Hindsight is a Wonderful Thing

Why is hindsight so valuable and how do we use it early and effectively? Reflecting on what works and what doesn’t is enormously valuable in a wrap up at the end of a project, but you can use it in other ways too.

Stop and breathe. Everyone who knows me knows that this is part of my daily language. The reason it’s so helpful is that it is a counterbalance to a demanding mind and a constructive reflective tool. It is important to recognise and appreciate that being busy is a good thing as long as you’re enjoying the work and can see the end goal.

Embrace the busyness and assess why you’re struggling with time management. Is it because you’re over committed, need better resourcing, or, as is often the case, are you so busy that you’ve forgotten to plan? Have you become reactive rather than proactive? Perhaps you’re satisfied with your achievements but frustrated with the endless list of incomplete actions. These are signs that your organisational skills have been sidelined.

I suggest you use “hindsight early”. I worked with Michael* this week and we re-wrote his core purpose and strategy. This flowed into reviewing his diary and planning for the next month. It’s so easy to forget what you’re doing and become reactive to calls, emails and requests. We have a call booked in at the end of the month to see how we’ve gone and what needs to be tweaked. It helps to have external accountability.

Following are some tips to get you back on track:

1. Use a day book and plan your day before you open your email
2. Imagine where you’ll be in a month (or specific timeline). What should you be doing now to ensure you’ve achieved your goal? Prioritise.
3. Planning, planning, planning; invest in yourself and your business. Take the stress out of the day by focussing on the broader goal for half an hour each day. Once you’re back in control this time will diminish. There will always be an element of unplanned activities so control what you can.
4. Say no where you have to, it’s your day and your business. A sense of control gives enormous confidence and ability to prioritise.

   We’ve had a great quarter here at Aide de MD, including:

• Being published in Yahoo Finance https://au.finance.yahoo.com/news/how-to-get-your-boss-to-say-yes-to-a-flexible-working-arrangement
• Presenting at the Derma Aesthetics Symposium Awards Night
• Joining the Manly Business Chamber Exec Committee

Have a great month, remember it’s less than a full quarter until Christmas, … and everything goes a bit awry after Melbourne Cup Day!

We have refined and developed our accountability workshop, please call us if you want to discuss how to keep your team and colleagues on track. It’s great for an end of year review or January strategy re-set!

* Name has been changed