Home & Office
In the midst of the trials, tribulations, and tragedies, there have been a few blessings that have come out of the pandemic. Like me, people around the world scrambled to find new ways to adapt their jobs, careers, and businesses to the prevailing conditions surrounding Covid-19. The team at my company found that we could do more with less than we ever imagined, and we could work from home during a significant portion of the workweek.
Several recent productivity studies revealed that the most efficient and effective way for many organizations to work does not involve working entirely from home or working entirely from the office. Instead, in many cases, the best productivity was achieved by combining the two elements. Often we try to oversimplify complex issues and assume that the best decisions are all one way or entirely the other way. Our world is not fully black or white but instead, we find the best of everything within the variety of shades of gray.
In the post-pandemic world, my team and I will be working some from our offices and studios, some from the Stovall Center for Entrepreneurship at the university, and some from home. If like me, you have always struggled to achieve a work/life balance, the new working conditions may create some new challenges.
I have found that, for me, it is best to prioritize and schedule each daily task on a shortlist regardless of whether it is a personal or professional activity. Your board meetings, conference calls, and kids’ ballgames should all take their places among the top priorities of your daily activities. If you’re going to be working from home, it’s important to have some dedicated space and time so that you can focus on the tasks at hand. It’s equally important to know when your workday is done so that you can maximize your personal and family life.
In the movie, The Ultimate Gift based on my novel, Brian Dennehy masterfully brought my character, Gus Caldwell, to life. As Gus mentors a spoiled young man through the process of doing chores on a ranch, the young man expresses a desire to complete a task when Gus replies, “Work on a ranch is never done.” While it’s important for us to finish tasks and mark them off of our list, it’s also important to remember that our work will never be done, and tomorrow is another day.
As you go through your day today, get the most out of both your personal and professional life.
Today’s the day!