123 The Details Can Derail You

<p>“The Devil Is In The Detail” saying, reflects ancient wisdom about taking careful notice of small things.  The semi-amusing reflection on this saying is that it was created centuries ago, when we can imagine life was substantially less complex than it is today.  E-mail surges, flat surfaces groaning under the weight of paper, meetings back to back from dawn to dusk, ring tones, beeps and assorted intrusions from digital devices we carry on our person 24 hours a day - this is the modern life.  How easy it is for us to become overwhelmed by all the detail and in the process unknowingly unleash a number of Devils.</p> <p>The best answers to these types of dilemmas is to work on our time management, especially prioritisation and that other partner in crime – delegation.  Surprisingly, many of the executives I train or coach do not sufficiently plan their days.  They do not have written down lists of what should occupy their valuable time, in order of priority and executed starting with the task of highest importance.  They are commencing their days hammering way on whatever random emails landed in their inbox overnight.  They troop off to a barrage of meetings and then race back to attack the newer emails which slipped through during their absence or which could not be knocked over, surreptitiously, on their device during the meeting.</p> <p>Stop kidding yourself.  “Your time is all you have and time is life”.  Pause for a moment and let that one sink in slowly.  Set goals, so you have a direction.  Set a vision so that you have a philosophy about WHY you are doing it all.  Boil both down to tasks to be completed on a daily basis, arranged in a pecking order from most to least important and only start with the number one priority. </p> <p>We can’t do everything each day, but we can do the most important thing.  Be adaptable to change the order, as the day unfolds, but stick with the self-designated tasks.  Move unfinished tasks to the next day’s list and start again with the application of priorities, as they will