Time Management Tips #9 - Pair Up

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What's the best way to do it?

Together.

Pair up.

Time management tips #9 is pair up.  Paring up simply means find somebody that will work with you on something, rather than go it alone.   When you pair up, you create a team of capabilities and you learn how to love the things you might otherwise hate.  Worst case, you at least make doing what you don’t enjoy, more fun.  Best case, you find a new passion for something you didn’t know you had.

We all have things to do that we're not great at, or slow us down.  Maybe it's because we don't have talent for it.  Maybe it's because we hate doing it.  Maybe it's because we just don't know a few tricks of the trade. (Sadly, I find the that it’s missing the tricks of the trade, that holds us back the most … and learning the tricks, actually unleashes a passion in us, because we no longer suck at it … it’s such a chicken and an egg scenario time and time again.)

Chances are you know somebody who is great at whatever it is that you need to do, or at least better than you.  Just because you might hate to do something, doesn't mean that somebody else does not live for it.  One person's trash is another's treasure.  And that's a good thing. 

Pairing up is the fastest way to transfer tribal knowledge.  It’s visceral.   You *feel* it.  You immerse yourself in it.  You get to see how somebody that likes doing this activity, actually goes about it.  It's your chance to learn everything from the mindset they have, to the questions they ask, to the short-cuts they use, or how they make it fun.

One of my favorite phrases at work is, "Show me how."

So many experts love to show and share how they do their magic.  It puts them in their element.  Sometimes they will genuinely want to help you succeed.  Other times, it's just so they can show off.  Either way, it doesn't matter.  What matters is that you make the most of it.

One of the best pairing situations is where you find a "workout buddy" for work.  Maybe you are good at doing slides, and maybe they are good at technical details.  When you pair up, you can both look good, and you both have something to gain.

Pairing works best when it's a mutual gain, so it's always helpful to bring something to the table.  Sometimes, all you bring to the table is appreciation for their amazing skill, and sometimes that is enough.

Another great pattern for pairing is if you are a "starter" -- you like to start things, but you aren't a strong "finisher."  A strong "starter" and "finisher" pair is like a dynamic duo in action that amplify each other's success.  One's strength is another's weakness, and your goal is to build a mini-team of capabilities over a one-man band.

It's not just effective, it's strategic.  By doing what you do best, and supplementing where you are not, you maximize your ability to make things happen in the most effective way, while staying true to you.

In 30 Days of Getting Results, you can use the time management exercises to be a more effective starter or finisher and get exponential results on a daily and weekly basis.  You can also find more time management tips in my book, Getting Results the Agile Way, and on Getting Results.com

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