The Private School Leader Podcast Episode 127: This One Strategy Will Significantly Increase Your Productivity AND Make You Better At Delegating
I want to know if any of these statements describe a typical day at school for you:
- You run around putting out fires, playing “Whack-A-Mole” with your hair on fire.
- You finally get back to your office and sit down at your desk, but you don’t know what to do next. So, you stare blankly at your computer screen for a while and then you start checking emails.
- When you look at your “to do list” you immediately feel overwhelmed because it is so long, so big and so disorganized.
If that sounds like your typical day, then you are in good company. I just described a “day in the life” of about 90% of private school leaders. That’s the bad news.
The good news is that around 10% of Private School Leaders are feeling productive, energized and organized. I want to teach you a strategy that will move you from the 90% to the 10%.
On today’s episode of The Private School Leader Podcast, I am going to teach you the One Strategy Will Significantly Increase Your Productivity AND Make You Better At Delegating.
Thank you for taking me along with you when you are walking the dog, driving to school or running errands. I appreciate you and what you are doing for the lucky kids and teachers at your school.
Thanks so much for listening and thanks for making a difference!
Mark Minkus
I’ve created a FREE RESOURCE for you called “The Top 6 Ways To Protect Your School From a Lawsuit”. This is a 10 page pdf that will help you to keep your staff and students safe and help keep your school out of court. Litigation is expensive, time consuming and extremely stressful. This common sense guide will help you to be more intentional and proactive when it comes to protecting your school. You can grab “The Top 6 Ways To Protect Your School From a Lawsuit” at www.theprivateschoolleader.com/lawsuit. Thanks!
Are any of these statements true about you?
- The "tyranny of the urgent" controls my day, and I start working on my important tasks when the school gets quiet.
- I feel discouraged, lonely, exhausted and stressed out. I'm not sure that my job is sustainable.
- My school invades every part of my professional and personal life.
- I want to have a long and happy and fulfilling career as a private school leader.
- I feel called to do this work, but I am not sure how long I can keep doing it if nothing changes.
I have felt that way many times during my career. That’s why I created the PSL Pro Membership
PSL Pro is a membership community that helps Private School Leaders go from feeling stressed out, discouraged and lonely to feeling energized, fulfilled and supported.
You will have access to a thriving community of school leaders who actually "get it" and "get you"! We will go live every month for a Masterclass, a Success Path Coaching Session, two "We Get It" Roundtable Sessions and a live Q&A about anything and everything related to Private School Leadership.
The PSL Pro Success Path is a Step by Step Plan to get you from where you are to where you want to be as a leader. Different Levels: The Overwhelmed Drifter, The Intentional Architect, all the way to The Fulfilled Mentor. After you choose your level, you will be guided, step-by-step, through the content in THRIVE Academy. This content, along with my guidance and the support of other leaders, will take you from where you are all the way to being The Fulfilled Mentor!
Learn more about how you can join the PSL Pro community by going to www.theprivateschoolleader.com/membership
Is it just me or are the parents at our schools getting more demanding and more intense, more often? Dealing with parents is part of the job as we lead our private schools, but it can quickly lead to stress, anxiety and feeling overwhelmed.
That’s why I created Parent Academy! Now you have a step by step framework that will help you go from feeling stressed and anxious to feeling confident and calm. Over the last 33 years, I have built successful relationships with thousands of parents and I have packaged that knowledge into an online course. Not only that, but after I teach you, I am going to teach your teachers these strategies as well! Parent Academy contains two, 45-minute webinars that are Teacher PD’s with a printable notebook, guided notes and discussion questions. Go to www.theprivateschoolleader.com/parentacademy to learn more!
What is your biggest problem right now? I want to hear more about your biggest problem and I want to help you solve it.
Whether your problem is feeling guilty that your family gets what’s left of you at the end of the day, relentless parents, difficult teachers, a lack of boundaries between work and school, feeling overwhelmed, Imposter Syndrome, enrollment or teacher morale, I can help.
I would love to hear more about your biggest problem and I would love to be your coach. Go to www.theprivateschoolleader.com/coaching to learn more about working with me 1-on-1.
Being a private school leader is a VERY difficult job. You have to make hundreds of decisions every day, and you have to keep everyone safe, increase enrollment, keep the parents happy, keep the board happy, motivate the teachers, deal with student discipline, beat last year’s test scores and come in under budget.
