If you have been reading my blog for more than a few months you know that I am a big believer in the 80/20 rule. Here is one of the posts I wrote about it and basically it shows that a few actions make a big difference, most do not. Your top 5 customers are more important than the other 100. 20% of your daily actions bring 80% of your results. But there is another Law of Nature that I try to employ that is also very effective. It is Parkinson’s Law and in a nutshell, it is another universal rule that says the time to complete a project expands or contracts to the time available.
Parkinson’s Law and the 4 Hour Workweek
Have you ever read the 4 Hour Workweek by Tim Ferris? It was originally written in 2007 and has been one of my favorite books to re-read every year. Ferris writes about how to become laser-focused on activities that make a difference (and also how you can leave the workforce and start your own business.) This is where I first learned about Parkinson’s Law. Ferris writes:
Parkinson’s Law dictates that a task will swell in (perceived) importance and complexity in relation to the time allotted for its completion. It is the magic of the imminent deadline. If I give you 24 hours to complete a project, the time pressure forces you to focus on execution, and you have no choice but to do only the bare essentials. If I give you a week to complete the same task, it’s six days of making a mountain out of a molehill. If I give you two months, God forbid, it becomes a mental monster. The end product of the shorter deadline is almost inevitably of equal or higher quality due to greater focus.
I know most of you aren’t looking to start your own business but you could use some help getting through the day at this point.
Our new normal – too much work and not enough help
2023 is proving to be a challenge for our industry no matter what sector you work in or where you are located. But one thing you all have in common – too much work and not enough staff. I hear this every week from all over our industry. People working multiple markets, staff covering multiple roles, and most salaried workers working way over 40+ hours a week. I will save the conversation about how your managers are doing you wrong for another time, but suffice it to say a work-life balance is tough right now.
Here is an idea
Instead of feeling bad that you aren’t accomplishing as much each day, use your new situation to implement Parkinson’s Law.
Ferris is very good at distilling information down to actionable steps so I will let him do the work here:
- Limit tasks to the important to shorten work time (80/20)
- Shorten work time to limit tasks to the important ( Parkinson’s Law)
How do you do that? Start every day saying ” What are the 3 most important things I need to accomplish today?”. Write them down. Start on #1. Different theories suggest different strategies- keep working on #1 until its done, start with the hardest task first, start with the easiest task first, start with the quickest task first. For me, it works best to pick one and make progress. Then I take a break and come back to it or start on #2. The variety can help.
But you need to choose what works best for you. And the strategy that works best today might not work tomorrow so give yourself some flexibility. But no flexibility with this – only the TOP 3 projects each day. Don’t list more.
And now it’s about to get harder. Guess what? At the end of the day, leave your computer and go home. I know that you are all muttering ” I wish…” right now but guess what. You are implementing Parkinson’s Law. You only had 8 hours to work on the projects and they will be there tomorrow. This is so hard to accept and implement but I promise on the other side of this action, your life will improve.
Tourism is the greatest industry in the world and we need people like you to stay in it and love what you do. So implement these two Laws and life will improve.
How can I help you this month?
DMOs/Tourism Organizations:
If you are looking for a way to provide value to your partners but don’t have the time to create a program, I am here to help. Check out the Online Tourism Training Program with this link. I can help you provide monthly virtual training for you to offer to your partners/members.
From my friends at Georgia Tourism:
Sally was wonderful to work with to support our Georgia Tourism partners. We were able to have two education group sales webinars with Sally as our presenter. We received fantastic survey results mentioning her approach and the action items they were ready to get working towards.
We found Sally to be a great trainer and speaker to work with on our educational sessions. During discussions of content she was always aiming to make content actionable, accessible, and inclusive for all tourism partners. She spoke about the reality of the markets and helped prepare our partners whether brand new to group sales or having focused on it a long time. Many thanks and kudos are in order for Sally Davis Berry.
My team will take care of registration, reminders, and even a post-webinar survey! Let me know what topics your partners need help with and we will develop impactful training. We are currently booking new clients for September 2022 and beyond. Prices start at just $1995 for each training.
Looking to increase your Tourism knowledge and skills?
Then check out Tourism Pro Academy. This platform is a one-stop-shop. You can check out free resources, courses, and other ways to work with me. I created this platform in 2019 as a way to help our industry be the best it can be. Join hundreds of your industry peers who have signed in and found help! Click here to see what’s available.
May I ask a favor?
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