You can't stop firefighting if you don't step out of the fire.
The world asks more and more of us every year.
Endless communication, dozens of platforms to stay on top of, infinite entertainment, infinite scrolling.
More possibilities.
But to navigate that requires a set of skills that just weren’t needed at any moment in history before now.
And so the metaphors become interesting.
People struggling to stay afloat.
People in over their heads.
People fighting fires that never seem to go away.
Well, that’s partly because the platforms and software we use are designed to make sure the fires never go away.
That’s why cultivating your ability to say no, to create space away from all the distractions, is a REQUIREMENT for doing work that makes a difference in the world.
Whether in your job, in your family, in your spare time - if you want to do something that matters, you have to separate yourself from the fires.
They will never go away - and that leads us to a clear truth:
You can’t stop firefighting if you don’t step out of the fire.
It isn’t your job to answer all of the messages or solve all of the problems or finish all of the tasks.
If you’re firefighting all the time, struggling to stay afloat, feeling in over your head, your job is this:
Step out of the fire.
And in doing that, take responsibility for your life and your legacy.
Once you are out of the fire, everything is different.
You can see the patterns of the fires more clearly.
You can listen for Wisdom, unshackled from the urgent pressure of the everyday.
You can choose more consciously which fires to fight, if you want.
Or, you can choose what to do now you have decided not to fight the fires any more.
What matters more than the fires?
What’s the thing that - if you did it - would actually change things in a few weeks or months or years? And how can you create space for that to happen?
When I’m teaching Meaningful Productivity I point people at the 12-Minute Method, which is really just an invitation to set aside even 12 minutes each week for the important but not urgent things you never get to. Step out of the fire for just 12 minutes.
When I’m selling coaching, really what I’m supporting people to do is build a structure which supports them to get out of the fire. That’s what I want for my clients - especially the highly pressured leaders.
If I manage to sell them the coaching then, together, we get out of it every week.
And sometimes quickly, and sometimes slowly, the changes happen. From a leader who can barely make space for our calls, to one who has restructured his company to give him and everyone space to do the work that really matters, including looking after himself properly for the first time in years.
Bold, courageous decisions not to engage, not to be sucked in. To lift yourself, even for just a few minutes, to higher ground.
And from there, to see more.
It’s easier to just let the fires take your life on its course. It even feels nice in some ways. It’s our way of finding control in a complex world: at least if I’m busy, I must be doing ok.
But you know there’s more.
You know there are other things, other projects calling you.
You know you could give more, do more, be more impactful.
Even though you also know you couldn’t be busier.
Getting more efficient at fighting fires won’t stop the firefighting.
And the fires aren’t what really matters, anyway.
It’s time to step out.
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PS My new book, The Power to Choose: Finding Calm and Connection in a Complex World, is out now! Get your copy here: https://geni.us/powertochoose
This is the latest in a series of articles written using the 12-Minute Method: write for twelve minutes, proof read once with tiny edits and then post online.