A few years ago I registered for a personal development seminar and was surprised when I was contacted in advance of the seminar, asking what I was hoping to get out of the experience.
Unprepared for the inquiry, I shot out a few basic ideas, off the cuff: enhanced communication skills, increased confidence in front of groups, etc.
“Perhaps increased productivity?” the rep asked.
Ahem.
“No,” I replied. ”I’m pretty sure I’ve got that one covered. Not much room for improvement there.”
“I see,” she said, with what I (much) later interpreted as a smile in her voice.
What I – unexpectedly – discovered in that seminar was that getting more done just for the sake of getting more done was pointless. What will you do with the time you gain by increasing your productivity? You must make it matter – that’s what really counts.
Today I came across a post on Dumb Little Man with a similar theme. In fact, he expresses it better than I can, so I’ll let him. Check out Kit Cooper’s post on Emotional Intelligence and do something worthwhile with your increased productivity!
