available

adjective -  1.  present and ready for use; at hand; accessible

                     2.  qualified and willing to serve or assist

Many of the modern “GTD” (Getting Things Done) strategies consist of positioning us to be constantly available/accessible.  The incessant flow of new technologies - cell phones, Blue Tooth, Blackberry, and wireless computer access just to name a few - bespeaks the need for speed and our ability to multi-task.  These “possessions & skills” are ubiquitously equated with successful workflow.  However, they can also be the very things that keep us frazzled, on the brink of explosion, and constantly connected to stressful variables. 

Mastering our workflow means having our attention properly channeled - indeed, sharply focused - throughout the week.  This is tough, considering the scores of torpedoes that come at us daily.  Apart from the obvious necessity of scheduling all your work, consider an additional strategy to battle this common problem:  instead of only focusing on the question, “what task is at hand?” ask also, “on whose behalf it is being done?” In asking this, we aren’t looking at work as drudgery; rather, it is service done in the name of a key relationship, a key customer, etc.

If we can stay in this mode of leverage, we will eliminate doubt, feel a sense of accomplishment, and experience a peaceful work regimen.  Yes, it’s possible!  But we must stay committed to doing what we call “authorized” work.  That is, work that has the proper authority behind it.

But, alas, we’re too busy strapping ourselves with gitter-done technologies; so the circus continues.  The result of this “hyper-availability” is chaos and inefficiency, not to mention underserving the people who matter most - our key relationships and our customers.

Ask yourself these questions to gauge your availability habits:

1. Are you capable of sitting still, quietly - to empty your mind & gather your thoughts - for five minutes?  Five seconds?

2. Do you plan your work at the beginning of each day / each week?

3. Do you have specific times to check voice mail and make/receive phone calls?

4. If yes, do your clients know these times?

5. Do your colleagues respect your time?

6. Do you find it difficult to NOT answer your cell phone if it interrupts the current task?

7. How much time per day do you spend on email?  Is the amount of time too much, too little, or just right?

8. Can you take a true vacation, away from your email, work phone, etc.?

9. Do you have a key relationship (spouse/friend) who sometimes gets placed on the back burner because of work?

10. Do you feel “incomplete” without some form of communication technology on your person at all times?

11. Can you think of two examples in the last month where hyper-availability has cost your business financially?   . . . relationally?  . . . . emotionally?

MASTERY

If our accumulation of technology makes us a “glowing beacon of help in the sky, open 24/7″ then we may be sending the wrong message to everyone.  This makes us low-resistance “yes-men” for the most red-faced needs of the moment.  It shows we trade in sanity for profit (or man-pleasing).  It reveals a fearful, reactive posture. 

Instead, our technology ought to serve us.  It is - and should be - great leverage for us to serve our best customers in the best ways.  Here are some things we can do to leverage our technology and optimize our availability:

1. Your strategic vision should describe (if it doesn’t already) how you use technology best, and describe how you and your team manage time best.
2. As you look over your day’s work each morning, consider how technology might help (or hinder) your ability to complete the tasks in a timely manner.
3. Consider the 11 questions offered above and present them to your team as an “efficiency exercise”.  Document answers and consider how to improve time & availability parameters. 
4. Practice shutting yourself off from technology (e.g. closing outlook, shutting off cell phone, disable call-waiting, etc.) for certain times during the day. 
5. Similarly, set specific time windows to deal w/ phone calls, voice mail, email, etc. and stick to the appointments.

In order to stay on top, we must recognize the cost of hyper-availability.  FAST usually equals SLOPPY.  Divided attention means scattered results.  Consider that authorized work is the right work - even if it is literally doing nothing.

“But I still get distracted sometimes,” you object. 

This is common, but we must realize that every task requires some type of mental and physical availability. If we fail to do this, we get lost in a mental right/wrong game where we think that busyness gets us bonus points.  We deceive ourselves in thinking that we “author” results because of our hard work.  The truth is that we have less control than we think.  Nonetheless, that doesn’t excuse us from the responsibility of being proactive and staying focused on what’s authorized.

At the end of the day, being properly focused is about knowing your Authorized Work and mono-tasking.  Practice these things!   

Jeff Timpanaro is the president of Oberata Consulting, a 2007 Certified Total Integration firm based in Kingwood, TX.  Oberata is founded on the principles of strategy, process, and transformation, and utilizes the Total Integration^TM system of business consulting. This system has helped business owners and professionals in the Fortune 100 with definitive, measurable operating strategies that produce unprecedented growth and profitability. For more information about Oberata Consulting call 281.570.4676.