Start, Stop, Continue Part 2
Last week, I talked about the Start, Stop, Continue exercise as a way to focus our time and resources on the right projects and activities.
Part 2: What should we stop doing?
Is there something that is taking a lot of your time and not adding value? Looking for activities that get in the way of your core purpose and then stopping them can open up time and energy.
Look at your calendar or your To-Do List to remind yourself of what you did--all the tasks, meetings, and phone calls. Did you move anything forward through those activities? If you find that a process has run its course or that a particular activity is not tied to a goal, it’s probably an item you should put on your NOT-To-Do List. Just remember though that if you stop something, you need to consider who else it may impact and talk to them before you eliminate it all together.
Some questions to kickstart this include:- Are there activities that you consistently roll over to the next day or next week? If it can wait until later, is it important? If the answer is, “No,” then stop putting it on your calendar. If the answer is, “Yes, but…” then stop putting it off and make it a priority.
- Are there some projects that you’ve said yes to that are now getting in the way of other projects?
When we stop doing something unproductive, we free up resources so that we can try something that might work better. In this way, saying NO is choosing to say YES to something else.
Consider: While it was unfamiliar at first to stop manual timekeeping and start using electronic timesheets, we can appreciate how easy it is now to track time or submit vacation requests. Taking that same step away from paper charts prepared us to move into telehealth to deliver our services and information, which offered significant benefits to our agency and those we serve.
It’s a new year—what a great time to choose to change for the better!
Next week: Part 3: Continue. What are we doing that’s having a positive impact?
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