By Sanjeev Kotnala
Vice President, Brand & Marketing, DB Corp Ltd
Last year, while cleaning my cupboard which is full of unfiled papers and undisturbed files, I found a page with the header ‘100 things to do before I die’. I remember having made this list after reading an article that suggested that a list like this will help in developing a focused approach to actually achieving things. And of course, once you’ve done the tasks, it’s fun ticking them off the list.
I read through the list and realised that very few have been achieved in the last four years. And some of them happened by luck or at least without any effort from my side. So where did I go wrong? These are my ‘excuses’, which will hopefully inspire you to come up with a better managed list of your own.
‘100 things’ were really one too many to handle. 10 direct ‘reportees’ are too many to supervise; and two bosses, one boss too many to report. Re-evaluate the list. Out of the 100, surely 10% will be something you really want to do, 20% maybe be good if you can do them and 70% wouldn’t matter if you could or couldn’t do them.
‘Before I die.’ That’s hardly a dateline or a deadline. Hence, nothing gets done. In my surprisingly complex fast life with unprovoked fires always needing attention, the list is the last thing I can focus on. ‘Before I die’ is vague and too long a timeline. Trust I would give myself at least 10 more years of life.
‘Too easy to do.’ Things that every long list should have. I suffer from an OCD of listing things,so I know that’s true. Once those easy items are ticked off the list, it gives one a heady sense of achievement and drive to complete everything on the list.
‘C**p in the list’. Things that should not find place in the list are things that are an integral part of your professional or personal life. ‘On my anniversary, I will take a vacation abroad’; ‘I will tell the truth’; ‘I will join the gym’ or ‘I will quit smoking’ are examples of what should not be on the list. Because these are the things that you can and should do without waiting to die. Carry the list and review it with time. It helps keep focus and also lets you ensure your list only has something worthy in it. It forces you to prioritise. Like going bungee jumping in Macau for me, if it’s not done within next two years, then it’ll have to be out of the list. So I’m going to force myself to focus on that.
I’ve adapted a new successful list and system last year, which is now called ‘5 things that I would want to do before I die but will get done before 2013 Diwali’. A small twist makes big difference. Not taking the regular dates like January 1 or December 31 as deadlines helped. The perspective changed. I know the list is now logical, practical and includes three really hard things to do for me. But then, I’m sure I’ll be able to really concentrate and celebrate when I tick them off the list.
Feedback: sanjeev@dainikbhaskargroup.com
