Maintaining Focus

Keep it simple wherever you can. How many times have you been in a meeting and wondered, “What the heck am I doing here? Why are these other people in this meeting? And what is the purpose of this discussion?” How often are you trying to make a decision and realize that there are too many factors or too many stakeholders involved? At Bright Wire, we believe in navigating complex situations and finding a way to make them as simple as possible. As a leader, it is your role to help your people quiet the noise, which will help your team become more efficient and productive. Here are three strategies to implement today to drive results through simplicity:

1. Identify to Simplify:

Convoluted processes and practices can make us lose sight of what’s important about the work we’re doing. Try to identify items within the decision you’re making, the meeting you’re in, or within the processes, you’re following that aren’t necessary. History or past precedents may no longer be needed within your environment, so ask yourself, “what is most important here.” You’ll be pleasantly surprised to discover how these answers will help you focus on what’s important and help you find ways to optimize and be more efficient. 

2. Clarify and Communicate

Often we face information overload, which slows down productivity and leads to confusion and feeling overwhelmed. Interestingly enough, a lack of information can be just as complex. Telling your employees what you know and what you don’t know keeps things simple because they won’t have to fill in the blanks by adding additional information, guessing or assuming details to make sense of the assigned project or task. Giving people the information they need and acknowledging what is unknown provides the balance that will help your team focus their time and energy on what they need to accomplish to meet your company’s business objectives.

3. And Prioritize Again.

Ruthlessly prioritizing your work and that of the people you lead will help your whole team focus. Having a sharp awareness of the capability and capacity of members of your team is very important. Supporting your team members by assisting them to prioritize their work and providing rationales and timelines will help them be clear on their roles and responsibilities and provide them with a spotlight on their to-do list. Asking team members to articulate their priorities will help them break down more complex work and own the process, building the skill of prioritizing for the future. In business today, we see leaders navigating multiple different types of situations that are often more complex than they need to be. Keeping things simple will help your teams focus and become more efficient and productive. Providing clarity sets them up for success and gives them an environment to thrive. Published on September 9, 2021