Priorities

[kelstarrising]

What most beffudles you about priorities?

I am working on designing the next webinar with David (Aug 28--sign up on the home page of GTD Connect) on managing priorities and want to hear from you all about what you could use greater clarity about around priorities. The Horizons of Focus? What questions to ask? Competing priorities?

Thanks!

 

[nick_ross]

Priorities or Bushfires?

What most beffudles you about priorities?

One of the issues I struggle with is Priorities vs Bushfires

Whilst 'Work as it shows up' is (should be) under a priority, the urgency of things to do often mean my focus on my priorities aren't equal. Then certain priorities become less of a priority, even though they shouldn't be.

Take this week for example. I spent most of the week in meetings, which required preparation and next actions. In the evening, I had to do the next actions, as well as other actions from other projects. This reduced the opportunity for my other priorities - spending time with my daughter and wife, sleep etc and raises stress levels ('I should be spending time with my daughter and wife, sleeping to ensure I'm on my game')

I'm sure I'm not the only one struggling on this....

 

[Oogiem]

What most beffudles you about priorities?

Defining them in the first place. It seem that there are either emergencies, time or weather dependent things or everything else is the same high priority if it is on my list.

Emergencies are easy, deal with them right then and there, time or weather dependent things are also relatively easy, they have to be done when scheduled or when the weather is right. Everything else seems to be of the same high priority. The only things I kick out of that are actually in a separate context, "Inside by Myself Hobbies" so I don't even get to that context until I have time to work on that sort of stuff.

When I scn my lists of things to do next when in a context I typically look more at the time required than priority. Everything feels the same at that point.

 

[kelstarrising]

Great feedback. Thanks!

Anyone else?

 

[kelleydwyer]

Reframing Priorities

This may be a variation on the theme here, but as a lawyer with a solo practice officing primarily from my home, something I struggle with frequently is putting things like getting a Weekly Review done, exercise, time off, and personal projects on a back burner as they seem "selfish" when I can devote that time to client projects instead. Are there any helpful tips for how to redefine/reframe these projects as just as important as client work? I realize that if I can't refuel, I'll have nothing to give my clients. I've tried blocking off time on my Outlook calendar, but as everyone keeps mentioning, those pesky "latest and loudest" items keep popping up and then I don't honor my personal project commitments.

Thanks!

 

[Mardo]

Priorities

having to move in and provide for support for a much loved father and former partner in business after caring for my wonderful mother who died of lung cancer (never smoked)
managing and working full time profession which I love
wanting to have a life before I am too old to enjoy it

 

[vbampton]

what you could use greater clarity about around priorities.

Was it one of the seminar DVD's that David talked about the guy who had too many meetings? 'It's not about the meetings, it's about the kids.' Because I've been cutting work down to more limited hours, determining what NOT to do has been top of mind recently, and I guess that comes back to priorities and horizons of focus.

So maybe my question is how to make sure that everyday decisions relate back to higher horizons, instead of wasting time on things that shouldn't really be a priority.

 

[CJSullivan]

Priorities in the moment vs. overarching priorities

Perhaps some help in navigating the (potential) disconnect in trying to align in-the-moment priorities with priorities based on upper horizons. I've heard David talk about using one's horizons of focus to help make in-the-moment priority decisions, but sometimes it's a case of "which is more important - this? or this?" and it's not about any overarching goal, nor is it about work as it shows up, but a case of choosing between items that are already captured on one's lists.

I know he talks a lot about the intuitiveness of "which will give me the most bang for my buck?" but would like to hear him talk in a little more depth about exercising one's intuition!

 

[Mark Jantzen]

GTD Live on A,B,C ...

I was listening to GTD Live the other day and the priorities section connected with me.

I don't remember the exact quote but David acknowledged that A,B,C or 1,2,3 is an option but there's so much more to priority decisions than that simplistic model.

