Eliminate Outdated Processes to Reclaim Time and Resources
TL;DR
- Outdated processes, reflecting past needs rather than present realities, are significant generators of waste, consuming valuable time and resources that could be reallocated.
- Regularly reviewing personal and professional workflows to eliminate obsolete practices frees up time and mental space, enabling focus on current priorities and future planning.
- Processes designed for past circumstances, such as in-person work or specific family stages, become inefficient when environments or life phases change, necessitating updates.
- Eliminating unnecessary daily check-ins or overly aggressive savings, for example, can provide immediate budget relief and improve work-life balance by aligning actions with current goals.
- Updating workflows from analog to digital formats, or adapting them for distributed teams, directly addresses inefficiencies and unlocks significant time savings.
Deep Dive
Processes that served past needs often persist as significant sources of waste, consuming valuable time and resources without current utility. Regularly reviewing these inherited workflows, both professional and personal, is essential for efficiency and aligning actions with present realities and future goals.
The core problem lies in the inertia of established procedures. Salvador Cali, a partner at Boston Consulting Group, highlights that company processes frequently reflect historical conditions rather than current operational needs or strategic objectives. This legacy thinking can manifest in daily reporting requirements that were once necessary in a paper-based system but are now redundant in a digital environment, or in team check-in protocols designed for co-located teams that persist despite a shift to remote or hybrid work. Similarly, personal routines, such as the decision to do laundry daily for a large family, may no longer align with current circumstances after children have grown and moved out. The implication is that these outdated processes create an artificial scarcity of time and effort, diverting focus from more productive activities.
By questioning the current relevance of existing processes, individuals and organizations can unlock significant efficiency gains. For example, a team that continues daily 15-minute Zoom check-ins, a practice adopted during the initial phase of remote work in 2020, might find that such meetings are no longer essential for coordination in a hybrid setting. Eliminating or modifying these check-ins could free up collective time for more impactful work. On a personal level, someone who has met their retirement savings goals may no longer need to save an aggressive 15% of their income, allowing for reallocation of funds towards other priorities like travel. The key is to actively identify and discard processes that have outlived their purpose, thereby creating space for activities that better serve present needs and future aspirations.
The ultimate takeaway is that continuous evaluation of workflows is critical for maintaining relevance and optimizing resource allocation. Ignoring outdated processes leads to wasted effort and missed opportunities, while a proactive approach to updating them frees up time and energy, enabling a more present-focused and future-oriented way of operating.
Action Items
- Audit 3-5 core work processes: Identify and eliminate those reflecting past needs, not current reality (ref: Cali TED Talk).
- Create personal process review schedule: Dedicate 1 hour monthly to evaluate home routines for outdated practices.
- Evaluate 2-3 team meeting cadences: Determine if daily or frequent check-ins are still necessary in hybrid environments.
- Measure time saved: Quantify hours freed up by updating 1-2 outdated personal or work processes.
Key Quotes
"one of the best places to find waste is in a company's processes, because they usually reflect your company's past, more than its present or future. These legacies are massive waste generators."
Salvador Cali argues that processes within companies are a primary source of wasted time and resources. Cali explains that these established workflows often represent outdated practices from the past, rather than current or future needs, leading to significant inefficiencies.
"If you are feeling pressed for time and want to be more efficient, see whether there are processes in your life that you can update."
Laura suggests that individuals experiencing time constraints should actively review their routines for opportunities to improve efficiency. Laura points out that updating outdated processes, whether at work or home, can lead to significant time savings and increased productivity.
"Maybe a daily reporting process made sense in an all-paper world, but it is inefficient or unnecessary when so many things are digital."
The text provides an example of a process that may have been useful in the past but is now obsolete due to technological advancements. This illustrates how digital transformation can render older, paper-based workflows inefficient and unnecessary.
"Or maybe your team started having a 15-minute Zoom check-in every morning in April of 2020, when you were all scattered due to the pandemic and you were all adjusting to remote work."
Laura highlights a common example of a process implemented during a specific historical event, the pandemic, that may no longer serve its original purpose. This situation demonstrates how circumstances can necessitate temporary solutions that become ingrained habits, even when the original need has passed.
"If we want to live in the present and plan for the future, we don't want to waste time on things that only made sense in the past."
Laura emphasizes the importance of aligning current actions with present needs and future goals. Laura argues that continuing to engage in activities solely because they were relevant previously prevents individuals from making progress and adapting to their current reality.
Resources
External Resources
Videos & Documentaries
- TED Talk by Salvador Cali - Mentioned as the source of the tip regarding workflows that waste time and how to streamline or eliminate them.
Articles & Papers
- "Second Cup: Do your processes reflect your past or your present?" (Before Breakfast) - Mentioned as the episode title, introducing the theme of reviewing current processes.
People
- Salvador Cali - Partner at the Boston Consulting Group, author of a TED Talk on wasteful workflows.
- Laura - Host of the Before Breakfast podcast.
- Shaquille O'Neal (Shaq) - Mentioned in relation to obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).
Organizations & Institutions
- iHeart Radio - Production company for the Before Breakfast podcast.
- State Farm - Sponsor of a stress check segment.
- Boston Consulting Group - Organization where Salvador Cali is a partner.
- Lily - Pharmaceutical company providing information on obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).
- Gilead - Sponsor of information regarding PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis).
Websites & Online Resources
- omnystudio.com/listener - Provided for privacy information.
- don'tsleeponosa.com - Website to learn more about obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).
- findoutaboutprep.com - Website to learn more about PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis).