How Can I Get Any Work Done with So Many Meetings?

A day filled with meetings is the norm in the nonprofit sector. Perhaps once or twice, someone wraps up their discussion early, and you reclaim 10-15 minutes of your day, but more often than not, your windows for actual sit-down-at-your-desk work are narrow. Too narrow, it seems, to be productive. So, we surf social networks, grab a snack and stare mindlessly as life passes by. After all, what can you do in five minutes?

The world can and does repeatedly change in five minutes. International negotiations, babies born (and conceived😆), and natural disasters occur regularly in windows as briefly as five minutes. Your ability to leverage these short windows for bursts of productivity, decision-making, and restorative habits should not be discounted. Taking advantage of these short windows requires a mindset shift related to time and tasks. 

It Doesn’t Have to be All or Nothing at All

Humans crave accomplishment. Our need for achievement is as well-documented in science as it is high school yearbooks and office trophy shelves around the world. While all this striving can be healthy and motivational, it can also rob us of the pleasure of incremental progress. What is the point of starting if I can’t finish? Isn’t there a “touch it once” rule to increase productivity? We’re caught in the trap of not tackling what we can’t complete and not having the blocks of time necessary to tackle what we need to do. This limitation is drawn from the assumption that all of our work is equal…that signing donation letters is on the same playing field as writing an employee performance review. A task requiring systematic thinking is different from one requiring consideration and creativity. How things are perceived varies by person, but here are some items on my to-do list and how I would categorize them.

Systematic tasks are the things that can be tackled during your in-between times that are too short for larger projects. 

Break it Down. Then, Break it Down Again.

The worst strategic plans are the ones that leave you with lofty goals and no incremental steps to get there. The Nonprofit Nav team always focuses on breaking down the big dreams until you know the steps you need to take that day to make progress. A task list should be the same. Don’t write down “Grow online donations” and then wonder why you can’t find the time to accomplish that task. It’s not a task – it’s a goal. Break down your goals to the point that you can make incremental progress and enjoy the achievement of crossing off more during shorter periods.

If your to-do list is already entering the danger zone of Page 2, take a step back. Are the things on your list all to be addressed this week? If not, move them over to a different page, notebook, or Trello board. Stay focused on what is current and achievable. 

Worried your task list is getting into the minutiae? If you can’t afford to forget to do it, you should document it. These simple tasks are the things that often accumulate into a half-day on Saturday in the office playing catch up. If you start to manage them proactively and leverage five minutes here and there to get them done, you’ll recoup hours over the course of a week.

Five Minute Windows of Active Recovery

There’s a term in the fitness world called “active recovery.” It generally refers to low-impact activity that keeps you moving while offering rest during a workout. The same logic can be applied to your workday. Been meeting with donors all day? Pause and write thank you cards for a few minutes to decompress. Prepping for a big board meeting? Take a break and do some rounds of your office or check-in on Slack with your teammates. Allowing your mind to switch to a different task can clear the cobwebs, stop creative blocks and help you refresh your perspective. 

There are also non-work-related ways to do active recovery during your workday. Five minutes regularly spent on deep breathing exercises, stretching or lifting weights can help develop mental and physical wellness and endurance. 

The Flip Side of Five Minutes: There’s Danger in Distraction

We all do it. We pull out our phones and scroll social media. Our minds have a temporary reprieve from the workday, our endorphins spike as we scan over our notifications, and then…BAM! Your ex-boss posts a pic of their new team. Your ex-significant other posts a vaycay pic. The nonprofit next door announces they won the grant you were also going for. And just like that,  you’re in a funk. 

Social media isn’t the only culprit of workday disruptions. Chatty coworkers, notoriously demanding people and dark rabbit holes of thought abound in nonprofit land. 

Five measly minutes have the power to disrupt your day. So, before you open the Pandora’s box of social media or troublesome conversations, consider the benefits of keeping your focus on work, even if for only five minutes. 

A recent Seth Godin blog applauded and cautioned all the personalities, products, and trends to be featured in the “Next Big Thing” lists that smatter social media this time of year. 

“But the truth of the next big thing is that you can’t stay that way. The hot bands of yesterday aren’t hot the same way they were.”

– Seth Godin

So true, Seth. So true. So, rather than give you a list of top podcasts, blogs, CRMs, or fundraising techniques that will undoubtedly expire in the not-so-distant future, I made a list of classics. Classic habits that are becoming unconventional (thus, the comparison to their trending counterpart). These habits have helped me in my career and I’d recommend them to anyone building a cause. 

1. Coffee over Spam

Email will always win on efficiency, but its efficacy is dying. Rather than spam your entire list, take four donors and approach them for coffee. At least one will decline. You can manage three coffees over the next month. At each meeting, make it about getting to know the individual, not any ask. Trust me. They will ask you how they can help. Ask them to connect you to someone who might support your work. Rinse and repeat. See what happens over three months. 

