#howtogetworkdone

This is something I noticed at Microsoft, and it continues to play a role in my life. If you talk to people about stuff, it’ll stick in their mind, and often if it’s quick, they will just do it. You can pre-empt their priorities with your own. It’s not always ethical to do so, of course. But, if something is holding you up and they’re stalling because of other work, bothering them is a very real social strategy to get it done.

In today’s example, I was on the receiving end: A friend wanted some feedback on a design. I sent them a quick response saying I was busy today, but would get to it this weekend. They asked a couple followups, and I decided to just take the 10-15min and type up my thoughts, because by the time I’d answered their questions, my brain had already context-switched, so I just went ahead and did it.