Few members of the team have the liberty to work only on one project at a time. The majority of them are switching between the projects. Switching between tasks is stressful and needs a lot of focus and energy. How can we manage time, stress, and growth if you are working on multiple projects with multiple teams? How can we focus on what is more important? We need to start with some planning and a few rules that we must follow to stay focussed:

Prioritize and Sequence work

We need to big pick one task and focus on it sequentially rather than switching between tasks. We should start with tasks that are more important and are of high priority. We should first look at tasks that need a high level of concentration. Plan for the outcomes and work on the actions needed to achieve those results. Always look at the bigger picture. Focusing carefully on tasks puts you in a reactive and time-bound mode. It is essential to look at the bigger picture and put the tasks in the right sequence when we are working on multiple projects at a time.

Establishing and Conveying Expectations

When we are working on some important tasks, we need to keep ourselves away from all the disturbances. For example, when working on important tasks that need a high level of concentration, we should disengage ourselves by telling our team members not to disturb. We should also document the progress. It helps the team feel empowered and in control of the situation.

Improve your development

Under time pressure, the objective for each member is to provide help where they already have deep knowledge, rather than spending in the team’s development and growth. You need to take ownership of your development goals and work towards the progress. Figure out who else on the team would you want to give exposure to. Make your development goals clear, to both your team leader and members.

After identifying your development goals plan for actual learning. Keep time for reflecting on the plan.

Across the world, today working on multiple projects at a time is the new normal. There is stress and there is risk associated with it. But each of us who is working on multiple projects should learn the art to switch between projects. We should learn to focus our energy.

Written & Compiled by Faber Mayuri