The Manager's Handbook

8Activity Is Not Progress

It's not enough to be busy. So are the ants. The question is, what are we busy about?

—Henry David Thoreau

For years, I'd spend each week getting further behind, then try to catch up over the weekend. When Monday arrived, I assumed the upcoming week would be different, that I'd get to the important work, see more of my daughters, miss no more dinners at home, and use that gym membership. But each week was like the one that came before it.

What I failed to understand was that as the size of my organization increased, so too did the demands on my time. More people wanted my attention while my own priorities were pushed to the sidelines. I found myself responding to more emails and requests by people who wanted to “pick my brain.” Ironically, the technology that promised to improve my situation made things worse: my smartphone became a leash as I could be reached at any time, on any day, by just about anyone. People expected me to read my email 24/7, and through the internet almost anyone could dig up my email address. Sites like LinkedIn gave everyone permission to cold call me; calendar apps allowed people to schedule time on my calendar without asking; and video technology made it too easy to schedule hour‐long meetings to cover 20‐minute topics.

I tried to muscle through this technology thicket—starting each morning with a promise to be more present with my children, not incessantly check email, attend fewer meetings, and be better at saying no. ...