Answer: Every time you start working, you have a choice to make. You can just plow ahead, starting with what’s on top and working until you’re either finished or exhausted. This is a very common approach, but it’s tactical rather than strategic and it will lead to wasted time, frustration and less than optimal productivity.
The better approach is strategic. It will without fail make you more efficient and productive and lead to a higher quality result. Use The 5 Ds approach to work strategically instead of tactically. Here’s how The 5 Ds work:
Instead of simply plowing into that pile of work, spend a few minutes before you start doing to examine each piece of work, each task, to see if it can be:
Dropped. Does it need to be done at all? If it’s not necessary or valuable, drop it.
Deferred. Does it need to be done now? Is it a top priority in light of the rest of your work? If not, put it aside until it is a priority.
Downsized. Does the work need to be done as presented or is it really a smaller or different task when you think about it in the context of project deliverables and goals? Do what needs to be done, not just what presents itself.
Delegated. Are you the right person to do the work? Would a subordinate with better computer skills do it better? Would a boss with more organizational power get the result faster? Would an outside service provider have more bodies to throw at it? If someone else can achieve the right result more effectively, enroll the someone else and delegate.
Once you have dropped, deferred, downsized and delegated work as appropriate, what’s left is what you do.
Click here for more information on The 5 Ds and how they work.
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