Move from scattered to collected: 3 steps to creating an intentional work week
Are you in a reactive mode at work?
There is absolutely nothing like starting your work day feeling like you are about to be sucked into the vortex. Instead of YOU being in control, you succumb to the roller coaster of meetings and demands that are on your schedule. Before you know it, the week is over and you aren’t quite sure you got done anything you really intended.
Does any of these describe you?
You start your day opening up your calendar waiting to discover what’s in store for you (and realize you have no idea why some of the meetings are on your calendar)
You move through a to-do list that is full of urgent items usually assigned by someone else (and still aren’t making progress)
You concede that your proactive work (the projects that you’re really excited about) aren’t getting any attention and won’t be anytime soon.
You might feel scattered, unfocused, and reactive. You’re working to keep your head above water. It is not how you want to show up to work. But it’s all you can do to keep moving forward to meet the bare minimum of what is required.
And a bare minimum is not enough.
You can be busy and intentional at the same time
While there may be little we can do to take hold of the volume of work thrown our way, there are several things we can do move from reactive to proactive. From unintentional to intentional. You don’t have to end your work days feeling you are running to go nowhere.
How would it be if you felt measured, deliberate, and intentional? Indeed, you can end your week at work feeling that sense of command – that you approached and maneuvered through the way the way you intended.
True, you might be busy. You might even have a lot on your plate. But you don’t have to feel scattered, disorganized, or unfocused.
Three Steps to an Intentional Work Week
If you’re ready, I’ve laid out three simple steps to creating an intentional work week.
1. Clarify your top priorities (and how they fit into your work week)
Intentional planning means you know where you are aiming toward. This means knowing your top priorities and how you’re going to tackle them.
To do this step: You must set aside time to plan before your work week begins. This might be the Friday before or the Monday morning. It doesn’t require a ton of time-even 15 minutes can do the trick.
Then, ask yourself these questions:
What are my top 3 priorities? (I like to include at least 2 professional and 1 personal goal)
Where in my schedule can I advance my priorities? (Be specific here)
What’s going to get in the way of getting my priorities done?
2. Get clear about how you want to show up
When we operate outside of intention, our mind isn’t where we want it to be. When we are at work, we’re thinking of personal issues. When are at home, we are thinking of work.
All too often, we are moving throughout our day without any thought about what energy we want to bring. As a result, we may seem rushed, distracted, or unfocused.
To do this step: Look at your schedule every morning and answer one question: How do I want to show up today?
For example, do you want to be present so you can engage and hear others? Do you want to be focused on a specific project? Is today a day where you want to be thoughtful about how to interact with a certain co-worker?
How to do it: At the beginning of each day (5-10 minutes can do the trick) write out how you want to show up. Talk about the energy you want to bring to your day so you can be most successful.
3. Be tenacious in creating white space.
Nearly every single client I have complains there is no time in their schedule to think. Taking this one step further, it’s not just about no time to think. It’s about no time to truly exercise your brain. Exercising your brain means you are creating, learning, ideating, researching, data-gathering, analyzing, strategizing, ruminating, and so on.
Many have called this thinking space ‘white space’ which is code for just having space to think something through. Some people need more white space. Others need less. But having none can leave you feeling lost.
A lack of white space is an enormous challenge for virtually every client that I’ve coached.
To do this step: Each week, look at your schedule and set aside some time to think. Even one hour a week can do wonders.
Thinking can be reading. Thinking can be working through a challenge at work. Thinking can be generating ideas or creating strategies. Thinking can be planning and building a structure for an approach.
You know you have successfully engage white space when you feel a sense of flow.
Take action
What step are you willing to take? Create your intentional work day starting right now. The simple of act of creating a little bit of space in order to aim your days and weeks can do wonders to moving from scattered to collected.