By Marsha Egan
Want to energize your department? Set due-times, rather than due-dates.
We've all requested a task to be completed by a certain day, only to be disappointed that the promised report wasn't emailed to us until 11:30 PM that night. You needed it by the end of the work-day, not the end-end of day! Yeesh.
Here is a surprisingly simple strategy that will provide energy and clarity to your department or business, and enable even greater efficiency and progress: Assign a due time, in addition to a due date.
Which is clearer?
- Please submit your month-end report to me by Friday, June 30.
- Please submit your month-end report to me no later than Friday, June 30, at 1:00PM.
Providing a specific time leaves no question when the report is due and will make it easier on you and the person assigned with the task. However, an even greater benefit is that this practice actually provides energy.
One word of caution: honor that date and time. Do something with the delivered item soon after that time deadline. If you don't enforce the deadline or use the item in a timely manner, people will let things slide.
When people clearly understand the date and time that a task is expected, they find extra motivation to get it done. Also, since you know when you'll receive it, you can concentrate on your work and not be disrupted.
To get all these benefits that keep your work group humming, just add the time to the delegated task and watch what happens when it comes time...for due time
Marsha Egan, CPCU, PCC, ICF-Certified Coach is CEO of Reading, PA-based consultancy The Egan Group, Inc. and author of Inbox Detox and the Habit of E-Mail Excellence (Acanthus 2009). Marsha's strategies have helped business leaders across the country Master the People Side of Business Growth, enabling greater profitability through increased productivity. Evaluate your own email habits with her free assessment at http://EganEmailSolutions.com/email-assess.html.
