Juliet Funt, renowned keynote speaker and advisor to the Fortune 500, discusses reclaiming creativity, conquering busyness, and doing your best work using strategic pauses. Topics include the power of strategic pauses, the importance of white space, distinguishing true urgency, and getting others on the same page.
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Quick takeaways
Taking strategic pauses throughout the day can help combat busyness and improve productivity, allowing individuals to recuperate, reflect, reduce unnecessary work, and engage in creative thinking.
Creating white space at work requires both individual effort and collective action, with suggestions such as using 'wedges' of white space between tasks and meetings, discussing busyness as a team, and redesigning work as hybrid models emerge.
Deep dives
The Power of Strategic Pauses
Taking strategic pauses throughout the day can help combat busyness and improve productivity. Juliette Funt, the author of 'A Minute to Think,' explains how busyness is costing businesses millions of dollars each year and how taking a strategic pause can be a solution. By creating white space between tasks and activities, individuals can recuperate, reflect, reduce unnecessary work, and engage in creative thinking. Pausing can help individuals gain clarity, make better decisions, and find meaning in their work.
Defeating Hallucinated Urgency
One of the biggest challenges to creating white space is the tendency to create fake urgency in our work and personal lives. Funt discusses the concept of hallucinated urgency and how it hampers productivity and relationships. By asking questions about true urgency and taking a step back to think before reacting, individuals can distinguish between what really needs immediate attention and what can wait. Funt emphasizes the importance of questioning deadlines, assessing emotional urgency, and creating boundaries around screen time to create more white space.
Implementing White Space at Work
Creating white space at work requires both individual effort and collective action. Funt suggests starting with small steps, such as using "wedges" of white space between tasks and meetings, and narrating phone usage to maintain interpersonal connections. She also encourages team discussions about busyness, unnecessary work, and the value of pauses in order to align priorities and create a more productive work environment. Funt highlights the current opportunity to redesign work as hybrid models emerge, enabling teams to break free from old habits and embrace the benefits of white space.
Bringing White Space to Home Life
White space is not only beneficial in the workplace but also in our personal lives. Funt emphasizes the importance of introducing white space at home to strengthen family connections and bring more mindfulness to daily activities. She suggests implementing rituals and rhythms to establish device-free time, promoting open spaces for creativity and meaningful interactions. Funt also discusses the barriers posed by screens and the need to model and teach the value of white space to children, creating a balanced and fulfilling home life.