When it comes to your productivity at work, you should consider the cost of reminders. These are the times when you have to remind someone to do something for you. It could be for a report, other information, or a prospect introduction.
Whatever the case, you need them to do something. It’s something you’ve been promised.
But with busy schedules and changing priorities, your request may not materialize. You have to stop what you’re doing to remind the person, to do the thing, he or she told you they were going to do.
To illustrate the cumulative impact of having to issue reminders, imagine that you’re driving on a highway. You’re traveling to a destination an hour away. Whenever you come to an exit, you have to get off and then get back on the highway. While one exit doesn’t cost you a lot of time, over the course of your journey, all those four to five minute detours start to add up.
A lot of you are likely spending too much time reminding coworkers to do things. As a result, you have less time to focus on your tasks or professional development. If important processes are slowed, then stress may go up.
Let’s talk about some ways you can reduce the cost of reminders:
Discuss Your Work Culture
Is there a defined expectation that if someone says they’re going to do something, they’re going to do it? There’s a big difference between thinking that people are doing it, versus employees making a commitment to keeping their coworker promises.
If followup is important and valued, make sure people understand they’ll be held accountable.
Can You Cut the Cost of Reminders with Technology?
There are lots of smartphone apps and calendar programs (here are a few) you can use to set up reminders to make sure you’re keeping coworker requests.
Let employees take an active role in selecting the tools that are right for them and make sure people know how to use them. Don’t assume compliance without education.
Are You Part of the Problem?
While you may be great at your job, are you guilty of not following through on tasks for coworkers? Try to uncover what’s keeping you from getting it done.
Today’s workplace includes a lot of distractions. See if you can isolate what’s going wrong and how you can stay on track. Are you overestimating your free time? You want to give a realistic estimation of how long it should take you to get something done.
While good intentions are appreciated, successful completion of a task for a coworker should not be optional.