That can lead to you feeling tired, discouraged and stressed out. I’ve been there. That’s why I created THRIVE Academy just for you. THRIVE Academy is a digital course that will help you get out of survival mode and get back to feeling energized at school. To learn more, go to www.theprivateschoolleader.com/thrive
I am excited to share with you a new resource and I want to give this to you as a FREE GIFT to say “thank you” for listening to the podcast. It is called The 7 Secrets To Improving Teacher Morale. As private school leaders, we are always looking for ways to improve teacher morale at our schools, but it is hard to know where to start. Well, now you have a step by step plan and you can grab it at theprivateschoolleader.com/morale
I want to give you a FREE gift called 7 Strategies To Effectively Deal With Difficult Teachers. Sometimes we need some courage and confidence to deal with difficult teachers. What you need is a plan! This guide is a step by step plan that you can use to help one of your difficult teachers improve their performance and improve their attitude. Go to theprivateschoolleader.com/difficult to grab this free guide!
I’ve created a free resource for you called “The 6 Things That Every Private School Teacher Wants From Their Leader”. This guide is a 6 page pdf that will be a game changer for you. I guarantee you that if you do these 6 things, the teachers at your school will be happy to follow you. You can pick up your free guide by going to www.theprivateschoolleader.com/guide
I want to give you a gift to say “thank you” for listening to the podcast. I have created a FREE guide for you called “5 Strategies To Help You Work With Difficult Parents”. We know that working with parents is part of the job and most of our parents are great, but some of them can be very demanding and emotional and difficult. This guide will give you the tools that you need to build better relationships and have better meetings with the difficult parents at your school. Go to www.theprivateschoolleader.com/parents to grab the guide. Thank you again for listening every week!
Please check out all of the free resources on my website that can help you serve and lead your school community. There are "Plug & Play PD's" (45 minute webinars with guided notes) as well as Top 10 Lists of Leadership Books, Productivity Books and TED Talks over at www.theprivateschoolleader.com/resources. You can grab the show notes for today's episode at www.theprivateschoolleader.com/episode127
Please write a review of this podcast and help the algorithm push this content out to more leaders. I would love to get your feedback about the podcast, ideas for future episodes and hear about how you are implementing these strategies in your life and at your school. You can email me at mark.o.minkus@gmail.com Thanks!!
I want to say thank you for listening to the podcast by giving you a FREE GIFT. It is called The 7 Steps To Having Successful Meetings With Upset Parents. This guide is an 11 page pdf that gives you a step by step plan to have better meetings with the parents at your school. Every good coach has a game plan. Every good teacher has a lesson plan. Too many private school leaders don’t have a plan when they sit down to meet with an upset parent. Well, now you have a PLAN! You can grab this FREE GUIDE at www.theprivateschoolleader.com/meeting
I am excited to share a brand new resource with you. It is a 9 page pdf called: “How To Use Verbal Judo To Have Better Conversations With The Parents At Your School” What is “Verbal Judo”? "Verbal Judo" is a communication strategy that focuses on using words effectively to de-escalate conflict, resolve disputes, and achieve positive outcomes in various interpersonal interactions, particularly in high-pressure situations.
George Thompson and Jerry Jenkins wrote a book called Verbal Judo: The Gentle Art Of Persuasion. So, I have taken several important strategies from the book and applied them to your life as a private school leader. Grab your free copy of “How To Use Verbal Judo To Have Better Conversations With The Parents At Your School” at www.theprivateschoolleader.com/judo
TRANSCRIPT:
Welcome to the Private School Leader podcast, where private school leaders learn how to thrive and not just survive as they serve and lead their schools. • • I strongly believe that it is possible to have a long and happy and fulfilling career as a private school leader. And my passion is to help you figure out exactly how to do just that right here on the Private School Leader podcast. And I'm your host, Mark Minkus. • • So I want to describe your day at school and see if I'm accurately describing it. So I'm going to say a few things that are • • my theory, my hypothesis, my guess • on you at school, • • and you tell me if this describes your day. All right, • • first of all, running around with your hair on fire, • • putting out fires while playing whack a mole, • • • running around with your hair on fire, putting out fires while playing whack a mole. Is that you? • • All right, number two, • • you finally get back to your office, you sit down, and you don't even know what to do next. And you stare at your screen on your computer, and you open up your email inbox and start going through some emails • • • • • • and description. Number three, • • • if you do get clear on what to do, • • • you start to look at your to do list and you immediately get overwhelmed because it's so long and so big and so disorganized. • • • • • •
About 90% of private school leaders feel this way, I've found
All right, well, I think that I probably described • • many of our listeners because • in my experience with all of my coaching clients • • • • and with members of PSL Pro, • • what I'm finding is what I just described is about 90% of private school leaders feel this way. And this is the way that your day goes. Constant interruptions. • • • • • And so • • I, uh, do want to tell you that you're in good company, • • you know, 90% • of school leaders. But that probably doesn't make you feel any better. • But here's something that I want you to hear. • • • • • If 90% are feeling this way, then that means that 10% of private school leaders are feeling productive and energized and organized and that they bounce back quickly from interruptions and that they always know what to do next. • • • • • And so, on today's episode of the Private School Leader podcast, I'm going to teach you • • the one strategy that will significantly increase your productivity and make you better at, ah, delegating. • • • •
I created Parent Academy to help parents deal with demanding private school parents
So before we do that, I got a question. Another question for you. Is it just me or the parents at our schools getting more demanding, more intense more often? You know, dealing with parents is part of the job as we lead our private schools, but we know it can also quickly lead to stress, anxiety, and feeling overwhelmed. • • And so that's why I created Parent Academy. And now you have a step by step framework that will help you go from feeling stressed and anxious to feeling confident and calm. And over the last 33 years, I've built successful relationships with thousands of parents and I've packaged everything that I know into an online course. • • And then I teach you those principles and those strategies in four teaching modules. And then after that, I teach your teachers as well. • Because parent academy contains two 45 minute webinars that are teacher PDs with a 27 page printable notebook, guided notes, discussion questions that you can use at your next PD or your next faculty meeting. • • • So go to the privatescchoolleader.com parentacademy to learn more. That's the privatescual leader.com parentacademy • and I want to give you a free resource as a way of saying thank you for listening to the podcast. • • And this one's called the top six ways to protect your school from a lawsuit. And this is a 10 page PDF that will help you keep your staff and students safe and help keep your school out of court. • We know that litigation is expensive and time consuming and stressful, and this common sense guide will help you be more intentional and proactive when it comes to protecting your school.
