Have you been surprised by anything lately? “Your ability to deal with surprise, elegantly and proactively, is your personal and organizational competitive edge.” That’s from David Allen’s introduction to the latest Productive Living newsletter.
DAVID’S FOOD FOR THOUGHT
YOUR COMPETITIVE EDGE
There is one organization that never has fires and crises—the fire department. Think about it.
They are constantly being interrupted from getting their work done. They have to clean, polish, maintain, train, fill out forms, hire, communicate, order toilet paper, cook lunch, feed the dog, give speeches, and maintain a happy face. Suddenly a bell rings and everything gets overturned. And the vast majority of these interruptions are false alarms!
They accept and organize for this.
How long are people going to complain about continual surprises and interruptions, especially the ones that are inherently natural to the business and value we are trying to add?
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