Turn Busywork into Worthywork (From Tips & Tactics March 2021)

When your team members have a clear sense of purpose, they are fully-fueled, resilient, and capable of extraordinary contributions and accomplishments. In short, they thrive. The WHY draws them forward even when the WHAT and HOW may be daunting or uninspiring, and they will give generously to the work and each other. But when the sense of purpose is lacking, it’s a different story and they are different people. The days seem filled with Busywork and team members are fearful, fragile, and prone to derailment or disillusionment by little things.

Busywork is bad news for any team. It’s universally-deplored and uniformly depleting and if you want your people to thrive, you need to drive it out of their experience. But what is it exactly? Busywork seems to refer to a shockingly diverse array of activities. That’s because Busywork isn’t defined by a particular task; it’s determined by the purpose behind the task. Busywork is the term people use to describe any engagement whose purpose doesn't justify what it takes to achieve it, any situation where the return doesn't merit their investment. This means that if you want to minimize Busywork in your team, you need to think more about the WHY than the WHAT, and manage theworth more than the work. Simply put, if you want your people to be their best and give their best, you need help them see that what they are accomplishing is worthy of their best.

[--Excerpt from Dr. J's article The Power of Purpose in Outcomes Magazine.  Learn three steps to elevate the WHY and transform Busywork into Worthywork@ https://outcomesmagazine.com/the-power-of-purpose/ ]