For a while now, I’ve had a section on my whiteboard wall called “Minor Commitments,†tasks, requests, small, one-time things I’d committed to doing.
What harm could these do? Turns out, a lot.
Because when I added up the time and energy it took to honor any 10 minor commitments, it equaled the time and energy needed to honor one big, fat honking commitment…THAT I DIDN’T MAKE because I’d already committed to the itty-bitty ones.
And, thing is, the return on the big, honking one I passed up would’ve been exponentially larger than the total return on all 10 minor commitments.
So, before you end up saying, “oh, it’s cool, I can knock that out in like no time, sure I’ll do it,†step back and ask yourself what seriously impactful, bigger thing you won’t be able to do if you commit to this one little sucker…and then another…and another..and another…
Put another way, try to get a beat on which minor commitments really matter, and which are more likely to be bottom-feeder obligations that keep you glued to the pond-scum, while brighter, cleaner water flows briskly just a few feet above…
If you only had the time to swim up there…
Thoughts?