of his in-laws house.  He hadn’t worked for 18 months and was just itching to do something to be of use and to support his family.  It pained me to see the commitment and earnestness in his face for a chance at our entry level part-time job.  He said we were the only company who’d even interviewed him in the last six months.  Ouch.

The Agony of Too Many Choices

As the last candidate left, we turned to the hard work of making a decision.  First, we discussed the warehouse position and agreed that Candidate #1 was the right person for the job.  We also all agreed that we’d hire the last candidate if we could even though we knew he’d leave for a higher paying job when the opportunity arose. Alas, there was only one warehouse position available – a part-time one at that.  Candidate #1 got the job.

Next, we took up conversation on Catherine.  Throughout the day, we had talked in snippets about her skill set and our longer term needs for the company. She clearly fit the bill for a core role in the administrative part of the business.  Another bonus was that she was known and liked by our current folks, which suggested an easy transition.

With her value established, we turned to affordability and the impact hiring Catherine would have the team’s salary increases over the short term.  When asked, our General Manager stated very clearly that the current team members were happy that their jobs had yet to be truly affected by the downturn and that they’d welcome the help Catherine would bring to the over-worked group.  (We’d frozen hiring 18 months earlier leaving the existing people to wrestle with the ongoing demands of the business.)  The decision was to offer Catherine a position as well, which she took.

Lessons Learned

Both of the new hires have settled nicely into their roles.  The team is thrilled to have the support, even with knowledge that salary increases are now clearly dependent on how quickly the economy recovers. 

My lasting impressions from the experience are:

• Americans Love to Work.  When the economy was soaring, there was a lot focus on work-life balance.  The underlying premise was that people wanted to work less.  Though downturns are never pleasant, nor do I wish financial hardship on anyone, my view is that people are hungry to get back to work.  In fact, the perspective on work-life balance may have balanced itself out a bit.  Work is a part of life, a good part.  The sense of entitlement that was developing over the last decade was destructive to the very people forming those opinions.
• Productivity is a Good Thing.  Turning away from the media-hyped stories of corporate greed and the too-big-to-fail bleating by politicians and CEOs alike, it’s good to have Americans at work.  The sense of accomplishment and belonging are hugely valuable, not to mention the ability to provide for your loved ones.  These basic tenets get lost today in all the hysterics and finger pointing.  I was reminded of it during those interviews.  People just want to matter again.
• Hire for the Long Term Even if it Hurts a Little Now.  Dennis Snow, 25-year veteran at Disney, talks about recruiting all the time so that when you have a need, you’ve already identified a good pool of candidates.  Most companies hire out of emergency – when someone leaves or something similar.  Admittedly, that’s what we were doing.  However, I would like to pat ourselves on the back for engaging in another good hiring practice:  Hire the right people, even if you have to create the position early.  Both Candidate # 1 and Catherine are great people.  We had a job for one of them and we accelerated an opening for the other.  They’ve been a terrific fit and we’re seeing the benefits of the decision already.

My expectations at the outset of this hiring adventure were that we were rolling the dice.  My experience was that there are a tremendous number of able and willing people looking to get the American productivity engine back to a steady purr. 

(Footnote:  I am a co-founder in Outdoorplay, an online retailer that sells kayaking gear.  It’s been 12 years in the making and we have a fantastic team of people who make it happen.  My greatest source of pride is to have been a part of its success.)

© 2010, Paul H. Burton. All rights reserved.

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Actually, today was only semi-voluntarily since my Mom left a message on my voice mail this morning “reminding” me it was Grandpa’s birthday.  Mom’s good like that, I’m not.  You see, my Grandpa doesn’t know he’s 92 today.  Hell, he doesn’t even know it’s Wednesday.  So this was my Mom’s way of asking me to reach out to my Nanna who cares for him even though she’s half-blind, walks with the aid of cane, and is no spring chicken herself at 89.

The World Spins at Different Speeds

Don’t consider me an ass, at least not a complete ass.  My relationship with my grandparents has never been close.  We live on opposite coasts and I haven’t seen them in at least five years.  Those are not excuses.  They are facts.  But regardless of the details, they’re my kin and I need to do more.

