Working Late: the grand excuse
Yea, I know... sometimes you have to work late because there is so much on. That's fine - I get it. But the problem comes when we are working late for the wrong reasons. Here they are...
Not able to delegate properly
We always end up doing the work that someone else should be doing because we don't delegate properly. We might even be as stubborn to believe that we're they only ones who can do it to the 'right' standard.
Can't say 'no' to work
There's work we have to do and then there's work that we really shouldn't be doing. Check out this post on learning to say 'no'.
Not managing our time well enough
We need to get everything done in the available time. It's crucial to identify the difference between the 'need to do' and the 'nice to do'. What are the top priorities for the day? Do we really need to check the emails again or would we be better of calling someone directly?
Avoiding something outside work
Probably the most painful one from this list. Sometimes we work late cause we're avoiding something outside work - it could be a difficult situation; a tough conversation we don't want to have; other personal challenges. It's time to remember that pain is a message to do something differently. If you're hand is on the cooker, you brain will tell you it hurts so that you take it away and avoid hurting your body further. Similarly, if you don't want to face something outside work, that's your brain telling you that you need to fix that problem, not avoid it.
As with many of my blogs, this isn't about me saying that I know better than someone else, rather it's me sharing my experience of the problem and my proposed solution.
