Avoiding the Wonderland Effect: Better Time Management for Leaders

We have all had those moments we feel like the white rabbit with a pocket watch frantically scurrying around stressed we are late, late for an important date. Most of us have been like the girl that chased the rabbit down a hole and came out the other side disoriented and wondering where the time went (and may be thinking "why are my clothes so tight?" or that might just me be.) Time is a difficult thing to tame and it can get away from the best of us. Learning to avoid the Wonderland Effect and budget your time can reduce your stress and increase productivity. Like a financial budget or a diet, it requires discipline. For those of you that were not scared away by that statement; please read on to learn time management tips and tricks to help you make it to that very important date.

Dave Ramsey says, "You will either tell your day what to do or you will wonder where it went." In other words, you need to budget your time and stick to your budget. Of course this sounds easier said than done. Most of us feel like our time is as elusive as the Cheshire Cat and laughing at us as it slips away. This feeling is a result of not prioritizing our day and being intentional with our time.

Prioritize your day
*Use the first 15-20 minutes of your day planning your tasks for the day and getting organized. This is the time to create a to do list and prioritize what needs to be done. In Entreleadership they suggest using a system to prioritize your to-do list so you are always doing the most urgent and important things first, while leaving the non-urgent and non-important things to be delegated or discarded.
*Proportion can get a bit tricky so remember the 80/20 rule: Twenty-percent of your thoughts produces 80% of your results.
*Set time limits for your tasks. Giving yourself a timeframe helps keep you on track and keeps you from jumping down rabbit holes that cause time loss.
*Have some tea! Plan mini-breaks to allow you to recharge and refocus. Research supports taking small breaks in work makes us more productive overall.
*Small stuff can get big! Use down time to accomplish smaller tasks instead of putting them aside and letting them become a big problem. (i.e. work through your emails while you are on hold.)
*When you get distracted, go back to your to-do list.
*Do not over commit. Be realistic about the time you have and only commit to the things you can do, and should do. You do not always have to say yes!

Be Intentional
*Keep a clock visible and get in the habit of checking it to be sure you are not getting off the path you want to be on.
*Work smarter, not harder! Know your strengths and vulnerabilities. Develop habits that turn your vulnerabilities into strengths. (For example if you keep forgetting your lunch put your keys on your lunch in the fridge. This will help you remember to grab your food when you grab your keys.)
*Turn important routine tasks into habits by doing them at the same time or in the same order each day.
*Admit when you are procrastinating and try to identify the reason you are procrastinating so you can stop it.
*Use organization that fits your workflow. Set up your desk and your desktop on your computer to match your workflow for easier use.
*Use Technology to keep you on task. Outlook, smartphones, calendar reminders, and any number of apps are great for keeping a busy person on task and on time.
*Keep work conversations on topic. Use the standup technique to stop conversations that are distracting or have gotten off topic.
*Reduce distractions and identify time drains. People and tasks can be chronic time drains by staying too long to discuss things in great detail. Be quick to move them on their way or schedule a time each week that they can visit so you are not neglecting that team member or the work you need to get done.
*DO NOT WASTE TIME COMPLAINING ABOUT WHAT YOU CANNOT DO! So many people waste more time complaining about all the things they have to do or cannot do than the time it would take to just do it.
*Off with the little complainer's head! Do not let the little complainer turn you into a Mad Hatter, wasting time in confusion, frustration, and fruitless tasks.

***Be completely in the moment and give this moment your full attention. You can accomplish so much more when you do not let yesterday or tomorrow steal your time and attention. Find joy and purpose in what you do and you will be more productive through passion.

Scriptures
Colossians 4:5        1 Corinthians 14:40     Proverbs 16:9         Ecclesiastes 3:1

Finding the Cure for Analysis Paralysis

Leadership comes with many built-in energy boosts and moments that help keep the leader's spirit renewed with positive feedback and affirmations when all the hard work produces healthy results. Hard situations that require difficult decisions can seem like the onset of illness in the midst of all of the healthy development and change. The truth is it can actually act as a booster shot when we approach it with leadership thinking and do not let it paralyze the team, the momentum, and ourselves through the decision-making process. We need to also recognize that a decision left unresolved can turn into a cancer in ourselves, the company, and in our team. So how do we cure Analysis Paralysis?

First you have to understand, being passive is not an option for a leader. We have to make decisions, especially hard ones. When we allow ourselves to be plagued with indecision it paralyzes the team with doubt in our abilities and fear of what will or will not happen. 

We also have to recognize that indecision that leads to analysis paralysis has an underlying condition: FEAR or False Expectations Augmenting Reality. FEAR comes from allowing the little complainer in our head to create apprehension by telling us all of the bad things that could happen if we do not make the right decision. The reality is that very few of us face true life or death decisions and even if we make a decision that does not turn out the way we hoped, life will go on, lessons will be learned, and we will course correct if needed. 