Back to the conversation.  After inquiring into Grandpa’s state (not good) and hers (looking up with the weather getting better), I nearly wept when she said, “Honey, you’ve just made my day!”  The tears welling up were of shame, not joy.  Here was this woman who had been with her husband for seventy-three years (73!).  She’s house-bound with a grown child, rarely getting out and never getting to just relax.  The world revolves slowly in a very tight circle for her.

Conversely, I’m constantly racing around in my hyper-kinetic professional world.  There’s always another e-mail coming in and another phone call going out.  There are flights to catch, dinners to enjoy, and friends to meet at the first tee.  And I don’t have two minutes in all that to stop and call my Nanna?  How did I let that happen?

How Mattering Matters

It was so easy to sit and talk with her on this voluntary basis.  Maybe not having the phone thrust into my face took the heat off the moment.  But, just as I was settling into a nice conversation, my poor Nanna lobbed “You’re Aunty Carol is a lifesaver to me.” over the fence!  Now I felt like a true heel.  Aunt Carol lives a scant three miles away compared to my three thousand.  She’s the one who’s really shouldering the burden.  And you don’t even want to know when the last time I talked to her was.

Though my Mom flies back to New England regulary to help her, Carol’s definitely been the leader and care provider to both my Nanna and Grandpa these last few years.  I’m sure it’s arduous, but I rest comfortable knowing that at least my Nanna routinely tells her how grateful she is for the assistance.  (For those of you wondering why they’re not in assisted care, read the part about 73 years above.  There’s a whole article on commitment in that one number.)

Making the Call

A good friend of mine truly believes that people don’t change, at least not much.  The weight of the evidence is on his side I’m afraid. My slant on change is that it occurs when a simple trifecta occurs:  Think, Feel, Do. 

Most people Think about making a change.  They gather all the intellectual reasons together and make a reasoned decision that change is good.  And that’s where the effort to change usually ends. 

The Feel part of change is much more significant.  It’s where the motivation is generated that effects change.  In today’s example, the motivation to make a change did not come from the shame I felt at being the hero of the day over my Aunt Carol’s tireless efforts.  The motivation came from how easy it was to just voluntarily chat with my Nanna for a couple of minutes on the phone.  It was just so easy!

Now for the Do part.  How do you make it happen on a “regular” basis?  You could make it a routine.  For example, my sister calls our Dad every Thursday afternoon.  It’s a routine.  That doesn’t work so well with my traveling all the time.  However, I’m a process guy.  That’s what I do for a living, so I created a monthly recurring reminder on my Nanna’s contact record in Outlook that’ll pop her into my Reminder box each month to prompt me to give her a call.  The solution was easy once the motivation existed.

The Value of Action

There are a lot of things we know we should do.  There are a number of things we probably will do.  But whenever you’re in the throws of trying to evaluate the true benefits of making a change to improve the “balance” in your life, ask yourself this one question:  When you’ve reached the end of your life, will you wish you’d made that change?

© 2010, Paul H. Burton. All rights reserved.

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What’s In a Generation Anyway?

Having said that, my personal opinion is that the Gen Ys value what most of us value: Family, Good Working and Living Environments, Flexibility (though probably more than we did), Recognition (maybe too much given their relative accomplishment as yet?), Security, and Comfort. All worthy, but certainly not earth shatteringly different.

What’s really changed is the measure of those values. The best example I have is the desire to work remotely. This was simply not possible 30 years ago when I entered the work force. E-mail and the Internet existed, but only in the scientific world. Our bread was buttered with phone calls, meetings, faxes and large word-processing systems. Working remotely only worked for individual contributors (artists, athletes, authors, etc., to cover the “a”s).

Conversely, I work from two different homes today. I run two entirely separate businesses, one of which is completely virtual. All this is because of technological advance, not generational change. I’m still a Boomer, but I’m leveraging what’s available to me.

Getting Down to Brass Tacks

Maybe the real issue isn’t that the Gen Ys want something different than the older generations. Maybe it’s that the older generations need to shed the “I did it that way, so they should too.” attitude? Or maybe we should just let our children live their own lives and work it out for themselves?

Enough of my running on at the keyboard…

© 2010, Paul H. Burton. All rights reserved.

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The Proof’s in the Pudding

The reality is that no one multi-tasks well. Of course, some are better at it than others, but everyone is always less effective when trying to accomplish more than one thing at a time.  There are plenty of readers who will object to this position and begin citing examples of multi-tasking efficiency.  To prove my point, try this simple exercise that I learned from David Crenshaw’s terrific book “The Myth of Multi-Tasking.”

