Free Cool Down by Steve Prentice Page A
Authors: Steve Prentice
Are you willing to turn yours off? Why/why not?
⢠By succumbing to the temptation to read and respond to messages far outside of work hours, you will be conditioning others to expect the same behavior consistently and forever. How does this sit with you?
⢠Would it be possible for you to establish parameters for the times that you are available and not available to communicate, and to discuss these parameters with the people who need to know (clients, managers, etc.), being sure to reinforce in their minds the value this will bring to them in terms of having your undivided attention?
⢠How much do you fear being left out of the loop?
⢠What might happen if you were to take a day off from work? Do you have any fears about what you might miss?
⢠How about a weekâs vacation?
⢠What can you take from your fear statements above that might help eliminate your fears? Who might you talk to about them? What would you say?
The Sound of Silence
⢠How often do you reach for a phone or PDA when silence or downtime hits?
⢠Is this the best use of your downtime?
⢠If you didnât have any of these tools, not even change for a payphone, what would you do?
Human-to-Human Communication
⢠What is your own preference for communicating with others? Do you prefer email, voice mail, live phone conversations, or face-to-face meetings?
⢠Why do you prefer one over the other?
⢠Why do you think that is?
⢠What fears or reservations (if any) would you have if it were suggested that you deal with most work issues face to face from now on?
Escalation Issues
⢠Have you ever experienced a situation where a client called your boss because you did not answer promptly enough?
⢠What were the repercussions?
⢠What could you do to deal with escalation in the future?
Fire Your Weakest Client
There is an old adage taken from the 80/20 rulebook that suggests that people in sales should regularly review their client list and fire their âweakest client.â The weakest client is the one whose demands and needs outweigh the value of the business they bring in.
⢠Regardless whether you are in sales or not, how might this principle apply to you?
⢠What are the âweakest clientsâ in your world, e.g. tasks, colleagues, technologies, expectations?
⢠What could you do to rearrange your daily structure to eliminate or at least minimize your weakest clients?
Presenteeism
⢠Have you ever been at work at a time when you really should have been home? For example, when you were ill, jetlagged from a recent trip, or just mentally overloaded from too many projects?
⢠What are your reasons for coming in under these conditions?
⢠What did you achieve?
⢠Might there have been alternatives?
⢠What would your boss say if you were to ask him about strategies for reducing presenteeism in other employees as well as yourself?
⢠Have you ever called in sick when you werenât sick but were just too tired or stressed to work?
⢠Have you ever called in sick just to play hookey?
Meetings
⢠How well do your meetings run? Are they quick and efficient or long and drawn out?
⢠What systems do you have in place for quantifying the value and profitability of a meeting?
⢠What impact do you think you would have on running meetings more efficiently even if you arenât the chairperson?
The Tachometer
⢠How are your energy and concentration levels during the day?
⢠How capable/empowered are you to assign certain tasks to coincide with your strongest/weakest times?
1
Eisner, Michael. âYouâve Got E-Mail, So Use It Wisely.â Remarks by Michael D. Eisner, chairman and CEO, the Walt Disney Co. at USCâs 117th Commencement, Alumni Memorial Park, May 12, 2000. http://uscnews.usc.edu
2
Strayer, David L., Drews, Frank A., and Crouch, Dennis J., A Comparison of the Cell Phone
⢠By succumbing to the temptation to read and respond to messages far outside of work hours, you will be conditioning others to expect the same behavior consistently and forever. How does this sit with you?
⢠Would it be possible for you to establish parameters for the times that you are available and not available to communicate, and to discuss these parameters with the people who need to know (clients, managers, etc.), being sure to reinforce in their minds the value this will bring to them in terms of having your undivided attention?
⢠How much do you fear being left out of the loop?
⢠What might happen if you were to take a day off from work? Do you have any fears about what you might miss?
⢠How about a weekâs vacation?
⢠What can you take from your fear statements above that might help eliminate your fears? Who might you talk to about them? What would you say?
The Sound of Silence
⢠How often do you reach for a phone or PDA when silence or downtime hits?
⢠Is this the best use of your downtime?
⢠If you didnât have any of these tools, not even change for a payphone, what would you do?
Human-to-Human Communication
⢠What is your own preference for communicating with others? Do you prefer email, voice mail, live phone conversations, or face-to-face meetings?
⢠Why do you prefer one over the other?
⢠Why do you think that is?
⢠What fears or reservations (if any) would you have if it were suggested that you deal with most work issues face to face from now on?
Escalation Issues
⢠Have you ever experienced a situation where a client called your boss because you did not answer promptly enough?
⢠What were the repercussions?
⢠What could you do to deal with escalation in the future?
Fire Your Weakest Client
There is an old adage taken from the 80/20 rulebook that suggests that people in sales should regularly review their client list and fire their âweakest client.â The weakest client is the one whose demands and needs outweigh the value of the business they bring in.
⢠Regardless whether you are in sales or not, how might this principle apply to you?
⢠What are the âweakest clientsâ in your world, e.g. tasks, colleagues, technologies, expectations?
⢠What could you do to rearrange your daily structure to eliminate or at least minimize your weakest clients?
Presenteeism
⢠Have you ever been at work at a time when you really should have been home? For example, when you were ill, jetlagged from a recent trip, or just mentally overloaded from too many projects?
⢠What are your reasons for coming in under these conditions?
⢠What did you achieve?
⢠Might there have been alternatives?
⢠What would your boss say if you were to ask him about strategies for reducing presenteeism in other employees as well as yourself?
⢠Have you ever called in sick when you werenât sick but were just too tired or stressed to work?
⢠Have you ever called in sick just to play hookey?
Meetings
⢠How well do your meetings run? Are they quick and efficient or long and drawn out?
⢠What systems do you have in place for quantifying the value and profitability of a meeting?
⢠What impact do you think you would have on running meetings more efficiently even if you arenât the chairperson?
The Tachometer
⢠How are your energy and concentration levels during the day?
⢠How capable/empowered are you to assign certain tasks to coincide with your strongest/weakest times?
1
Eisner, Michael. âYouâve Got E-Mail, So Use It Wisely.â Remarks by Michael D. Eisner, chairman and CEO, the Walt Disney Co. at USCâs 117th Commencement, Alumni Memorial Park, May 12, 2000. http://uscnews.usc.edu
2
Strayer, David L., Drews, Frank A., and Crouch, Dennis J., A Comparison of the Cell Phone
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