Bobbie LaPorte kicks off 2021 with a new weekly vlog series on “Your Best Next Move,” providing helpful tips on how to keep moving forward despite the unrelenting uncertainty that continues to surround us. In her January 25, 2021 installment, Bobbie explains how choosing to focus on essential vs exhaustive action can help you meet any challenge head-on.
Essential vs Exhaustive Transcript:
Hi everyone, Bobbie LaPorte here; I’m back and wishing you a happy (belated) new year. I hope 2021 has started off well for you and your team…although you do have to admit it’s been a bit of a wild ride already.
The last time I posted one of these tips was before the holidays last December when I tried to provide perspective on 2021. I compared it to 1968, which was a terrible year for our country, but which was followed by 1969, a year of innovation and renewal. My hope was that 2021 would be a turnaround year for us – like 1969 was back then.
I am still optimistic that it will be; and while 2020 is in our rearview mirror, it does feel like we have started off 2021 with more of the same!
Look – there is no doubt that we will continue to operate in an environment of change, complexity, and uncertainty. Noted futurists are predicting that we will see more change in the next 2 years than we have seen in the last 10 – so fasten your seat belt and get ready!
With that as a backdrop, I have decided that the next phase of my Monday VLOG tips will focus on your BEST NEXT MOVE during these times of uncertainty. I want to help you see how you can have more agency in your work; to acknowledge your capacity to act, to exert the power you have – not operate on autopilot, putting out fires, feeling like you have little control over what you can do.
So, my question to you will be: what can you do now? What is your best next move? Each week I will offer a simple idea for you to consider, to act on.
So, here’s my tip for this week:
Sometime this week you will likely face an unexpected situation, a problem, or an issue. It doesn’t have to be a major obstacle or some career-defining issue, just something someone has brought to your attention to address.
Keep in mind that we are all still laboring under a heavy cognitive load and can only take on so much. So instead of looking at this issue from a “this is a big deal and I need to fix it now” perspective or create a comprehensive action plan with a long list of to-dos, think essential vs exhaustive.
What is one small step, one simple action you or your team members can take that will give direction, make progress, and feel some satisfaction in moving forward? Acting, not waiting for the perfect solution. ESSENTIAL – NOT EXHAUSTIVE.
That’s my tip of this week and the first tip to kick-off 2021. Remember: you do have agency to act, to take small but meaningful steps, to keep making your path forward in 2021.
I’ll see you next Monday; take care of yourselves!