2. Reading over Researching

For several years, I never read anything but business books. Nonfiction, borderline self-help, but basically, how-to books. How to grow my nonprofit, how to lead, how to serve, how to market, how to build a brand, how to…whatever. I was reading for research, not fun. Each book was a challenge to change, which is exhausting. I can’t remember what book got me back into fiction, but I’ve read at least two fiction books each month for the past several years. I haven’t lost any intelligence (that I’m aware of); I’m happier, more creative, and way less stressed. Business books are great, but they need to be seasoning on your literary intake, not the entire meal. 

3. Brainstorming over Scrambling

Very few people brainstorm habitually. We all do it on occasion for occasions, i.e., an event we’re planning, a marketing piece, perhaps some brand element. But, what about everything else? What about the non-creative elements of life? I find that if I make brainstorming a habit – with a team or on my own, I’m less panicked when I need a good idea. I focus on core areas of my work, i.e., subjects I’m teaching, areas I consult on, things I’m interested in learning about, etc. I use Trello to sort and store my ideas in my own personal library. They’re searchable and organized. Rather than scramble next time you need a good idea, what if you just pulled up your last brainstorm?

4. Calm Confidence over Crisis

I don’t do well with drama. Perhaps it comes from a career in the nonprofit sector where crisis management is par for the course. Perhaps it’s just a personal preference. When I began working with multiple clients, I noticed that most had a low threshold for drama…

…the email didn’t get sent out!

We sat the board president in the wrong seat!

Someone LOST the grant agreement!

The horror! The shame! The drama. Drama that usually leads to a blame game, wasted time, and bad energy. 

Nothing is a crisis until you make it one. That’s right. Like most things, it’s a choice. When something bad happens, maintaining calm is the best approach to get a solution quickly and with minimal collateral damage. It’s also modeled behavior that a good leader can use to change an organization’s culture. Choose calm. It’s a classy (and classic) good habit. 

5. Demonstrated over Declared Confidence

It’s always better to have someone else say how awesome you are. When it’s self-declared, it loses something and inspires eye rolls and gossip. You can be confident without sharing your life history and biggest triumphs. Don’t be the person that takes the air out of the room with stories of greatness. Instead, ask about others. Share humbly when it makes sense. Be human. Let others share about how great you are. 

6. Starting Early over Always On

Have you ever responded to an email between the hours of 11pm and 3am? Yep. Thought so. Was it a crisis? (if yes, see #4 above). Answering emails when you should be sleeping looks a lot like panic…or obsession. It’s not a good look. It’s also unhealthy and exhausting. Rather than employing an “anything goes’ mentality on work boundaries, try getting up at 5am. You’ll still beat the pack, and science has proven that our brains fire on more cylinders in the early hours. The quiet hours before the less ambitious folks roll out of bed will allow you time to catch up and work on the things you really want to. 

7. Truth over Fiction…or, Prediction

Stop Googling worst-case scenarios. Stop consuming research that only tangentially relates to your nonprofit, i.e, Fundraising stats from the largest nonprofits. Stop comparing yourself to someone else’s highlight reel on social media. I’ll steal one of Oprah’s lines and titles to make this point: What do you know for sure? 

Everything else is hearsay or hype. Focus on what is true in the moment, and you’ll make decisions more clearly.

8. Intention and Planning over “It’ll Come Together”

It almost always does come together. But, never as great as it could be with planning. This is the fine line between “getting by” and reaching the next level. Prioritizing strategic planning and creating a system of accountability to that plan are hallmarks of rapidly growing organizations. Smart growth is not reactionary; it’s proactive and process-driven. There will never be enough time, and it will never be a comfortable time to pull in the reigns and reassess what you’re doing. Do it anyway. 

9. Sticking to Purpose Rather than Prizes

Your work is impactful, valuable, and worth it regardless of whether it’s acknowledged or recognized by your peers or anyone else. The growth of “Top Whatever” lists has grown exponentially over the past decade, and with it, the dilution of what actually matters. Don’t get me wrong – if you’ve won one of these contests, that is fantastic. Congrats. But how much time, money (I hope not), and campaigning went into the effort? Work within your purpose and give it all you’ve got. Honor for good works should be given without application or competition. 

10. Steady and Stable over The Next Big Thing

The endorphin rush that comes with a trending post or award is short-lived and often brings a hangover that leaves you thirsting and searching for the next high. The peace and comfort that comes with continued progress are pure joy. If you’re like most Americans, you have a new year’s resolution relating to health or work/life balance. Help yourself out by resisting hype and taking the slow and steady path toward achievement. Who knows? Maybe building a mission or career based on purpose and steady growth will become the “next big thing.”