12: PrioritY
In this episode, we talk about how we view priorities. This is something we’ve mentioned before in previous episodes, and we wanted to dedicate an entire episode to this concept.
The word is “Priority”, being singular, which means that there can only be 1 most important thing. It wasn’t until later that “priorities” was introduced which only perpetuates the hustle culture. That you can have multiple or a collection of important things can be distracting and, I think, leads to analysis paralysis. Because you don’t actually know what is most important. If you have 10 things at the top of your list then how do you know where to focus? Having a singular priority helps to hone your focus but also knowing what is the most important thing keeps you centered in what you should be working on. Or if you have to choose between two things, knowing the priority will make the decision for you and save you time which could allow you to achieve both.
It wasn't until the 20th century that the concept was pluralized into "priorities." The shift reflects a change in thinking, from the understanding that one could only have a single 'first' thing to the modern idea that several 'first' things can be juggled simultaneously. Yet, this modern interpretation also reveals a paradox; if many things are 'first,' the essential meaning of 'prior'—to be before something else—is diluted.
— Jeff Kays, from this article, which is really good!
“When everything is a priority, nothing is a priority.”
Decision fatigue is real. It is the exhaustion and reduced ability to make effective decisions after making a series of choices throughout the day. It's like mental exhaustion from constantly making choices, leading to poor decisions, impulse buying, and a decreased ability to make trade-offs. It's also called ego depletion, and can impact both everyday choices and professional decision-making. As the day goes on, the more decisions you make, mean that you end up making poorer decisions later in the day like just having cereal for dinner.
According to research from the National Academy of Sciences, judges were more likely to grant parole in the morning than in the afternoon—just because their decision-making got worn down. If that’s happening in court, imagine what it’s doing to our daily task lists. If nothing else, try to get court hearings in the morning! It’s not just these high power positions that face it, almost everyone faces this from kids to parents, we all have daily decisions that need to be made and this can impact later decisions.
When Carly’s daughter was little, she would give her two outfit choices for the day (a decision that I had to make, meaning, which two options for her) but then she would pick one. So rather than her looking at a huge closet of options, she would only have to choose from two. This or that. The other phrase that comes to mind with this is Analysis Paralysis. One of the main places this happens is at the grocery store, when faced with an entire aisle dedicated to one thing like bread, how is it even possible to choose which bread is right?! If moms, or women in general, since research shows that women are still the primary shoppers in the household, who are already likely facing some decision fatigue then go to the store and have 20 options to choose from, they’re going to grab either what they always get, or what looks best. Because it makes one less decision that has to be made. And the time we (as designers) have to affect that decision is decreasing rapidly. A few years ago we had 7 seconds and now we only have about 3 seconds to attract new customers. And 5-13 seconds to sell the person on it completely. That is on average, how long people spend making the decision to buy. It comes down to the psychology behind consumer behavior.
Thinking about all this information makes me wonder what kind of advice we can offer or what’s out there that helps us to alleviate some of the decision-making stress. Let’s get practical. There are a few tried-and-true methods that can help sort priorities. One of the most famous is the Eisenhower Matrix, where you break tasks into four categories:
Urgent and important (do these first)
Important but not urgent (it might seem like urgent would come first but actually doing what is important should come first)
Urgent but not important (urgent to whom? How urgent?)
Neither urgent nor important (why even do these? Are they must-dos? Can you get rid of or outsource them?)
Here is a link to download a PDF of this that you can fill in to keep yourself on track!
“A person with a priority does what matters, while a person without a priority does what is urgent.” — Anastasia Mudrova
Hustle culture is a mentality that emphasizes hard work, pushing oneself beyond limits, and prioritizing productivity over rest and well-being, often to achieve capitalist goals like wealth and success. It glorifies relentless work, sometimes to the point of neglecting personal needs and mental health. It does feel like the pandemic forced a shift in work/life balance. Like we finally realized that work/life balance didn’t mean a ping pong table and kombucha on tap and that those things in fact, promote hustle culture because they keep you at the office for longer. Real work/life balance is having time for both work and life/family.
According to McKinsey and Co., a global management consulting firm, burnout affects 1 in 2 employees. 1 in 2 is HALF. Half the workforce is burnt out. From burnout, you get disengaged employees or ones that call out sick often. Disengagement costs the global economy $8.8 trillion annually, up 1 TRILLION DOLLARS, between 2023 and 2024, which accounts for turnover, lost productivity, and overall disengagement. That’s globally, according to Gallup, who does the StrengthsFinder, remember. In the US, it’s $450-$550 billion in lost productivity annually. Actively disengaged employees cost their companies 34% of their salaries, so $3,400 for every $10,000 in salary is wasted. Which is why it really is smart, if you are scaling your business, to find the RIGHT match, and if it isn’t working, fire fast and find someone who it can work with because it’s costing more by having the wrong employees in the job. Find ways to engage, 76% of employees feel unprepared for the future of work. It’s clear that the world needs a reset, and as the economy is clearly shifting, the workforce is going to have to as well.
What’s one thing I care about that’s not making it into my day?
That’s probably a priority that’s been drowned out by noise. This could even be done in the shower as a way to get your mind ready for what’s in store for the day or what you WANT to be in store for the day.
Psychologist Dr. Susan David, whom we are loving right now, is an award-winning Harvard Medical School psychologist and named one of the world's most influential management thinkers. She calls this “emotional agility”, which she has written a book about, so check that out. And BTW, there’s an emotional agility quiz on her site, you know we are all about that. (https://www.susandavid.com/quiz/) This is about letting your values—not your calendar—guide your choices. That way, even if your day is full, it’s full of things that mean something.
Three questions to ask yourself to determine your day’s priorities:
What’s urgent AND important?
What’s just noise?
What would help me breathe better if it was done first?
Try setting 1 priority at a time and then be fully present for that.
And remember, sometimes prioritizing is also about saying no. Or saying “not right now.” If there’s one thing we want you to walk away with, it’s this: You are allowed to change your priorities as your season changes. What mattered to you six months ago might not matter now. That’s not flaky. That’s growth. And every time you choose one thing that matters over ten that don’t, you’re building a life that reflects your values.
We saw a little trick recently, that if you have trouble saying no, make a punch card for yourself and for every time you say no to something that doesn’t align, punch the card and then after 10 get yourself a little treat.
Here’s the link to download our punch card! Cause we all love little treats, let’s be real.
If you loved this, share it with a friend who’s feeling overwhelmed—and remind them: they’re allowed to re-prioritize, too.
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