PSL Pro is a membership community that helps private school leaders feel supported
So you can go to the privatesccluter.comlawsuit and grab the top six ways to protect your school from a lawsuit. That's just a free resource for you as a way of saying thank you for listening. And that's the privatescalluter.com • • lawsuit. And then real quick, I just wanted to remind you that recently I launched PSL Pro, which is a membership community that helps private school leaders go from feeling stressed out, discouraged and lonely to feeling energized, fulfilled and supported. And I know that being a private school leader feels very lonely and very isolating. But I can tell you this, that we have a thriving community of school leaders. • • And they get it. They know what it's like to be a private school leader. They get you. • And we go live every week, whether it's a MASTERC class or group coaching. Twice a month. We do the We get it roundtable. • • Um, we have a live Q and A coming up later this week. • • And here's the thing, those roundtables, • • I'll tell you some of the things that are being said there as far as just the support. And I see you and it gets better. And you know that's hard. And just being in a space where other people are going through the Same struggles as you is priceless. • Um, and you know, this is another thing I want to tell you is, is that PSL Pro comes with • • a success path that's a step by step plan to help you go from where you are today to where you want to be. And there's all these different levels. The overwhelmed drifter, the intentional architect, the skilled builder, all the way up to the fulfilled mentor. And so you choose your level and then you get content that guides you step by step. • • Thrive Academy • • • • • that will get you to the top of that pyramid. The fulfilled mentor. • And along the way, then you've got a supportive community of other private school leaders just like you showing up, posting, encouraging, motivating, • • and so • • all of that • for a dollar a day. • • • So if that's something that sounds interesting to you, go to the privatescgalia.com membership and check that out. Privatehool leader.com • • • membership. Algh.
Learn one strategy that will significantly increase your productivity and make you better at delegating
So we're talking about productivity, we're talking about being overwhelmed, we're talking about not knowing what to do. And I'm going to teach you one strategy that will significantly increase your productivity and make you better at delegating. And see, • delegating is something that, uh, most of us are not very good at. And so we're going to kind of double dip in this episode. We're gonna talk about. I'm gonna give you a very clear plan • • • not only to be more productive, but also to help you be better at delegating. • • And I want to give you a couple of disclaimers before I give you this strategy. • • • • The first one is that doing this strategy, getting this set up is gonna take some time. M. It's gonna take some hours to do this. • • And I can hear what you're thinking already. It's like, well, I'm out already. I don't have a minute, much less an hour. But I'm telling you that if you want to go from being in the 90% to being in the 10%, • • • • that • • • setting aside some hours, even if this is stretched out over weeks, • • um, um, this is something that will be • • a game changer for you. Okay? The second disclaimer is you are going to be interrupted when you're trying to do this. And that's going to be super frustrating. Discouraging. • • • Um, • • you are going to feel like giving up partway through doing this because it's taking time • • • and it's also going to maybe even remind you of some undone tasks. • • • • • • But if you stick it out, it will make you more productive and it will make you better at Delegating, you will always know what to do next. • • Your • • • • • to do list won't be this overwhelming thing and you'll be spending more time on the things that actually matter instead of everyone else's priorities. • • • • • • Okay, so those are the disclaimers out of the way. • • • • • And this strategy is called the three thirds strategy. Three thirds. So just imagine a fraction three over three. We're going to learn the three thirds strategy today and you'll understand why it's called that shortly. • • • • •
I encourage you to do something else while listening to the podcast
Okay, I'm going to talk, I'm going toa walk you through these six steps • • • • • • • and I always encourage you to do something else while you're listening to the podcast. So you're walking the dog, you're driving to school, you're running some errands, you're working out. Awesome. I'm so glad that you're multitasking and listening. • And as usual, I'll take good care of you in the show notes@thepr privatescchool.com Episode 127 • • so just listen to the strategies and then when you go to do them, • • • I'm just going to copy and paste my script here today that I, that I created and put those into the show notes so that you could literally go step by step, bullet by bullet through and do this 3 3rd strategy. Okay? So just listen if you're multitasking and if you're sitting there with some paper, you know, jot down some notes. But either way, um, it'll be there for you in the show notes when you're ready.
