If It Isn’t a Clear Yes….

• Written by Vibha Bharaddwaj

Ever since I started going to school, I remember having teachers of different shapes and sizes but with only one motto and that was to impart knowledge.
Little did I know that what appeared as knowledge was actually was not just that but a combination of their life experience as well.
Experiences were shared in the form of stories from their own lives and were far more interesting and thank the bookish knowledge.
And it is this narration that motivated most of us (me and my classmates) to become Teachers.
Whenever anyone asked us about what is your ambition in life, our instant response was “I want to be a Teacher”.
It was mainly because of the authority and the influence they had on everyone.
None of us knew at that time.

While everyone was very excited to be a teacher, none of us knew what it took to be one.
It was then one of the teachers had lovingly told us that “You have to read a lot of books, so that you gain sufficient knowledge, to pass it on to others”.
As important it was to read books then, so is now.
The format has changed. It is available on various devices in various formats, rendered at our convenience. This is all so that we continue to have the habit of reading and get a perspective on things.
One such book I happened to come across and it indeed has given me a perspective to the way I need to be handling my work and life as well.

Yes you guessed it right.

It is Greg McKeown’s book on “Essentialism”. He uses the term “Essentialist” and the “Non-Essentialist”.
As the name suggests it teaches us how to focus on the Essentials and not to just say “Yes” to everything and regret later!
The author has easy to follow tips on how to be an Essentialist.
And it is the mindset that differs an Essentialist from a Non-Essentialist.

One of my Key Takeaway was –
When you are faced with multiple responsibilities/problems that need your attention, a Non-Essentialist approaches with a mindset “How can I do both?” Whereas an Essentialist does it by asking “Which problem do I want to focus?”. If you notice, the latter is more liberating, because once you have made a choice, then there is no regret. You will pay undivided attention.

Just before I started writing this Blog, I too was bogged down by too many things that needed my attention. I asked myself “Which Activity do I want to Focus?”. And then all I did was focus on writing this 500 word blog.

There are so many useful tips in this book.
In fact, I have an infograph that I have stuck at my workplace.
It reminds me to pause before committing to every request coming to my table.
I have shared that with my team too, so that it helps improve their focus and productivity.
If you want this info-graph, just share in the comments box and I will have it mailed to you.

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