 

[Hawaiisempi]

Aha moment on doing work and priorities

I recently had an "Aha" moment during a participation in a Managing Workflow seminar delivered to my team by Zoltan from the David Allen Company. I have been practicing GTD for about 5+ years now and have struggled with priorities always feeling that this was a component of the system that was missing or lacking. We reviewed the model for criteria evaluation when determining what work you could perform:

1. Context
2. Time Available
3. Resources (Energy)
4. Priority

It always struck me funny that priority was on the bottom where most of us think about what is the priority. I thought about this and realized that priority is only evaluated AFTER all the other constraints have been met. Many times we implicitly breeze through those constraints. For example, when you come to work in the morning, you have a big list of things you can do. You have your laptop (context), you have all day (time available) and you are energized (caffinated ) THEN we ask "what's the priority?".

Having the full list of commitments allows us to determine what is the most bang for the buck. That can be driven by clients, task responsibilities or other things like personal. On this, I believe the key is making a decision and being OK with the choice. If you choose to do something that a client asks or drops on you and you don't so something else, you need to be OK with that. Otherwise, there is the option to choose to do something else. The key is that every choice has consequences and you need to be OK with those.

It seems that most of the stress in trying to determine priorities comes from not being OK with the consequences of the choices we make. If I accept the work and it means time away from my wife/family and I'm not happy then I need to look at the bigger picture and ask something like "do I want to continue with this job?" Accepting the fact that we are going to work and it will take time away from other things greatly alleviates the stress. Likewise, when a choice to pursue exercise, personal items, family time, etc. creates consequences at work then we need to go up a level or two of the Horizons of Focus and ask those hard questions. The key is choice and fully accepting the consquences that go along with those.

Leigh

 

[CJSullivan]

I thought about this and realized that priority is only evaluated AFTER all the other constraints have been met. Leigh

Totally agree - this model is great for supporting in-the-moment decision-making. I know I still need coaching on (a) making my upper horizons feel "real" in the moment, and (b) exercising my intuition muscle! I find that I do some great work at the 30-40K level, but that's where it tends to stay...up in the "clouds."

I think it's just a question of finishing the thinking and processing each 30-40K goal down to its logical next action, which - for me - means scheduling a "mini-retreat" in order to really operationalise these upper levels... I have a feeling that priorities will reveal themselves much more organically after that.

 

[Zoltan]

Leigh,

I'm very glad you decided to post your "Aha" moment and your very insightful thoughts around priorities.

The key is being empowered to make a conscious choice in the moment and being OK, or accepting the consequences of the choice you make.

One question I usually ask myself re priority is, "What will give me the biggest payoff when done?" And in a recent conversation with Kelly, she shared a variation on that with us re the notion of Value/Risk. What on my list will provide the most value if I do it? And what on my list poses the greatest risk if I DON'T do it. I think this is a very helpful way of looking at priorities, and helps to simplify some of the challenge and confusion around it.

 

[DenaDahilig]

*Context
*Time Available
*Resources (Energy)
*Priority

Thanks for posting these, Leigh. I often forget these constraints, then I just try to power through things, energy or no.

What I really want is a word that means "priority" but that... well, isn't.

For me, "priority" has all of these associations with system structure that simply don't apply. A priority is only a priority in the moment (the instant) you say, "What do I need to do now?"

It's like watching marathon runners... how many move in and out of 1st place as the race progresses? How many are in a priority position only to move back as circumstances change?

So I'd like to request a new word, please. Something with fewer syllables. And maybe French sounding. And, if possible, it should remind me of a calming stream running next to a riverbank.

Is that too much to ask?

Dena

 

[kelstarrising]

So I'd like to request a new word, please. Something with fewer syllables. And maybe French sounding. And, if possible, it should remind me of a calming stream running next to a riverbank.

How about FLOW?

 

[DenaDahilig]

How about FLOW?

Yes, thank you. That would be lovely.



Dena