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Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of iHeartRadio.
Good morning.
This is Laura.
Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.
Today's tip is to try not to give yourself homework.
There are ways to lighten the burden on future you while still being a team player if you are strategic about it.
So I am sure many of us have had this experience.
In a meeting, someone asks you to send them a document.
You write down a note to yourself to do this.
Of course your day is jam-packed, so you don't wind up getting around to executing on all these little meeting follow-ups until 6 pm or later, when you'd like to be on your way home.
Or maybe you agree to an informational meeting with someone and agree to help out, and then spend time afterwards sending lots of introductory emails and information, only to find out that the person hasn't used all of this.
We want to be team players, but there are ways to make being a team player easier on ourselves.
First, if you are asked to fulfill a quick request and you are comfortable doing so, do it right then.
So, for instance, if you are asked during a meeting to send colleagues the agenda from last year's annual meeting, just find it and do it.
If someone wants to know the status of the department budget, don't say you'll send a note later.
Send a message to the finance office during the meeting.
They may reply during the meeting so that you can report the answer.
But even if they don't, at least you will have made the request.
So the ball is in someone else's court, at least for a while.
Now, if you are sitting with eight people in a conference room, this only works for quick requests.
You are probably not going to pause everything for several minutes, so you can do something.
But if you are meeting individually with a direct report or perhaps someone who is a little less tightly scheduled than you are, you could even fulfill more extensive requests, right then?
For example, if you are meeting with a person who is interested in your industry and they ask for recommendations of professional associations and publications, go ahead and find that information, even if it requires a little Googling to get the names right.
Don't find yourself writing a lengthy email about the shape of the field at night after your kids go to bed.
If your direct report has a document they want you to review, review it during your check-in time.
That way they get the feedback as soon as possible.
You can talk through any areas of confusion rather than emailing back and forth.
This is really a win for both of you.
And there is no homework for you after the meeting.
Another way to avoid giving yourself homework is to make sure the other person can take the next step independently.
For example, if you are talking with your neighbor and she asks for the name of that karate studio you joined, tell her the name and have her email it to herself.
You don't need to promise to send the link later and take the risk of forgetting.
You might also consider leaving the ball in the other person's court to decide on their own time whether they would like you to follow up on anything.
That way you won't be spending time following up on something that the other person may not actually be all that interested in.
For instance, you might say if, after you look into this, you decide that you'd like me to send you more information on one or two of the groups I mentioned, let me know, and I'll be glad to do it.
You may have homework later, but only if the other person would actually appreciate it.
If they forget about it or decide it wouldn't be helpful after initial research themselves.
There is nothing more for you to do.
Of course, sometimes you might not be sure you want to fulfill a request.
You might want to buy yourself time to think about it, and that's fine.
Giving yourself homework is better than doing something hasty that you will regret.
But when you probably are going to do something like send your colleagues that old report, then don't let that task make it onto your to-do list.
Do it right away and feel as free as a kid who got her homework done during study hall.
No need to break open the books.
It can be video games all night.
In the meantime, this is Laura.
Thanks for listening.
And here's to making the most of our time.
Thanks for listening to Before Breakfast.
If you've got questions, ideas, or feedback, you can reach me at Laura at LauraVanderkam.com.
Before Breakfast is a production of iHeart Media.
For more podcasts from iHeart Media, please visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.
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Guaranteed human.
