That’s right. One of those “deep” questions. No this is not a moment of pondering life’s biggest mysteries, or an unexpected interview question you don’t know how to respond to. This, as a matter of fact, was the statement I made to my teenager last night, at 9pm on a Sunday night, when he was only two pages into a ten-page homework packet due the next morning. “I’ve had a lot going on this weekend, Mom”…. “I have six other classes”…. “I just haven’t gotten around to starting it”. He’s known it needed to get done. He values its importance. But, at the end of the day, he was overwhelmed by the size of the assignment. So, responding as that “Consultant-Slash-Trainer-Slash-HR” parent that he’s come to expect in moments like this, I pointed out the lesson learned for next time: Approach this big task in the same way you’d eat an elephant next time. Take one bite at a time.
That conversation last night has been on my mind all day today. It’s Monday morning. In addition to today’s task list, I have upcoming deliverables to be worked on, training ideas I want to kick off the ground and, like most of us, there’s an entire portion of our 2022 strategic plan that is calling my name. In talking to HR leaders everywhere, I know I am not alone. There’s a lot to do in the day-to-day: the hiring, the evaluations, the investigations. Those daily tasks can sometimes take time away from the big important projects, the “I know I need to get this done” or the “we should have done this sooner” projects that make us lose sleep. Even more so if you’re an “HR Department of One”, or if HR is one of the multiple “hats” you wear in your role.
While I can’t add more hours to your day (or complete your 10-page homework assignment for you!), I absolutely can help you eat those elephants on your “MUST GET DONE IN 2022” list. One of my favorite training courses is coming up this week, titled the “HR Annual Plan”. This is an annual DCSI webinar held in November each year, offering tips for breaking down all those important compliance, training, auditing and other needs into a manageable 12-month calendar. We look at common HR activities such as your EEO-1 reports, annual evaluations, mandatory training, OSHA log, compliance posters, personnel file audits and more, and plan out what tasks need to be done which month. We eat that elephant together! Join us for a live webinar on Wednesday November 10th, or sign up now to receive a copy of the presentation viewable at any time (hopefully not 2am!) Click HERE to register.
Happy eating!
Sarah
