If you’re anything like me, you’re juggling a number of priorities, tasks, people and tasks, making life incredibly busy. Hey – we’re well into the 21st Century and as far as I can make it out, this is how it’s going to be for a while, yet! But are you actually getting anywhere? Are your actions taking you forward or are you simply “being busy” – and there is a difference. I call it Action Illusion.
Action Illusion can happen to the best of us. It's when you fill your time and space with “busyness” – lots of different things that fill your time – but how much of it is actual action, rather than an illusion of action? How much of it is actually moving you forward in a positive, meaningful way?
Good grief, you and I know that our time can easily be filled up, but is it all good, or actually causing us more burnout? We need to make sure that what we do makes a positive difference, and if it doesn’t – we need to recognize that and stop it!
Here's a quick exercise which will help you to identify the things you do which are “illusions” of action and those which are actual, positive steps forward.
EXERCISE:
1. Draw a circle – the bigger, the better. I find this exercise works best if you’re standing up, so if you can find a large piece of paper to pin to the wall on which to do this – go for it!
2. Grab a pack of Post It notes and for each task you have to do (phone calls; meetings; projects; conference calls; events; kids stuff; partner stuff; home stuff; admin, etc.), write each one on a Post It note. It's best to do this as quickly as you can rather than giving it lots of “pondering” thought. Think and write quickly and give each item/task its own Post It note. Place all of these Post It’s into the circle.
3. Once you've exhausted yourself (literally!), stand back and have a look at all the Post It’s. Then go through each one and ask yourself this question:
“On a scale of 1 – 10 (1 being "virtually none" to 10 being "completely") how much is this task moving me/my project/my family/my team/my business forward?
Write the number in red on each Post It note.
4. For any Post It note that has 7 or less – remove the Post It and put it on the outside of the circle.
5. Any Post its that remain inside your circle are the ones that you should continue doing, as they're positively contributing to your moving forward in some way. The others are simply Illusions of Action – contributing to your feeling of "busyness" but not actually being that meaningful or fruitful – in fact, they probably cause you more stress!
Now’s the time to be brave. Go on – I dare ya! Pick one thing on the outside of your circle and be ruthless. Stop doing it. Just completely stop. Give yourself one week of not doing it. At the end of that time, notice what difference has been made as a result of not doing it. Chances are, no noticeable difference will have been made at all – which only goes to reinforce your decision in stopping it!
Then try choosing another one and doing the same. One item at a time. You'll soon see the difference in a positive, productive, “Fired Up” you, rather than someone suffering from Action Illusion!
P.S This is also great for sharing with your teams, individuals you’re responsible for, or are coaching. It really helps to bring them clarity, perspective and motivation. Have fun!
