Can you really do it all – and do it effectively? It seems to be a more-ever present question that’s playing out for the majority of business leaders today.
I see it every day with my clients – leaders who are working tirelessly to manage and balance their day-to-day responsibilities with all the extra work that’s inherent in taking on a new project.
Some days – it feels like a job that takes 200% of your time … and THAT reality is inherently not sustainable for anyone.
So what do you do if you find yourself in the unenviable position of having to run your “business” and lead a project at the same time?
Here are four tips for success:
- Learn how to influence in addition to “managing up.” Effective leaders understand how to manage up and successfully manage through their leaders when it comes to day-to-day operations. However, the best leaders also understand that “managing up” usually looks different on a project because it typically involves influencing across the organization to different groups/leaders who aren’t part of your operational leadership. Know who those key stakeholders are and make sure you’ve got a solid plan in place to manage them or they can become your biggest obstacles to success.
- Carve out specific times to manage your operational tasks and your project tasks. Then … most importantly … stick to those boundaries you’ve created for yourself and hold those times as “sacred” in your calendar.
- Leverage your high-potential performers. Identify people on your team who can either a) shoulder some of the responsibility for managing work day-to-day or b) take on some key tasks on your project. Even if they aren’t quite ready for the new responsibilities, the challenge and opportunity that you can provide to them will be an invaluable growth experience for them.
- Find time each week to “lift up” and assess progress. It’s so easy to get lost in the day to day challenges of managing both your project and your operations. Great leaders understand that it’s critical to keep your eyes on the big picture in both aspects. Carve out time each week to review how you’re doing in the big picture and make sure that the tasks and activities that take up the everyday are fulfilling the right business objectives.
Sheri Browning is a Partner at PeopleResults. You can reach her at sbrowning@people-results.com or on Twitter @sbPResults.