Step one is gathering tasks. Okay, so gather tasks. Step two is creating a school calendar
Okay? Step one is gather tasks. Okay, so gather tasks. So what I'm going to have you do is to get a piece of paper, • um, preferably like one of these big long yellow legal pads. But really it doesn't matter. Just a piece of paper. And if you're more a person that likes to use, um, the computer, use, um, a Google Doc. You, if you prefer. I find it easier to write stuff down so I can scratch stuff out and this and that, but really, whatever doesn't matter. Just get a piece of paper Google Doc, okay? • • • Now you're going to gather • • • • • all of the things that you do over the course of a year. And I can tell you this, you're not going TOA remember about 50% of them. If you just sat down and started listing them from memory, • • • you're never going to get even close. Okay, so you're like, okay, well how am I going to gather • • all the tasks that I do? All right, I'm going to tell you a few things. You're going to print out your job description. And, um, • or if you're doing it on the computer, it's going to be an open tab at the top of your computer. So you're going to print out your job description, you're going to print out your school calendar. • Well, why would I print out my school calendar? Okay, when you look at that, you're gonna go through and be like, oh, yeah, I forgot about that event. And oh, yeah, parent teacher conferences. And I do this, and oh, yeah, the middle school dance, and I do this, and oh, you know, there'all the things that you're going to see on the school calendar. And then we're going to take that a step further and you're going to open up your calendar. So whether you use Google Calendar or whatever calendar you use, and you're literally going to while you're gathering your tasks, • • and I'll get to that in a minute as far as what we're going to do with all these tasks. But you got your Google Calendar open, you've got your job description, you've got your school calendar. • Um, you've also got a copy of the employee handbook in the family handbook nearby. • • And you're like, well, why would I do that? Okay, well, if you scan the table of contents, you don't have to read the whole thing, but if you scan the table of contents of the employee handbook and the family handbook, you're going to remember about 15 tasks that you're like, oh, yeah, I forgot. I actually do that too. Okay. There. It could be hundreds. Okay. And I would just want to pause here and take a quick sidebar. • • • You're like, mark, I thought you were trying to help me, not freak me out about all the things that I do and then remind me about all the things that I haven't gotten to. I get that there might be some emotions that you have to navigate to do this and do it well. • • But I'm telling you, in the end, it's gonna be worth it. It's gonna take time, it's going to feel tedious, it's going to feel cumbersome. It might even feel a little bit overwhelming to gather all of these tasks. But there's a plan, there's a method to the madness, there's an outcome that we're looking for. But the first thing we have to do is capture, gather and capture all of the things that you do. • • • • And so • • • • we're gathering the employee handbook, the family handbook, anything else that might remind you of a task that you do during the school year, no matter how small it is. And then we're going to do one more thing, and that's we're going to use Chat GPT. Okay? I'm a big fan of Chat GPT. You've heard me talk about that before. The ways that it can help with. You have a new position at your school and you're trying to generate a job description and just different things on that. I did an episode on that. I can link it in the show notes. But anyways, what are you going toa do with Chat GPT? All right, you're going to go in there and in the box where you write what you want it to do, you're going to thoroughly describe your job, • • and then you're also going to thoroughly describe your school. • • • • • And then you're Gonna ask Chat GPT to generate a list of 300 tasks • that a leader in this position does. • • Okay? So just you're describing your job, you're describing your position, you're describing your school of the size and the grades and the, uh, how many teachers and all this stuff. Generate a list of 300 tasks that a person in this position does. Now, probably about 250 of those as you just scan it. You know, you're just going toa scan it. Probably about 250 of those • • are already going to be gathered in your other, um, documents and other materials. • • But there's probably going to be 25 to 50 that you're like, oh yeah, I do that too. Okay, so that's really what this step one is about, is like the oh yeah moment, you know, because there's so many things that you forget that you do. So step one is gather tasks. Okay, step two then. Now that you've got all your stuff, • • • step two is called the task dump. • • • Now I want you to brace yourself • because I keep giving disclaimers. • Part of this is gonna suck. Okay? Part of this isnna just feel big and overwhelming and hard and it's like, oh my goodness, like this. He keeps talking and he keeps saying step two and step three and blah, blah. Um, uh, okay, I get it. But I'm telling you, • • • • we've got to first of all identify everything that you do. • • • • • And now we're going to get it down on paper. • • • • • And again, Trust me, • • if 127 episodes in you don't trust me yet, I'm not sure why you're still listening to this podcast. • • • I appreciate that trust • • and I treasure that trust, • • but I need you to trust me on this one, that this is Going to change the way you interact with your tasks at school if you just stick with this strategy.
