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Urgent vs important tasks: Editor's Notes #356 January 12, 2022 |
| Hello, —Charles E. Hummel In this issue: 1. Urgent vs important tasks 2. Tickled my funny bone 3. Interesting Web site 4. Writing prompt 1.Urgent vs important tasks Many years ago I was influenced by The Tyranny of the Urgent by Charles E. Hummel, and I have continued to check myself often by asking whether I am doing what is important or simply attending to urgent tasks. Urgent tasks can involve life or death. I confront these regularly as I care for my decreasingly able mother. Other urgent tasks are urgent because of deadlines. Sometimes these are urgent because I’ve procrastinated and time is running out. All urgent tasks are loud and in your face. It is almost impossible to ignore them. Important tasks, on the other hand, are often in service of long-term goals. They tend to be more quiet. They also often go undone simply because we do not plan how to deal with them. Instead, we spend our time swatting the mosquitoes of urgent tasks. The beginning of a new year is a good time to take stock. For writers, it’s a good time to ask what our writing goals are. Follow up the what with the how. How are we going to meet our goals? Often we have to sort out urgent tasks from important tasks, and we are challenged to figure out what to let go or how to get the help we need to be sure the important tasks are done and done well. One way to help you balance the time you spend for urgent and important tasks is to sign up for a series of emails to nudge you along the road to meet your writing goals. You can read more about that and sign up if you want to through the form on the Interesting Web site page linked to below. =========== 2.Tickled my funny bone Did you hear about the Buddhist who refused Novocain during a root canal? His goal: transcend dental medication. =========== 3. Interesting Web site This year, one of the nudges in the series of emails includes a link to the site of one of my clients who has met many publishing goals. https://www.writershelper.com/writing-goals.html =========== 4. Writing prompt The word goal has multiple meanings. Choose one or more meanings and write three to five paragraphs or a short poem about your choice. As always, I would love to see what you write. =========== Join Writer's Helper Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/WritersHelperEditor Follow me on Twitter @AudreytheEditor Link on LinkedIn https://ca.linkedin.com/in/audreyowen (Email me first so I know how you know me.) =========== If you know a writer who would appreciate receiving Editor's Notes, forward this issue. If someone has passed this on to you, you can get your own free subscription by signing up at https://www.writershelper.com/newsletter.html |
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