Take time to sharpen your tools

There was a woodsman who had a new axe. The first day he used it, he was able to chop down twenty trees. However, with each passing day, he worked longer and harder, while chopping down fewer trees.

A friend wandering by suggested, ‘Why don’t you sharpen your axe?’ The woodsman replied, ‘I’m too busy. I’ve got to chop down more trees!’

When Stephen Covey used this illustration in his book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, the woodsman was using a saw. It’s not about the type of tool. A chef will talk of keeping knives sharp and a doctor will talk about sterilizing equipment. The point of the metaphor is the importance of keeping the tool in optimum working condition.

Working longer and harder will not help to find more time. In fact, it will make the problem worse. As stress and frustration set in, your goals will get put on the sideline. Taking a break will not improve the sharpness of the tool. A dull axe will still be dull after a rest.

When keeping organized, what are some of the tool-sharpening activities that need to be a regular part of your routine?

• Review your commitments – put aside regular time —either daily or weekly— to review open loops. Review your action lists, notes made, calendar entries, project lists, etc. Make sure that any commitments you have made are placed in your system to be completed within the appropriate time frames.
• Purge your lists – make sure that the items with which you are finished are removed from your system. Either delete or archive them as necessary.
• File – make sure that your paper or data files are put in the appropriate folders. Whether they are completed commitments or items that need consideration in the future, get them out of sight so they don’t interfere with your immediate priorities.
• Update your capture tools – you might use a pocket notebook, you might use a Tablet PC or any combination of analogue and digital tools. You need to make sure that they are all in the best working condition. You can have the most expensive fountain pen in the world, but if the ink has dried up, it won’t help you capture the information you need. Likewise, make sure that your software is up to date and offering the best possible feature set.
• Review your systems – effective systems are rarely static. From time to time you need to take an overall look at your organization/time-management system. Are your needs today the same as they were last year? Are there ways to simplify your processes? Have you added commitments to your life that need new methods of tracking?

As I posted last week, your perfect system is the one that fits you best. However, in order for that system you meet your needs, it requires regular maintenance. The regular time spent “sharpening” your tools will pay off in reduced effort and increase efficiency.