• Take out a piece of paper and a pencil or pen.
•  Think of a longer word, like “impossible” which has 10 letters.
•  On your paper create two lines of 10 dashes each, one over the other, like this:

____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____

____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____

• Find someone to time you or time yourself.
• When your timer says “Go!,” begin spelling the word “impossible” out on the top row while alternately indicating the number that letter represents in the word in the bottom row.  It’ll look like this mid-stream:

  I      M      P    ____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____ ____

  1      2   ____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____

• When you’re done with the exercise on this first pass, jot down how many seconds it took you to perform it.
• Now, setup the exercise exactly the same way as you did the first time, thus:

____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____

____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____

• This time just write the word “impossible” out straight through sequentially on the top line, then write the corresponding numbers each letter represents straight through on the bottom line, so that mid-stream it looks like this:

  I      M      P      O      S     S    ____  ____  ____

____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____  ____

This is a fairly simple example of doing two things at once – spelling and numbering.  In the dozens of situations I’ve used this exercise it routinely takes people about twice as long to complete the first pass as it takes to complete the second pass through.  The reason is simple enough, you have to refocus your mind on a different activity each time you switch between spelling and numbering in the first pass, but you don’t incur that “switch cost” in the second pass.

Through Clarity Comes Focus

With the urban myth about multi-tasking debunked, we can now get down to business.  And that business is how to truly increase your productivity and, in so doing, increase your command over your workload and your sense of success when getting more done.  We all feel better when we get something done, so why not benefit from that result on the career side as well?

Attempts to multi-task negatively affect our ability to focus.  Focus is at the core of productivity and accomplishment.  The more we can focus, the more we get done. 

Achieving and maintaining a high level of focus in the modern workplace is difficult indeed.  Distractions and interruptions abound, many of them self-imposed.  My work with clients often starts with unlearning numerous bad work habits that actually reduce focus and productivity even though they were promoted as more efficient!  Let’s focus on those, if you’ll pardon the pun.

One is not the Loneliest Number

The exercise above points out that focusing on a singular task is more productive than trying to alternate focus between two tasks.  If you have fallen prey to the multi-tasking myth but are now ready to move to a higher level of productivity and success, these suggestions will help:

• Identify TODAY’S One Thing.  Most of us have dozens of things on our to-do list with more coming in each day.  Of course, everything is an “emergency” with an “ASAP” deadline.  (Note, I have yet to find ASAP on any calendar, so I’m not sure how it can be a deadline, but that’s for another time.)  A simple way to retake command of your workload is to identify the ONE thing that you WILL get done TODAY.  You are determining that this is the very most important thing in your world for today.  Hold yourself to that commitment and start knocking things off your list that you’ve been “meaning to get to” now for days, weeks, and months.
• One Thing At A Time.  This may be obvious, but if you want to increase your focus, then focus on only one thing at a time.  You can accomplish this by doing several things to your workspace.  First, clear a space on your desk (your whole desktop?) into which nothing but your one thing will reside while you work on it.   Move your computer monitor away from this space so that it’s not a distraction or, if your one thing is on your computer, minimize all other screens and turn OFF your new e-mail alert.  Finally, place your phone on Do Not Disturb and close your door.  Now, you can actually DO one thing at a time!  Of course, return voice mails and e-mails as soon as you come back online, but I’ll guarantee you that you’ll get that one thing done faster if you follow this simple procedure.
• One More Thing.  At the end of each day right before you close everything up to go home do One More Thing.  One little thing – return an e-mail (ONE), a voice mail, put something away, send out a quick instruction.  If you do that every work day of the year, you will do over 200 more things this year than last!

Recalibrate Your Behavior to Regain Command

Over the last 10 to 15 years, the pace at which we receive information has grown in orders of magnitude.  The notion of multi-tasking arose as a method for handling all these inputs.  Unfortunately, we’re just not wired that way and attempts to accomplish more than one thing at a time actually reduce our productivity and increase our stress levels. 

Finding ways to increase our focus will not only increase our productivity, but it will return us to sense of command over our work and careers.  Give the suggestions above a try and I wish you the best of luck!

© 2010, Paul H. Burton. All rights reserved.

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