I Can't Fix Everything. That's Why I Won't Fix Anything | Episode 012

I Can't Fix Everything. That's Why I Won't Fix Anything


"The hell you can endure is just as great as your love."
Ayn Rand


In moments of heavy workload and chaos, some managers fantasize about giving up and quitting. Binary thinking appears, even thoughts of self-sabotage with sentences like this - "I can't fix everything, that's why I won't fix anything". This is a natural defensive reaction. But these moments are very suitable for something else instead of giving up. They are perfect for taking a break.


One of the easiest ways to get out of this black-or-white thinking is to take some time to have a rest. Then to focus only on what can be fixed immediately. And only then focus on the other things. Thus, the work takes off, and the feeling of control over your environment comes back.


The other stream of attention, of course, is on the people in your team. Those who are also on the verge of burnout are likely to have fallen into the trap of binary thinking - all or nothing. You can support them in the same way - first, ask them to take a break. Only then help them to focus on what they can impact directly. The key thing here is to control the controllable and not to be overwhelmed by the petty details of the days. 


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Buy the book "Cold Shower for Managers" by Plamen Petrov on Amazon - https://amzn.to/2Ka23CU