But the question is common: I want to learn how to set priorities. Well, let's deal with them.
According to the explanatory dictionary, priority is about what comes first in time, and the second meaning is superiority over something/someone.
And what do you mean when you want to "prioritize"?
Most often, this is the same planning, that is, a sequence of events that you decided for yourself early on, and then you have to follow.
But if you have not learned not only “to plan”, but also to carry out your plans, then you will always have a disorder with priorities.
And no matter how many different techniques about "green-red tasks", "urgent-important tasks" and other things you try to learn and remember, nothing will happen except disappointment.
Because, to be honest, it's easy to set priorities, it's hard to keep them.
It's just a matter of discipline, that's all!
Situations and priorities.
First example.
Imagine that you wake up in the morning and you have a choice of what to do first: take a shower or get dressed.
I understand your reaction: what a fool, it's simple!
Yes, it's simple for a smart person: shower first and then get dressed.
This is the priority, the decision about what to do first and what to do next.
Each of us can do it.
In work, this happens as an ordinary orderly activity: first planning and then execution, or first prepare a contract, then check it and only then send it to the client.
Second example.
And now I will complicate the situation: you woke up in the morning not from the clock, but from the smell of smoke in your house, because the child decided to make you breakfast, but "something went wrong".
And after you manage everything, put out the fire, ventilate the room, take the child to kindergarten and get to the office, you suddenly realize that you have clothes on, but they are not quite appropriate, and as for the shower... and you haven't even brushed your teeth.
What happened to your daily priorities?
Yes, they changed to suit the situation because you have a different target that you didn't have before this morning.
It was necessary to save the family from the fire, and not to worry about hygiene.
At work, it looks like this: one of the employees did not enter the information into the CRM, and today the client called with the question "where?", so the whole office left all its affairs and urgently packs and sends the product to save the client and reputation.
Thus, we conclude: priorities change when the goal changes or its importance changes.
But most people change their priorities when the conditions change: someone called, came, asked, hung up, etc.
For example, an employee made the best schedule of tasks for a working day, calculated every minute to fulfill the quota for the week, but his boss suddenly remembered something or received "from above", so he demands to put everything aside and start doing exactly that.
And the employee must make a choice: continue to carry out his plan or "satisfy" the manager's need and keep his own peace.
But there will still be no peace, because distraction is a deviation from the system of priorities that the employee has set for himself in order to move in the chosen direction.
If the employee has to abandon his plan, he is defeated in the execution of his decisions, so after a while he will abandon planning altogether.
And after several attempts, the subordinate simply forbids himself to plan something so as not to fall into the situation of such a choice.
When I conducted a survey, which is the most frequent and most difficult distraction from work, the immediate supervisor always took the first place.
Third example.
A little artificial, but worthy of attention.
You woke up in the morning, got ready to take a shower, but suddenly your eye caught a waterproof suit that your friend suggested you buy for your next trip to the jungle.
You looked at it and decided to try right now to see if it was really that good.
And your priorities immediately changed: you put on a suit and go to the shower.
Why have the priorities changed?
Because there is a goal to "travel to the jungle with pleasure".
And this task is not for today, but you have the opportunity to try on a suit and the time for it, so you decided to change your daily routine a little.
So, at work, you can "catch" yourself or a subordinate on such a deviation from what needs to be done now.
But you shouldn't pay too much attention to it, because such cases indicate the presence of interest and involvement, and a person will definitely find an opportunity to "compensate" for lost time by increasing productivity.
Let's summarize:
1. Priorities are decided depending on your goals, availability of time and simple common sense.
There is no need to introduce unnecessary complications into them.
I will even add that as soon as you feel some difficulty, then look again, where has intelligence gone, and that's it.
2. Priorities change when goals change, not circumstances.
Therefore, it is necessary:
- know your goals
- move towards their implementation
- track this movement and adjust your speed and direction
3. As for the manager, he is responsible for subordinates:
- knew the goals and objectives of the company and the division
- had plans for the day, week, month
- carried out these plans and did not deviate from them for nothing.
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