Simplicity should take up residency in your workplace.
Instead of thinking about all the people who need to be at an upcoming meeting, think about the fewest number who should attend.
appBeing uninvited is a metric of success,app says Lisa Bodell, CEO of FutureThink.
And instead of asking people about all the things theyappre going to commit to doing next year, ask them what they plan to drop.
Too many people are simply too busy. Too busy to think. Too busy to innovate. Too busy to develop strategies to win in the marketplace.
Thatapps because typical to-do lists are simply too long.
appComplexity is overwhelming us. Itapps really become our new operating system, unfortunately, and it has to stop,app Bodell said at a November webinar offered by Talent Management.
For years, Bodell has been talking about streamlining, about how individuals in a workplace can avoid unnecessary work, the kind of tasks that rob employees of time to think app creatively, innovatively and strategically.
Organizations have less focus when they pay more attention to volume versus value, she said. They are less agile when they are more focused on internal operations than external connections.
And thereapps less thinking when the emphasis is mostly on doing, Bodell said, echoing highlights from her 2016 book, appWhy Simple Wins: Escape the Complexity Trap and Get to Work That Matters.app
appWe say that we value thinking, but we donappt. We reward people for doing,app the business coach and veteran Ted Talk speaker said.
People tend to equate being busy with being important, but many workers are frustrated when they feel they arenappt spending enough time on meaningful work. That can contribute to high turnover, Bodell said.
Her company often works with highly regulated businesses such as banks. If they can identify and get rid of unnecessary work, any organization can.
Bodell said one reason that Pfizer, which has been a FutureThink client, was able to develop a COVID-19 vaccine so quickly is because it has worked to simplify and focus on the most critical processes. The organization has a culture of thinking, not just reacting. Businesses that have taken the simplicity approach have transformed entire industries, Bodell said, calling them appbillion-dollar disruptors.app
Uber, for example, made it simple to get a car and get to a destination. Dropbox makes it easy to share files. Kickstarterapps success is because it creates an appease of access to other peopleapps fundsapp and could speed the process of getting products to market faster.
Itapps easy to get caught up in tasks instead of strategy, she said. But doing that app along with the multitasking that requires constant context switching app becomes a drain on energy, causing diminishing returns.
You donappt want a culture where you just say appsimplify,app Bodell said, but leaders and employees have to pinpoint areas that could be more efficient and operator- or user-friendly in a focused way.
One approach could be having employees create lists of the tasks they do and circling ones that are meaningful. Itapps possible some that werenappt circled represent unnecessary work, though Bodell acknowledges each person may have different perceptions of whatapps meaningful.
Leaders could also simply ask employees: appIf you could get rid of two rules, what would those be?app
Another approach is sending an email with a question as a subject line and including the appbottom line upfrontapp instead of including all the background or building a case at the top of the communication.
One culprit behind the appGreat Resignationapp app droves of people quitting jobs since the pandemic app is the feeling they were wasting time at work, Bodell said. Time is a resource you never get back.
appIf you get the work right, people stay,app Bodell said, appand they are so much better at their job that the customers are more satisfied.app
To share a thought, a favorite quote or other wisdom about leadership, email Lisa Green at lisagreen@jg.net. Lead On also appears online as a blog at .
