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We all love Goldilocks tasks, you know, the ones that are neither too hard, nor too easy. Such tasks “make our day” and make us feel good!

Tasks that are too easy don’t stretch you, thus the feeling of accomplishment is low. This leads to boredom and ennui.

Tasks that are too hard are scary, they may evoke extreme reactions of fight or flight in you. This leads to fear, or aggressiveness. In some cases, you may feel energized.

If you can choose your tasks, then find a good “portfolio” of tasks that will maximize your productivity and develop your capabilities. Being able to choose your tasks is the ultimate freedom and reward you can hope for in the workplace. Not being able to choose your tasks is a reality you need to deal with. If you cannot choose your tasks, stay in the moment, and deal with the issues at hand. Set aside time to create a plan that will allow you to choose your tasks.

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In some work environments, urgency is not an exception, it is a way of life. You know the dreaded request, “Can you please give me this information or perform this task (or whatever)?” and this is followed by, “Today” or “Tomorrow.” When this happens to me, I get frustrated and vent. I decided my co-workers have to stop coming to me with last minute requests, once and for all. I asked myself, “Why am I frustrated?” and got the following answers:

• “These people are incompetent! Why can they not plan their work in advance and give enough notice?”
• “This is not fair. Now I have to work hard and give up my evening, weekend, and take on additional stress.”
• “This is tough work, even if given enough time. Now that I have to work quickly, I’ll make mistakes, and this will make me look bad. I don’t want to fail!”

Clearly, I was having trouble suspending judgment, I calm my nerves, and ask, “What can I do differently?” The answer I got was another question:

• “What did you do to anticipate and prepare, so that you could respond quickly?”

Now I have arrived at the root cause of the problem. Everything I do to decline, delay, or avoid the last minute request, because it is “unreasonable” are mere tactics, and will serve only to miss an opportunity to be exceptional. The strategic choice would be to improve my anticipation skills, build a track record of delivering quickly. Now, my co-workers will be embarrassed to ask for a last minute request, and if they do so, it will be only under extenuating circumstances.