EPISODE 10 - Mindset: Does it make sense to reflect on the day?

Michael Seidl: Welcome to a new episode of the Get Sh*t done in IT podcast. My name is Michael Seidl and today I want to talk about does it make sense to reflect on the day? So short answer, yes, but maybe some more background and some more information about why I think it makes sense to reflect on the day. A few years ago, two or three years ago when Corona hit, we saw a shift in that way. So before, in my position as a consultant and working in IT, and also what I've seen from a lot of other companies and customers who work in IT, home office was not that usual. So every day you have to drive to the office and back home from the office. In my case, every day I drove to the customer and back home from the customer. So in that time, usually on the way back, I reflected on the day, I just thought about any things happened on the day. I reflected, thought about what I've done and achieved that day. I made some phone calls. I just thought about my thoughts and just... Maybe there's something missing today or some open minds, open thoughts to finish. I use that time to finish my day, to finish my thoughts, my open loops and to have a free mind when I arrive at home, at my kids and my family. So that was the good part of that Most of the time I haven't enjoyed it because it took a lot of time traveling to the customers and back. But for this, it was a good situation. And then Corona came hits and from one day to the another, there was no travel time anymore. basically since Corona starts, so begin of 2020, my

Michael Seidl: work, they completely changed. And I think a lot of other people in IT and also what I see from my customers have lot have possibility to do a lot of work at home. Right now, it changed a little bit and balanced, but you do not spend so much time anymore driving in a car or train or whatever to the office or back home. And especially what I see Maybe once, maybe twice a week, I visit a customer, maybe more once. So all the other four days, I have no travel time. And what I missed back then, I did my work at the customer or my business until the last minute, I have to go to my family to visit, take care of the kids, whatever. So I took every minute to but I haven't planned or used any time to reflect and finish the day. So a lot of things were still in my head when it was time to spend time with my family or my kids. I still had some ideas, a lot of ideas in my head. So I figured out myself or I decided for myself to have at least 10 or 15 minutes each day before I have to leave my home office and go out of the door. So it's not a travel thing, but I have to leave my office and go to my kids to the another room. But I decided to block 10 or 15 minutes each day at the end of the work day, as to say, to reflect on my day and to finish my day, to finish my working day. my working stuff. And that was a huge benefit on free up your mind and spend a good time with the family without thinking about any open loops, open issues. So first advice would be make yourself 10 or 15 minutes before you have to leave, before you finish your work and reflect on the day and everything.

Michael Seidl: And now comes to what to do in that time. So it's not about sitting and close your eyes or something that's not mine, but it's just to finish your day. So first thing is we had that in the previous podcast about zero inbox. That time I usually use to check my emails for the last time of the day. As I said in the previous podcast, you shouldn't watch your inbox regularly, just one, two, maybe three times a day. So the 10, 15 minutes before I have to leave is the time where I take care of my emails. So I open my outlook, go through the inbox and work through every email and maybe I answer so I can solve it or I put it in the box. in my system to act to plan it maybe or I put the email in my system to maybe plan it and do an estimation and the priority or I immediately plan to do something on that email for the next day, week, whatever. So email is one thing. The next thing is go through all your notes you've taken through the day, maybe on paper, on digital, on your iPad, on your desktop, whatever. Go through every note you take wherever you did it. The goal is no more notes on any place, not on your desk, not on your desktop. And more important, not in your brain, not in your head. So everything what is on your desk, every open loops. close them, finish them, bring them into your system. So maybe you can finish it and then finish the task. Or you have to put it in your list to plan or you immediately plan it for next day, whatever, and so on. So take all your open loops and try to finish them or at least remove them from your desk or brain or whatever. As well,

Michael Seidl: see everything you planned to achieve today or you finished today and maybe what is not finished and plan that maybe for the next day or bring it back to your inbox, to your to -do inbox and so you can plan it for another day. And on some days it also can be very helpful to see what you already have done on that day. So for two reasons, to see that you have done something. there are days where you jump from one meeting to another and have the feeling that nothing really worked out, just meetings. But then you go through a list and see, that's done, that's done, that's done. So that's a good feeling for your mental health. And the second one is maybe out from that doing what are already done, you see something what based on that. So maybe there is something else to do next step. So plan that thing accordingly to that. So that are my suggestions and what I do and I try it at least every day. To be honest, will I'm not able to make it every day. Yeah. So, so don't be afraid. But a plan and this I know that when I do that, it is definitely better for the next day. And a few days ago, I think yesterday I heard a phrase that I really like and you will hear it a few times I think in the future. is as a good morning starts in the evening before. So it says if you clean up your open loops wherever they are and plan it on the evening, the next day will be much relaxed and much focused and much easier.

Michael Seidl: Keep that in mind, a good morning starts in the evening before. The other thing is you have a lot of open loops, some paper on your desk, some desk notes, something in your head, and with that you want to start in the next day. So that's complete confusion. So a good morning starts in the evening before. So take your time, plan your time to finish the day, and you will see it will help a lot in being more productive. So thanks again, or thanks for listening to this episode. If you have any questions, please send me a text on LinkedIn or a text message or audio message, whatever you like. And wish you a nice week. Thanks for listening. Stay productive. Bye bye.