Whitney was the featured guest on an episode of Workbar’s YouTube series, Workbar Live! where she talked about how to get things done without sacrificing your health and happiness, even during the COVID-19 pandemic. Workbar, a Massachusetts-based coworking company. builds quality workspaces with a focus on members’ wellness and positivity.
The challenges so many of us already faced with demands on our time have been exacerbated by the pandemic. The lines between work and home have been blurred and it’s harder than ever to set boundaries to protect your time. Many people also have a heavier workload or are trying to juggle work and childcare at the same time. Whitney responded to questions from the Workbar community about how to prioritize the most important tasks and get control of your time, so you can achieve the goals that matter to you most.
How do you approach juggling multiple jobs or an increased workload?
Whitney says start with your most important goals. Where are you trying to go with your career and your life? Once you know the answer to that question, you can see which job or tasks will get you closer to what you want. Then, you can focus on prioritizing that role or those projects. If your workload has increased, have conversations about prioritization with your team, managers, and leadership. It’s impossible to treat everything like it’s the number one priority. Have candid conversations where you ask your manager to rank projects and tasks in order of importance so that you can deliver things on time and at your highest level.
Whitney also highlighted the importance of creating structure for yourself, especially if you’re working from home. Build a structure that allows you to focus on the high priority items and carve out time for yourself outside of work. Don’t neglect your own health and happiness. You are better at everything, including your job, when you take care of yourself. If you run yourself into the ground you won’t be as creative, you’ll be slower to identify solutions to problems, and you’ll risk burning out.
If you’re spending a lot of time on manual, low value tasks, identify ways to delegate. This can mean passing off projects to your teammates that are growth opportunities for them or getting rid of low value tasks altogether. If you’re a solopreneur, you may need to bring in some part time help or invest in systems and tools that can automate routine tasks. Business owners can spend too much time working in their business instead of working ON it. Instead of trying to get everything done, focus on the things that will take your business to the next level and bring in more revenue.
From Whitney’s work coaching high-potential leaders who have visions for what they want from life but don’t know how to get there, she’s recognized that the issue isn’t really the time on the clock — it’s a lack of clarity on the goals that matter to you the most. Once you get crystal clear on what you want from your life, you can build a step-by-step path to get there. When you focus on the outcomes and prioritize your own happiness, you can truly experience the kind of genuine joy that comes from the freedom and fulfillment of knowing that you are in control of your time and your life.
