Enjoy the fruits of your effort.
In today’s world, it can be very difficult to know when work stops and starts. Technology, communications, and a need to succeed have all created an environment where it can be extremely difficult to disengage from the office. To provide clarity and the space to have work-life balance, it’s critical we separate the “urgent” from the “important.”
What do we mean by “urgent?” Without question we have to respond to the needs of our clients. Often times there are immediate requests when we require ourselves to step up. This is what they rely on us for.
But as an organization, we have a responsibility to our employees to help them not just “put out fires,” but prevent them from staring in the first place. This means defining and providing the space to work on what is “important.”
The focus on the “important” gives us the chance to develop predictable workflows, clearly defined roles, and an environment that fosters continuous improvement. By doing this, we can allow our employees to be more productive, so they may provide an even higher level of service to our customers, instead of always having to be in reaction mode.