There is a great difference between doing the right things versus doing things right. We may cerebrally know this truth. But in reality, we do not practice what we know. From an unconscious, almost rote level, we tend to get busy, doing things right. Unfortunately, we miss the whole point of doing the right thing because we are too preoccupied. For us, as long as our hands are typing, the paper work is piling and we get that rush of “doing”, we feel we have done our job.  Only to find out that our output does not necessarily match the actual needs of our company.

 

Just recently, I agreed to take on some editing job thinking it would be good extra income.   It was exciting at first, but the reality hit me when it came into conflict with my main roles. It was eating up time that I have sworn to spend with my family and long term interests. In other words, although I was doing things right, it was the wrong thing to do.

 

One of my long term interests is in eLearning. Since my first encounter with the possibilities of non- asynchronous, empowering and drastically life-improving changing mode of learning, I knew in my guts that this is what I wanted to pursue. Investing time in learning the industry and networking with people with similar interests has paid off. Though I still have a lot to learn and accomplish, I am now at a level that makes me an asset for my company and those we serve. Aside from that, I have started a personal project that will probably lead to more opportunities for learning, collaboration and contribution.

 

We have to constantly ask ourselves: What is the best use of my time now?

 

Let’s do the right things and not only be concerned with doing things right.