Going long-term with big-picture thinking

IF YOU feel like you're accomplishing a lot but not anything of longer-term significance, it may be a good idea to reset and make time to tackle bigger goals.

- ART MARKMAN

Take a look at your to-do list. Does it seem never-ending? The thing about task lists is that they are filled with specific things you need to accomplish. When you combine that with an ever-expanding inbox, you have a recipe for busy work days.

While you may get many things done, you may not feel like they are adding up to a more significant contribution to the mission of your workplace or your own big-picture goals. To ensure that the specific things you're doing lead to important outcomes, you need some time in your schedule to reflect on your big-picture goals and their relationship to the actions you're taking day-to-day.

Here are a few things you can do to create the mental space needed to make your days not just busy, but productive.

Unstructured time

Ensuring that your daily activities lead up to something more substantial will not happen by magic. Instead, you need to regularly save some time that is not devoted to the particular tasks that are already on your task list.