Step one, task dump. You're going to write down every single task
Okay, step two, task dump. • • • • You're going to write down every single task that you do during a year, a school year, and the summer. • • • • Some tasks are once a year things. Arrange the ushers for the spring musical. You know, that's a thing I do because the Sunday performance is a big one and, • • • • you know, we want to fill every seat. And so I, you know, • • am the one who • people tend to listen to. And so I get a couple other people who are gonna, you know, arrange usher for spring musical. Some of your tests are once a year, some of them are daily. • • You're going to write that. Just dump. Don't worry about ranking them. Don't worry about, like me. And sometimes it's, here's my suggestion is to go chronologically through the year. • • • • That's why you have your Google Calendar open. You know, you could start by just, you know, start with your job description, let's say, okay, and then write down all the tasks that you do and then maybe move on to the handbooks and scan those. • • And then maybe go through the year chronologically by looking at your school calendar and then having your Google Calendar open. And oh, yeah, I do that and I do that and I forgot that I clean up after the middle school dance too. Uh, just write down all the tasks • • • and, • you know, you're going to then, you know, scan that chat GPT • • list. • Um, • another thing you could do is to go in. If I use Google, um, docs and Google folders and all that, um, • • • you could go and just take a quick look in Google folders and see it's like, oh, yeah, accreditation or oh, yeah, you know, um, board reports or, you know, • Google Google folders. The names of Google folders. I'm not saying go through every document in Google Docs, but just even scanning the names of the Google folders is going to bring up, um, tasks that you do. So we're doing a task dump where on this piece of paper, or quite honestly, multiple, multiple pieces of paper. You're just writing down all the tasks. Okay, step two, task dump. • • Step three in the three thirds strategy. • • Remember what, let's keep our eyes on the prize. You're gonna be way more productive. You're gonna always know what to do next and you're gonna be better at delegating.
Step three is called task ranking. All right, we're going to rank the tasks
Okay, • step three is called task ranking. • • • • All right, we're going to rank the tasks. • • A clean sheet of paper, a blank Google Doc, • • and you're just going to • start ranking by importance. • • • So if you were to pick the number one most important thing that you do, • • let's say it's like protecting the school from litigation or keeping kids safe, or maybe it's some tasks surrounding the financial stability of the school, you know, those are going to be in your top 10 most likely. • • • • And you don't have to be precise. Like you don't have to spend any time wondering, oh, should this be task 21 or task 22? • • • Well, you know, it doesn't matter. Just • • start dumping them. And again, this is where three thirds of um, the mindset of that, um, three different sections, sort of like • • the top third that's like things that only you can do, the middle third that are things that you do with others, and the bottom third, which are things I'll tell you in a few minutes that I think that probably some m. Other people could do, • • just kind of start dumping them into • • the ranking. Bym, um, • • • you know, just by zones. Okay. Or by third. So yeah, this seems like a top third thing. You know. Okay. You don't have to be super precise, but what you're going to do is you're going to go through and just start, start ranking them by um. What I do is, is that I take my task dump, • • • • I've got all of these things, • • and then I'm just going to put a line through it and then migrate that to the task ranking and I'm going to rank it and I don't have to be precise. So, you know, not all tasks are created equally. It's like I mentioned, cleaning up after the middle school dance. • Okay, where's that on your list? Popping into classrooms. That's probably in the top third. Creating the master schedule that might be in the top 10. • • Sending handwritten note, • • uh, handwritten thank you note to a big donor. Well, that might be top four. Right. • • Um, arrange the end of your field trip to Washington D.C. speak at graduation. Arrange of subs when someone calls off sick. • You know, a lot of those sound like they're in the top third, • • • but there's also a lot of stuff in the middle and a lot of stuff near the bottom that we do. And so, • um, the easiest thing to forget when you're doing your task ranking or for that matter when you're doing your task dump. • • Proactive planning. • • • • It doesn't happen that often, but they're, you know, time set aside to • • • • um, think about and plan regarding the, um, enrollment strategy for the year, um, regarding, you know, recruitment and retention or the messaging at our school. • Um, because if we keep running it back and doing the same thing the exact same way, and we don't do any proactive planning and we're just surviving the day, we are not serving our schools the way that we could or should. • • And you're like, well, Mark, I can barely get through the day. I get it. That's why I'm talking to you about this. Okay. Because the margin and the clarity • • that this method, this strategy creates is actually going to create time • for you to do a little proactive planning for you to get into those classrooms, for you to do the things that are on your good intentions list. • • • • • • •
Step three is taking all of the tasks that were in our task dump