Leaders are like surgeons for the business. They make decisive calls that determine the health of the business under time constraints that are often short. The best leaders do not have chronic emergency decisions to make because they are always looking ahead and making decisions that act as preventive care against issues becoming acute and urgent matters. However, every leader will have to face urgent matters at some point. That kind of responsibility comes with criticism. In fact, the more you do in your business and in life, the more criticism you will face. 

The analysis paralysis treatment plan includes:

*Understanding decisions are necessary but deciding not to force a decision is a decision. Allowing things to run their course just like a virus is a decision, for better or worse. 

*Decisions should not come from weakness, such as negative emotions like fear or anger or the results could be infection or even necrosis.

*The amount of time taken to make a decision should be in direct relation to the size and impact of the decision. Take the appropriate amount of time to analyze the issue.

*Long-term and short-term consequences and benefits need to be determined.

*Set a deadline, put it on the calendar, and commit to it.

*Gather options and walk through scenarios to give yourself confidence in your decision.

*Get a consult! Consult your spouse or a trusted mentor/friend/co-worker. 

*Get a second opinion. When possible consult experts and not just people with opinions.
*Seek a higher counsel. Pray! 

*Teach your team to be problem-solvers and to bring solutions when they bring issues. They should be your nurses, medical assistants, and physician's assistants in decision-making. In other words, they should work so closely with you in the problem-solving process they know when you need a scalpel and when you need a bone saw.  

*Treating others as you would like to be treated is a powerful way to make decisions you do not regret. Using your company's guiding values can make the right decision clear.

*Excise smaller parts of the decision to make big decisions more manageable.
*Remove emotions to gain a clearer view of the issue. It is often easier to make a decision when we look at it through practical eyes and remove emotional factors. 

*Write out the subjective, objective, assessment, and plan (my medical people know this as a soap note or dictation) to yourself before making the decision and the answer will often become clear by helping you process the information.

I hope all of you can give yourselves a clean bill of health with your next hard decision!

Scriptures

Proverbs 3:5-6      Jeremiah 29:11            Phillipians 4:6-7           1 John 5:14

Proverbs 11:14     Proverbs 16:33            Isaiah 41:10

Introducing....Our Medicaid Team Lead

My name is Raseline Martin and I am the Medicaid Team Lead here at Dallas Life Support Systems.  I have been working here since Dec, 2012 some may think that is a short time.  For me it seems like such a long time ago with everything that I have learned here.  The one thing that I truly appreciate is when interviewing I was honest and explained all the experience that I had, but unfortunately nothing in DME, and they took a chance any ways. I have tried to make the Medicaid Department mine.  I try to soak up as much information from the manual.  The way of thinking that “we have always done it that way” was just not enough for me.  I wanted to challenge and maximize our reimbursement and stand on the core values of this company. We never “deviate from billing clean and correctly”

When I began working here one thing that I was firm about is that as the saying goes “it takes a village to raise a child” I believe it also takes a team to bill clean, properly and requires everyone from the company to make that happen.  From the Supply Coordinator, to the warehouse person, to the driver that is delivering; we are all patient advocates in some shape, form, or fashion in this company.  I could remember the General Manager in one of our meeting saying. “You know I have heard Raseline say it and you know I have to agree it takes team work to make  things happen”  Since then the idea of team work started to spark, until my manager came on board and the fire started to spread.

 I truly believe one of my gifts here is that I believe in speaking to people and not because I have to but because it is the right thing to do.  Just to say hi how are you and smile we never know what someone is going thru and we spend so much time with each other.  Making every attempt to get along with my co-workers is important to me.  I was blessed approximately a yr ago  to be named the Medicaid Team Lead because of my views of team work, making sure that we billed correctly, and referring to the manual is important.  If you ask my manager she may say I am a “Rabbit hole jumper.” 

Entre-Leadership has been a blessing on my day-to-day life. Not to mention the Financial Peace Class that I was blessed to be apart of here as well. I love all the opportunities that Dallas life Support has given me to grow in this company to learn and to impact my co-workers. 

 I guess my motto or mission statement has always been in every job I have been in is:

   

For me this speaks volumes if you can not open yourself to change the way you think how you can ever get past the same problems that were created and continue to create.

Let me tell you a little bit about Raseline I am first generation New Yorker my family comes from Puerto Rico.  I have two beautiful children and one absolutely beautiful grandchild that are my heart and soul.  I have Fur Babies that I adore as well. (I actually think I have more pictures of them then I do of anything else.) I have 3: one imperial Shih Tzu, 1 Chihuahua and one Chihuahua Yorkie mix. I love to plant! I have a lot of plants inside as well.  I love working on my yard or plants or playing with my dogs.  

This is Raseline and this is my story.