This task has been delayed

I was going to write a post today, about how I get up at 6 AM to write these posts on Dihturnoaidi. But other things had to take priority, and so I find myself in a position where priority must be the article with... well... highest priority today.

There are many models of prioritizing tasks. As an employee, a "task processor" I used to do everything on a FIFO basis. Indeed, both my supriors and collegues were impressed by the hardwired FIFO-queue in my brain. But sometimes other tasks had to take priority anyway, breaking my scheme.

The more responsibility you have, the more you need to assess the priority of. I have tried many systems, ranging from inserting tasks in order of priority to booking time for each task, and eventually throwing some tasks out according to the four square important/urgent model.

Somehow, all efforts of planning your day tend to break from unexpected events and tasks. It will occur to you that cloning yourself wouldn't be such a bad idea. But actually, it is probably the worst idea ever. Just like computers and automation has added stress, so will other high performance as well. Allow me to explain.

Your highest priority is not always the most urgent task. Indeed, a lot of tasks, known as "fire extinguishing tasks", are a result of something else that has not been done to prevent these fires from occuring in the first place. Particularly in work places where IT has been forced upon unsuspecting computer illiterate employees, the greatest fire generator is the lack of training.

Running around extinguishing these fires is a tripple mistake. First, you don't get time to address the real problem that causes these fires. And second, employees get accustomed to this mode of operation and will resist the changes required to stop these fires from occuring. This is particularly true when lack of training is the main source of fires.

The third reason it is a mistake to extinguish all these fires is, indeed, your own health. Make no mistake. Your health is, and must be, your highest priority. It is easy to dive into the job, head first, wanting to show off your fantastic skills at problem solving. However, if every day is flooded with time sensitive tasks, a lot of which will never get done anyway, you will run out of fuel. And who will be doing your job then?

Of course, bumping a task till later might upset some people, particularly when they feel that their task is the most important in the organization. Some will even claim to know your job better than you do, because they already have "the solution". This solution usually includes them getting more rights than they should have. Take a deep breath and realize that they are not seeing the full picture, that you're the one who does, and you're the one who is in charge of the IT resources. Do your job, and do what you know is right.

In conclusion, what could possibly be more important than keeping my monday schedule for Dihturnoaidi? Well, family, of course!