All right, • • • • so step three, we're taking all of these tasks that were in our task dump, and we're ranking them 1, 2, whatever question mark. It could be 300, it could be 100, I don't know. But you're just going to rank them all, and you don't have to be precise. Okay, step four, • • we're calling this three thirds. • This is where the three thirds part of the title comes of. This strategy comes in this big, long list. You are going to rank it • • from, • um, you're gonna rank. You're gonna rank them, but you're going to draw a couple of lines. So let me explain what I mean. • So let's say that you have 100testass on this list. • • The reason it's called 3/3 is because we're going to divide this list of tasks into three equal sections. So let's say you have 100 tests. So then you're going to draw a line underneath • • number 33 and then underneath 66. • • If you have 300 tasks, you're going to draw a line under task 100 and under task 200. So just imagine • • this big, long list, and you've got a top third, a middle third, a bottom third. Okay? And I said this before, top third are things that only • you can do. • • The middle third are probably going to be tasks that • • you do with help from others. And the bottom third, I'm going to make the case and help you to do this is the bottom third. A lot of things you can eliminate or delegate. • • • But think about. Let's just pause and think about what we've accomplished so far. • • You've taken all of the tasks as best you can. You've done a great job • • of gathering all of this together, • • • • and then you dumped them • • • into a document or on a piece of paper as far as all the tasks. And then you rank them by most important to least important. And then you've drawn A line, two lines so that you've got your top third, middle third, bottom third. Algh. You're doing great. • • • • • Step five has to do with the bottom third. And then step six, which is the final step, is going to be how this all ties together. Okay?
Step five is eliminate and delegate tasks on the bottom third of your list
So step five is eliminate and delegate tasks on the bottom third of the list. • • So we're going to start with the bottom of the list. We're not going to start with the top of the list. • • • • • This part of the list • • • is the difference • • between • • • you leaving at the end of the day with nothing left, • • overwhelmed, • frustrated, • • • • • burn out, • • • • nothing left in the tank for yourself or for your loved ones • • • • • versus • • • • • having a little bit of pep in your step, • a little bit left in the tank, • • feeling a little bit like you got something done today. • • • • • • • • • • It the gold, the opportunity • • • lies in the bottom third of this list. • • • • • Because these are tasks • • • that we could • • possibly eliminate • • or • • delegate. • • • • Algh. • • • We're going to take a first pass through this list, the bottom third of the list, and then you're going to • • • • put a line through or just x out • • • • things that you can eliminate. Think about it this way. When you go through your email inbox, • • • there are certain things that as soon as you get them, you unsubscribe from them. • • • • • • I want you to have the mindset of unsubscribing from certain tasks. • • • • There are things that you do that maybe you don't need to do. Okay, • • so there won't be that many, but there will be some. • • And we're just going to put an X through them, and we're just going to stop doing them. And you're like, well, what doesn't someone else need to do them? Well, if someone else needs to do them, we're going to delegate them. But I'm going to say that I think that there are some tasks • • that just don't need to be done. A few, not very many, but a few. So we're going to eliminate those. We're going to unsubscribe from those tasks. Okay? • • And then • before you go through the second time to start to delegate, I want you to picture someone's face. So when you are in the moment, when you've done the first • • four steps and now you're working on the bottom third of your list, we're in step five. • Before you start going through and delegating, • • • I want you to picture the face of someone that you care about. • Maybe it's your spouse or partner, maybe it's one of your kids, • somebody that you love very much. • • • You're like, well, why are you asking me to do that? Because • • • • you having the courage and the clarity and the follow through • • and setting aside a little ego • • • • to actually delegate these tasks, • • • • that person that you're picturing right now, • • they're the ones that are going to benefit from it • • because they're going to get a more present version of you • • and you are going to be around longer with less physical health problems and less mental health problems. • • That those are the stakes. • • • • And so I know that some of us don't like to delegate because we're just indirect or we're don't want to bother people or we don't want toceive be perceived as being lazier, that we're, you know, above this task or whatever. Okay, I get it. But that's also a recipe for • • • all the things that you don't want as far as your, • • uh, burnout and exhaustion and frustration and feeling unfulfilled and wanting to quit your job. • • • So • • • • I want you to go through this list and I want you to think of one question • • • and if you could, tattoo it on your eyeballs, • • • but literally you can write • • next to those • • • numbers at the bottom of third of your list, write the word who with a question mark after it. • • Who with a question mark after it is the big question. • • • Not if we should delegate this task • • • who • • • get off of if and get on to who. Okay. • • • • And we also have to get over ourselves a little bit because if this person • • • can do