The Key To A Better New Year

 

One More Time With Feeling

A few weeks ago, a junior colleague came to me with a mental health concern. They were overwhelmed by the number of tasks in front of them, in both their personal and professional lives, and felt as if they were letting everyone down. 

I was able to give comfort and practical advice through an old productivity trick, which is to give myself five minutes to make a list of what I had to do, then five minutes to prioritize it. When the 10 minutes are up, I make myself do something -- anything -- from that list. This gives me the positive boost from getting something done, and puts me in a better place to keep moving on to other tasks, rather than getting stuck. 

I also tend to do things like schedule workouts and cleaning chores as a calendar event, which has the necessary element of knowing when such things will end, rather than putting me in a position of obsessing over a small point no one else will notice. But that's not the point of the post.

My list trick worked as a strategy, and the colleague thanked me later. But as a subsequent event shows, giving advice and acting on it are two different activities.

I was listening to an executive client talk about the amazing year their company had, the opportunities they saw moving forward, and in nearly the same breadth, being responsible to the mental health challenges of teammates. This was all happening in virtual space only, unlike what was planned previously, because of the Omicron outbreak, which the executive also noted.

This client also has previously negotiated on price (in 2021, during the seeming boom times) when M&AD did not have leverage to do much other than take the new reality. We've since diversified income with clients that are paying our preferred rate, which is always the right idea in the long term, but never fun in the short.

Hearing these points delivered by this client in this fashion generated heat in me personally, which... well, had to be overcome if we are going to continue in the relationship. (Spoiler alert: we will). Saying cognitively dissonant things in rapid succession is not evidence of hypocrisy or bad faith. Correlation is not causality, and taking things personally in business is rarely a great idea. 

But with my issues with my client and my junior colleague's concern, what was really needed is clear. Put on your own mental blinders, focus on the work and what you can do, and keep moving. Diversifying the income is hard enough. Doing it while hamstringing yourself is just good money after bad. (FYI in case you have needs: we are not at full bandwidth, so by all means, get in touch.)

Something to keep in mind as case counts mount, and as others lose focus around you.

Never let a crisis go to waste.

Our best to you and yours in what will be a Better New Year.