I was recently asked if I had skills in prioritising issues of importance in a fast paced business environment.
I smiled.
Fact is, like anyone out there who is working and has a life those decisions start when we place our feet on the floor every day.
Do I want to work today? Or do I want to take up that offer of a relaxing long weekend with friends? Do I want to attend my child’s award ceremony or do I want to finish that report? Will I take some time out with my ageing and unwell parent or will I rest my body and mind?
These are few of the many, many decisions many (or is that most?) of us are facing every day and as far as I’m concerned there is no better training ground for pleasing Mr. Bloggs or Mrs Jones.
But you know what?
I don’t actually think the greatest challenge is actually about choosing who to please the most on any given day. I think there is another variable that’s at play. It’s our own mind.
The weird thing about choices is that it’s impossible to ever get them all right. Yep, you may have a great strike rate but eventually you’ll choose the report over the meeting, or the the meeting over the time with someone you love, and you’ll get it wrong.
And in that getting it wrong we all have a choice. We can choose to pack it in and decide we are a terrible person and hide out avoiding calls and eating ice cream.
Or,
We can choose to dust ourselves off and make another decision.
Moving in a fast paced environment (read any day of real life juggling multiple priorities of any kind) isn’t always pretty. The only variable that really matters is your state of mind.
Had I had the chance to rephrase the above-mentioned question, this is what I’d ask…
“What do you do each and every day to nurture your state of wellbeing? To ensure you are running on full?”
Because it’s the full tank that gives the best performance. What are you doing this week to ensure you are making choices that nurture you?