the task • • • • • 60 to 70% as well as you can, we need somebody else to do it. • • And I want to pause because I can hear what some of you are saying. You're like, mark, you don't get it. I'm a one person show. • • • • • I have a part time office staff member. Who the heck am I going to delegate these things to? • • • • • Okay, • • • • • well, • • • • • • it might be to teachers, • • • it might be to, uh, volunteers. • • • If you have a school, you have at least a few teachers. • • If you have a school, you have students and you have parents of those kids. • • And here's the thing, if you're going to look at the bottom third of the list and delegate it through the lens of, well, I don't really have anybody that I can delegate it to, then you probably shouldn't bother. • • • • But if you look at that bottom third of the list • • and you picture the person's face that you love, that you want to be more physically and emotionally present for that person, • • then you're going to do this task • and you're going to put the word who question mark next to it. • • • • And you're going to get off of if I should or if I shouldn't, and you're going to get to getting. Unlocking that creative part about who. • • • • • I'm not saying every single thing in the bottom third can be delegated, • • • but I'm saying that as of right now, if it's on your task list, • • • one, uh, hundred percent of those, as of this moment are not being delegated. • • • • We got to get some of these things off your list.
Make sure you know whether you are asking or telling when delegating
All right, One last thing about delegating. Two more things. • • • • • • • Make sure you know whether you are asking or telling. • • Okay. • • • • • • What do you mean? Well, here's what I mean. I coach • a client in Minnesota • • • and recently she was really frustrated because it's like I don't understand. Like I tell people what to do • • and I tell them the steps and I delegate it. And then, you know, it seems like the next month, then the thing doesn't get done and I need to do it all over again or the next year or the whatever. • • • • And knowing her from being a coaching client, I know that she's really, really nice • • and um, really really, um, not necessarily soft spoken, but just, • • just a really, really nice, kind person. Okay. • • And so when she talks, • • • • • here's the problem. She thought that she was telling • • and everyone in the other side of that conversation thought that she was askingash, asking for a favor. • • And when you ask, • • • first of all, it's kind of optional if you do the thing and then you're not really doing it necessarily all that well. But if it's your boss, if you're the boss and you're telling someone to do it • • then, and you're making that clear, • • then you can also hold them accountable for doing the thing. • • And we've got to get over ourselves with wanting to be liked and being worried that people are going to perceive us a certain way. Listen, you work really, really hard. No one's keeping a little black book • • because if they did, • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • if they did, • um, it would definitely come out in your favor. Okay, you need some help. And so are you asking or are you telling? Are you being indirect or are you being direct? Are you being unclear or are you being clear? • • When you delegate something, the only thing that's more frustrating than not delegating something is delegating it • being unclear. The person does it. • And then the next time when you think they're going to do it because you thought you were telling and they thought you were asking, they don't do the thing. And then you're like, what the heck is going on? • • • • Make sure. You know, whether you're asking or telling, make sure you're telling. • • • • And then when you tell, this is going to be another thing that's going to take time if you want • • to set it and forget it with this person. • • • You know how we, • we love, • um, if we can set up something • • with an automatic payment • • • • and • • • then we can just set it and forget it. • • • Okay. • • • • • • The step to make that happen is, is that when you tell, • • • • • • • • you follow up with an email or better even, uh, a Google Doc, • • where it's just short, step by step list of, like, how to do the thing. And this is where Chat GPT comes in.
Let's say you're asking someone to take the lead on an event
Again, let's say you're asking someone to take the lead on an event. Okay. Chat GPT, • • • create a checklist for, you know, describe the event, the scope of it, the budget, the this, that, the other thing. • • Create a checklist, or better yet, delegate it to that person and say, hey, • • you create a checklist, • • • • use Chat GPT, blah, blah, blah, and then show it to me. But it needs to be, • • • • • • it needs to exist in, in some form other than just verbal. Okay. And so • • • that's either an email or a Google Doc or something similar, a Word document where • • you want to. If you don't want to have this conversation every month or every year with this person that you're. You worked up the courage, you had the awkward conversation. You told them, I really need you. Uh, I'm going to need you. Don't say, I really need you to, because it sounds like you're asking, I need you to blank. I'm going to need you to blank. • • • • Then follow it up. • • Or better yet, tell them to create a checklist and then show it to you so you can take a look at it. You're the one that used to do it, so you know what needs to be done. And I know that's another step. And, uh, it takes time and it's like, oh, man, another thing. Yes. • • Because you're going to set it and forget it. And then you also have something to hold them accountable to.
