Strategic Discipline Blog

It would hardly be Christmas and the holiday season if most of us weren’t feeling some stress.  It’s a little known fact what the real source of stress is.  What you are stressing about right now?  Most of us are hurrying to get our Christmas gifts purchased, and hoping we don’t forget anyone.  Some males even make it a habit to shop the very last day, Christmas Eve for their significant other.  Add this to your current to do list and it’s no wonder some of us border on insanity this time of year. 

So what is the source of stress?  It’s unfinished business.  Waiting until the last moment to finish your Christmas shopping is stressful because of all the weight of unfinished business. 

Imagine the weight you are carrying in terms of all the unfinished business you have to complete.  Worse is the weight of the unfinished business you’re not even aware of or haven’t put in a place holder that will remind you to complete it.  David Allen, noted time management expert, recommends putting all your to do’s in some type of reminder place holder so you not only have them set as to their level of priority but also so you simply remember what they are.

The holiday season can be a disturbing time of stress.  It is often a time of radical change for many of us.  We are preparing for a new year, yet attempting to finish the current one as well as possible.

The need for stability at this time is high.  You need to balance change with stability and nothing helps to achieve that more than the meeting rhythms we suggest as part of Positioning Systems Strategic Discipline practices.  Our newsletter next week will discuss the critical value and importance that one client gained in establishing their weekly meeting rhythms. 

Weekly meetings provide a place holder to keep you and your people accountable to their priorities, and their metrics.  It’s a stress reliever simply because of the heightened awareness it brings to your managers, your organization and the progress you’ve made on your key objectives.

We frequently tell our clients that routine sets you free.  It’s a counter intuitive.  Routine and discipline conflicts with the sense of freedom that everyone wants.  To achieve your company’s priorities you need to have structure in place to remind everyone of their accountabilities and the metrics necessary to hit their objectives.  A weekly meeting rhythm with the right agenda reduces unfinished business.  It sets your course for success!