Working with Ease — Is It Possible?
Posted by Kath Delaney, Founder and Chief Executive Officer on October 5, 2007
By Adriana Dakin
… Athena Williams-Atwood (in photo at left) thinks so. She knows about the importance of working with enjoyment and relaxation— 16 years ago, at a time when she was working 60 to 80 hours a week, Athena had to radically change the way she managed her stress and tremendous workload. Eventually Athena founded Work With Ease, based in the US and Australia, to work with individuals and organizations to achieve better results, with peace of mind and health intact.
Some of her advice includes:
- Choose Ease: Explore ways to introduce this simple philosophy into a project, communication or relationship.
- Be Present: Choose to work and socialize in the now and be fully aware in whatever environment you might be in.
- Stay Current: Take time each day to stay on top of your projects and deadlines so you can manage goals, expectations and competing priorities.
- Self Care: Take time for integrating personal balance, such as going for a walk.
- Do Complete Work: Allow yourself to bring all work tasks to full completion as you touch them. Identify “gaps” or “missing pieces” to address earlier rather than later, then fully complete the task at hand.
For managing a project with ease, Athena recommends:
- Create a project plan (even for short projects) with goals, actions and timeline.
- Identify what you are doing and also understand what you are not doing.
- Capture the intention and “essence” of the project (necessary when managing conflicting priorities).
- Determine areas that are negotiable and non-negotiable (e.g. outcomes, time, budget, resources).
- Resolve any conflicting priorities daily.
For me, key learnings from Athena’s teaching are about completing tasks (“closing the lid on jars”) and staying current on a daily basis to prioritize what needs to get done.
