KO#6
Welcome to the 6th issue of the Knockout Your Sunday Scaries Newsletter, an every-other-week newsletter by me, Kristy Olinger, with a focus on workplace communication and self-development. I’m glad you’re here. Was this forwarded to you? Get yours: Subscribe here
Sunday, March 24, 2024
Hi there,
In the Northeast US (and maybe elsewhere?) we are headed into spring break week. As I got laser focused around defining the work tasks that ‘absolutely had to happen’ before I went on vacation I was reminded of a talk that my favorite motivational speaker, Zig Ziglar, used to give. Zig talked about the ‘day before vacation strategy’ and how on the day before vacation you get more done than the entire week before that. This rings so true to me… but why?
It comes down to prioritization and focus.
When you’re going to be out of the office for a time, it forces you to be exacting around defining what the most important things are. You are acutely aware that you can’t afford to spend any time on less important tasks, because your limited time is in the forefront of your mind. You also know that you can’t afford distractions. Where on a normal day you might roll into work a little late, take a longer lunch, or chat with a coworker who wants to vent - on the day before vacation you are disciplined about your focus.
What Zig asks us in his talk is why not treat every day like the day before vacation? Well Zig, because THAT.WOULD.SUCK!
I disagree with my public speaking idol that EVERY day should be like the day before vacation. That would be too intense and here at KO Communication we are anti-hustle culture. BUT….. for sure we can learn from observing our day before vacation experience and carry behaviors into our everyday work lives that better promote prioritization and focus. Which ultimately helps make work easier. THAT is the real goal.
Wether you’re headed on vacation or working this week, I hope you are able to prioritize and focus on what’s important to you in this moment.
Hit reply and say ‘hi’ - wether you’re an OG subscriber or just stumbled across this, I would love to hear from you. What do YOU want from a newsletter like this? How can I help you banish your Sunday scaries? Let me know.
📚 What I’m reading: The Road by Cormac McCarthy
I’m a longtime fan of dystopian fiction, which is what drew me to this Pulitzer Prize winning book. This one is DARK. It could be too dark for even me. The book is well written and I suspect holds deeper meaning than I’m grasping for my lack of wanting to immerse myself in these ideas. Read at your own risk?
Content Round Up - In Case You Missed It
Even if you’re following me on social media, the algorithm may or may not put my post in your feed. Here is what has launched over the last 2 weeks, in case you missed it.
What to do before you end a meeting - VIDEO
This video encourages you to stop the meeting discussion early to confirm key decisions and next steps. If you want more on facilitating great meetings, watch my video How to Hold Meetings that Don’t Suck on YouTube.
Presentation Tip: Give Major Plot Points - VIDEO
This clip from my Communicate to Influence workshop is about the importance of simplifying your message to give only the major plot points. This improves the ability of the listener to follow your idea.
You made it to the end! Congrats & thanks. ❤️ Have a great two weeks.
Stay Curious,
Kristy
P.S. Did you know I have a resource library of guides to help you with workplace communication? Find things like the phrase bank (a listing of phrases to use in common work situations), the Ummm Guide (how and when to reduce filler words), and work journal prompts (to help you build a reflection habit that turns your every day work situations in to an opportunity for growth).
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