« Leading and controlling – what’s the difference? | Home | Where are mom and dad? »
24 – Jack Bauer’s to do list
By Ron | May 15, 2007
Imagine tackling your day the way Jack Bauer does. He does more in one day than the whole US Army before 9 am. The premise of the show is that every hour on TV is equal to a real time hour of life. How many times do you get to the end of your day only to be disappointed with how little you accomplished on your to do list. Look at Jack’s to do list: recover five nuclear bombs, capture the terrorists who want to blow up major US cities, save Audrey, and recover the component that has fallen into Chinese hands. My list looks nothing like these heroic items.
In setting up your to do list, do you ask key questions such as: Are these part of a bigger picture of attaining my performance goals? Am I wasting time in stuff that does not matter? How much do I let interruptions prevent me checking off these items? Jack’s list is more reactionary than we need in business. His priorities seem to change every hour based on what others do. Our daily priorities and goals should be set in light of monthly or quarterly goals.
I worry about Jack Bauer. I never see him eat, go to the restroom, or take a water cooler break. These habits certainly are not healthy; one has to have intake, output, and social integration. We should look at every hour of our day with the same zeal that Jack defends our country. You know, I would like to have Jack’s cell phone battery.
Topics: Leadership | 3 Comments »
May 20th, 2007 at 4:01 pm
Ron,
I run a midsize company and I cannot imagine not having a “to do list” to help me get through the day. While the list is essential, I face frequent interruptions with phone calls and people. Many items never get checked off in my day. This becomes discouraging. If only I could work my own list and not be bothered. I know this is a necessary evil and I should just deal with it.
Lance Gibbs
May 21st, 2007 at 6:54 am
Lance,
You know that if you were not the boss, then interruptions would not be a problem. I am sure we never interrupt the people’s day who work for us or distract them from their “to do list” by adding to it. They probably hate to see us come around thinking what will be added to my plate today. I have a found a bit of a balance regarding my own list by blocking time every morning to organize and deal with key items on my “to do list” before I allow interruptions. Then the open door policy kicks back in after an hour and a half. During that time, I let my voice mail catch all calls so I cannot be derailed from my list. I’m like you though, at the end of many of my days, I feel I have not done near enough. On those days, I try to look at the week as a whole with what gets done. It is never ending – just keep leading!
Ron
May 21st, 2007 at 1:08 pm
I recently read something by J. Maxwell that I found helpful regarding my to do list. Each morning when you start you should not begin with the things that did not get done yesterday. They may not be as important as what needs to be done today. We should prioritize every morning not just Monday.