The unexpected

# Chapter 171

The doctor is calling and the property manager is calling and the pastor is calling. Everyone has days where a flurry of information is moving around, tasks need to get moved or completed, help or assistance is requested, or there are moving pieces to resolve to accomplish something. Few people have standing systems to handle an unexpected flood of requests, expectations and additional calls or action steps. This is because we are already pretty busy, as most of us seem to keep our engines revved near the red line all the time, so there is no margin and no additional capacity to handle the unexpected or the unusual.

But come on, the only thing unexpected or unusual about the unexpected or unusual is that you weren’t expecting it. I mean everyone gets to participate regularly in the unexpected and unusual and therefore they aren’t really unexpected or unusual. They are the bump-in-your-flow normals. And since they are actually normals that feel like the unexpected or unusual, then we should have a system in place to handle the increase in work, expectations and requirements.

I don’t know how most people handle this, work longer hours is what I imagine. I have enough margin built into my daily planning that it takes an International Crisis to rock my boat off its regular path. But then I don’t keep my engine revved up near the red line all the time either. Yep, either build margin or work harder longer, those seem to be the two solutions.