You're going to apply these four productivity hacks to the top 2/3
Okay. • • All right, that brings us to our final step, which is step six. • • • • • • We're going to listen to episode seven of this podcast, which is called • • Four Productivity Hacks for Busy Private School Leaders. I'll link it in the show notes • • • • • and you're going to apply those four productivity hacks to the top 2/3 of the list. • • • • So I've not talked much about the top two thirds of the list • • • because not all things are created equal on that top third. Not all things are created equal. In that middle third, some of them are seasonal, some of them happen once a year, some of them happen every day, some of them happen multiple times a day, it's like, how can I make sense of all of that? • • • • • • • What you're going to do is you're going to listen to episode seven. • • • You're going to apply these four productivity hacks to the top two thirds of your list. • And the four hacks are leverage the power of an index card, • • • claim some whitesp space, • • tame your inbox, and decide when you're going to leave at the end of the day • • • and write it on your index card. Okay, now some of you know what I'm talking about, about the power of an index card or when I say claiming whiteace or taming your inbox, some of you don't. • • If you go back and listen to episode seven • • • and you apply those four strategies, those four hacks, to the top two thirds of your list, • and you get into the habit of creating your daily, um, index card on the corner of your desk, • • • • • claiming whitesp space in your calendar, and not dipping in and out of your email inbox all day long. • And I know those three things are like, what? How am I going toa do that? Okay, listen to the episode and I'll teach you. And then this is what you're going to apply to the top 2/3 of the list. • • Okay, so real quick, the 3/3 strategy that is going to make you way more productive and better at delegating. Step one, gather tasks. • • Step two, task dump. • Step three, task ranking. • Step four, three threes • • going to draw your two lines. • • • Step five, eliminate and delegate the tasks on the bottom third of the list. And step six is listen to episode seven and apply the four hacks to the top two thirds of the list. • • And your call to action is sometime in the next two weeks, • • schedule 60 minutes into your calendar. Even if it's on a weekend. I don't really like you working on a weekend. But sometimes these types of things that are going to be a rising tide that lifts all the boats, this is going to make a huge difference in every day. But you've got to set aside time to actually do the thing. So this might have to be a weekend thing. In the next two weeks, schedule 60 minutes into your calendar to start working on this. • • • • •
I want to give you a resource called the six things every private school teacher wants
Okay, • • one more free • • • gift, uh, • • for you and then we'll wrap it up. I want to give you a resource called the six things that every Private School Teacher Wants from Their Leader. And this guide is a six page PDF that I really believe will be a game changer for you. And I can guarantee you that if you do these six things that the teachers at your school will be happy to follow you. • • So go to the privatescchool leader.com guide to get the six, uh, things that every private school teacher wants from their Leader. That's the PrivateSchoolade Leader.com • • guide. • • And uh, a reminder that Parent Academy, I really believe can be a game changer for you and your teachers. There's four modules for you. There's two 45 minute PDs from your teachers for your teachers about how to build better relationships. Let me be the one to tell your teachers the stuff that you don't want to tell them, okay? It's in there, • • • um, • • them doing the hard things so that they build those relationships and improve retention and improve parent satisfaction and improve student outcomes. • • And I've had, um, heads of school in North Carolina, Ohio, Texas, California already do the PDs with them and the • • • testimonials that are coming back. The feedback that's coming back has been excellent. And I want this for you and for your teachers. And so go to thepr privatescalia.com parentacademy to check that out. • And then I'd love to hear from you, especially if you use this 3 3rd strategy. • • Because I want to motivate others to do it, to take the time to do it. Because people who take the time to do it, it has been a real game changer. • • • • So if you're, if you do it • • and it impacts you positively, shoot me an email. Marko.mincusmail.ct I want to hear about it and then I want to pump you up and then I want to share that with others so that they will take the time to do this thing that can change • how you interact with all of your tasks. • • Um, and again, um, one last time.
PrivateScchooler. com Episode 127 is where you'll find the show notes
PrivateScchooler.com Episode 127 is where you'll find, um, the show notes for today's episode. And then also if you could do me a favor, if you • • have a favorite episode or just the any episode that you found helpful, just please share the link for this episode to another private school leader in your life • • and also a rising leader at your school. We're going to keep getting the word out there. 64 countries, • • all 50 states. • • This content is changing lives, it's changing schools. • Um, and it's helping leaders go from survival mode to thriving. And it's super exciting. But we ve got to keep getting the word out there. So please share this link with another leader that you know, • • and I've been your host, Mark Mincus. I appreciate you so much and all the hard work that you do at your school. Thank you so much for taking some of your precious time to join me here today. And I'll see you next time right here on the Private School Leader podcast. And until then, always remember to serve first, lead second, and make a difference.