# The 5 Choices ![rw-book-cover](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51ZlsOvi9lL._SL200_.jpg) ## Metadata - Author: [[Kory Kogon, Adam Merrill, Leena Rinne]] - Full Title: The 5 Choices - Category: #books ## Highlights - In many cases, we have redefined success as simply getting things done on time (barely!) rather than doing the important things with the attention and quality that makes us feel like we are, in fact, doing extraordinary work. ([Location 181](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B00LQMDZZI&location=181)) - The problem is that high-value decisions don’t come in a predictable order. They are nonlinear opportunities. If we are not aware, we might miss them entirely, or only address them in a rushed, low-quality way. A linear approach in a nonlinear reality is a recipe for failure. Putting our heads down and simply doing more faster does not create extraordinary productivity in a world where value is found in stepping back, prioritizing the choices coming in, and making good decisions on the things that really impact results. ([Location 199](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B00LQMDZZI&location=199)) - These three roots of the productivity paradox—a streaming flow of unlimited decisions to be made, the second-by-second battle for your attention, and the draining demands on your personal energy—all have a real impact on how accomplished you feel on any day at work, at home, and in your community. ([Location 241](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B00LQMDZZI&location=241)) - 40 percent—almost half—of your time, attention, and energy is going to unimportant or irrelevant activities? ([Location 249](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B00LQMDZZI&location=249)) - In our experience, this is the biggest hidden cost in organizations today. It is the cost of people spending their precious time, attention, and energy on things that don’t drive your most important results. ([Location 265](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B00LQMDZZI&location=265)) - What we are talking about is living and working at your best, where you bring your whole self to what you do, and tap into the talents and energies you uniquely have to offer. It means, above all, doing work that you can feel great about. ([Location 281](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B00LQMDZZI&location=281)) - Although it is often necessary to be in Q1, it is rarely where we do our best, most creative, and highest-value work, even though it may feel like it at the time. ([Location 440](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B00LQMDZZI&location=440)) - Many people spend a lot of time in Q3 thinking they’re in Q1. However, they’re just reacting to everything coming their way. They are confusing motion with progress, action with accomplishment. ([Location 447](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B00LQMDZZI&location=447)) - If you choose to procrastinate, you are taking a perfectly good Q2 activity and pushing it off until it becomes a full-blown Q1 crisis. You are the one who causes Q1 to get bigger than necessary, creating unnecessary stress and sleepless nights. ([Location 574](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B00LQMDZZI&location=574)) - The key to getting into Q2 is to pause your Reactive Brain long enough to clarify what is coming at you, then decide whether it is worth your time and energy. We refer to this vital process as Pause-Clarify-Decide (PCD). ([Location 652](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B00LQMDZZI&location=652)) - Part of being a leader is to recognize your own responsibility for your team culture. If you are serious about getting into Q2, here are some questions you might ask yourself: 1. Are my team’s goals and priorities clear to everyone? 2. What am I doing (lack of planning, preparation, etc.) that puts people in crisis mode? (Q1) 3. Am I asking people to do things others should be doing? (Q3) 4. Are there reports, processes, or systems that are outdated and no longer necessary but are taking up people’s time? (Q4) ([Location 698](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B00LQMDZZI&location=698)) - 5. Do I create a safe environment where people can challenge and change what we are doing in order to better achieve our goals? 6. Do I encourage people on my team to pause and clarify the value and impact ([Location 703](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B00LQMDZZI&location=703)) - After you have consciously identified the few most important roles in your life and made them visible in a Life Wheel, the next big step is to use your Thinking Brain to evaluate how you are doing in each of these roles today. Are you: • Underperforming? “I’m not doing what I should in this role and haven’t spent much time or energy on it.” • Ordinary? “I do what is expected in this role.” • Extraordinary? “I am excited about the valuable contribution I am making in this role.” ([Location 860](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B00LQMDZZI&location=860)) - This is a tough one, right? This is where you need to put a mirror in front of yourself and confront reality. You can see here how our three examples might complete the exercise. They would put dots on the continuum showing where they feel they are, and then connect the dots. KIVA ([Location 865](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B00LQMDZZI&location=865)) - Dr. Heidi Halvorson, one of the preeminent researchers in the field of goal achievement, says: We often are reluctant to set very meaningful, difficult goals for ourselves. But well over a thousand studies show that when people set difficult and specific goals for themselves, they are vastly more successful and vastly more satisfied and happy with their lives than they are when they just say, “Well, I’m gonna do my best.”7 ([Location 1051](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B00LQMDZZI&location=1051)) - In the twenty-first century, the Master Task List is probably one of the most vital tools we can use to keep our attention focused on Q2. Used properly, a Master Task List can act as another filter to discern and organize the incoming to ensure we are acting on our most important priorities. ([Location 1121](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B00LQMDZZI&location=1121)) - The purpose of a Master Task List is to keep things in a single trustworthy tracking system so that you can get them out of your brain and stop worrying about them. Then, when you do your Q2 Planning, you can confidently refer to your Master Task List, knowing that the important things you need to think about are there. The basic rule for using a Master Task List is this: When something comes up that you might need to do, it goes either on the floor or on the list, but not in your head. This means you use your discernment skills right away and decide what to do with it, but don’t leave it floating in your consciousness, taking up valuable working memory. The Time Matrix helps you make these decisions. Specifically: • Q3s and Q4s go on the floor. By definition, Q3s and Q4s are not important. Thus, if something is a Q3 or a Q4 and you can safely get rid of it, then toss it on the floor, meaning that you have successfully discerned and dismissed some incoming gravel that would otherwise be filling your day. Give yourself a high-five so that your brain knows you’ve done the right thing and move on. • Q2s and Q1s go on the list. If it is a Q2 or a necessary Q1, then put it on the list. That way, you record your choice to spend time and attention on it later, and can focus on getting your work done, rather than keeping the task floating in your head. Once a task is written down, you have already raised the probability of accomplishing it and have put your mind at peace, allowing you to focus your attention on more important things. ([Location 1123](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B00LQMDZZI&location=1123)) - One high-value practice that sets you up for effective Weekly and Daily Q2 Planning is to create Q2 Time Zones. These are proactively scheduled blocks of time that help you protect your Q2 priorities. The value of Time Zones is that you can plan them in advance, either as repeating activities or one-time events, so that when you come to a new week, there is already some Q2 time there waiting for you. ([Location 1170](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B00LQMDZZI&location=1170)) - To stay on top of this, you should schedule a regular time to handle your email and diligently set up new rules for messages as you encounter them. Pretty soon you’ll have a well-functioning, ninja-worthy inbox working for you. ([Location 1747](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B00LQMDZZI&location=1747))