Based on an article by Howard Adamsky President of HR Innovators.
Opinion...
Based on an article by Howard Adamsky President of HR Innovators.
Before you allow the “thought leaders” to innovate greater levels of complexity and stress into your life, stop and think abut your work. Reflect on how you can improve the quality of your production and how to retain what is meaningful and productive while avoiding what is not. Evaluate everything that is new and be wary of “innovative” solutions that add more work but do little to improve bottom line results.
Always be prepared to reflect on the difference between being Creative and Critical Thinking. To think better, they should never coexist.
So, what must you do to be more effective, less stressed and lead a balanced civilised life? Innovate? At times, yes, but for the most part, I suspect not.
We need to simplify, take a hard look at what is really working effectively and separate it from what is not. As with most things the 80/20 rule is alive and well here. Always ask yourself - from where are 80% of my successes coming?
And where does technology fit in here?
Following the theme, the answer is simple: Technology is often seen and always promoted, as the great enabler, whereas at times it can be the great disabler. If it doesn’t work easily and enable faster simpler and more reliable, communications, then you probably should critically consider whether that piece of technology is ready to be integrated into your life yet.
Perhaps the time has come to de-innovate (yes I made up that word) to remove the distractions and focus on developing enhanced levels of understanding and communication with all the customers we serve. Maybe the time has come to pick up the phone and reach out, not to those we now but to those we don’t know. Perhaps the time has come to recognise that true friendships are not formed through pixilation and true relationships do not come from Friendster but from people with whom we have meaningful dialogues based upon areas of commonality, shared vision and mutual respect.
This article was written in the context of coaching recruiters about ways of staying in contact and building a network, but of course the concepts are universal.