Get-It-Done Days
The last three posts explored some ways to collaborate with people to get things done. But what if you’re not ready for an ongoing commitment? And what about those pesky things that have been hanging over your head for a long time? For me, these are usually things like taxes, cleaning up and organizing physical space.
Create a Get-It-Done day. Thomas Leonard, one of the pioneers of the coaching profession, used to hold days periodically where people would check in by phone on the hour, state their goal for the next hour and then call back to report progress and set a new one-hour goal.
I’ve done this with small groups of friends to great success. It really helps you to notice when you get distracted and to focus back on your current goal. And it allows you to chunk a huge task into one-hour steps so it doesn’t seem overwhelming.
Try some of these methods and create a community of support and structure –especially if you work from home and miss the camaraderie and support of an office-mates. Collaborate and get it done!
Collaboration Pays Off 
Great advice for a problem that frequently plagues me. It is much easier to accomplish tasks or goals in bite-size pieces. One technique I’ve used by myself is to decide on a task/goal and set a timer for a period of time – usually an hour or 90 minutes. Then I plant myself in my chair and work only on the task or project allowing no interruptions (phone, email, etc.) for that 60 or 90 minutes. Then I take a short break, check email and phone messages, and set a timer again. This really helps me keep myself on task.
Lynn Murphy
Key Innovative Solutions, Inc.
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