Monkey Business  by Grandpa Chuck

How many Monkeys do you have on your back right now?  Don’t understand the question?  Let me explain!  

Every time you take on a new task let’s treat that as adding a Monkey to your back.  An examples would be; “Mom, can you wash this shirt?” or “Dear, could you pick some items up for me at the store?”.  A "yes" reply would add the task to your task list for the day.  Another way to word it would be that in accepting this task you put a Monkey on your back. 

  Take a minute and think of all the tasks you have lined up for today!  Think of each of those tasks as a Monkey on your back.  Do you have 4-Monkeys, 6-Monkeys, 10-Monkeys?  Well, how many Monkeys do have?  I’ll venture a guess a lot of them little animals sitting on your back.

  Now here is the best part, each time you complete a task a Monkey jumps off.  That Monkey is no longer on your back.  However, each time you agree to take on another task during your day you pick up another Monkey on your back.  How many Monkeys can you take hanging on back?    Only you can decide but as the day goes on if you add too many tasks to your list you are going to get tired just carrying all those Monkeys around with you and not get much of anything accommplished!

  But there is help for you!  The 4-D habit is a very simple positive habit that will help you to prevent work overload. Every time you are faced with a new task to perform, apply the 4 D's as listed below. You will find that your workload will be reduced as you apply this screening and decision-making tool to each task you are confronted with. Decide on the most appropriate choice - and take action.

Do It Now - take immediate action, do the task right away, don't procrastinate.

Dump It Now - make a quick decision and dump the task.

Delegate It - give the task to someone else. This is a very critical aspect of time management. Your time is valuable; make it a habit to work on tasks that you do best and delegate the tasks that can be performed by someone else.

Defer the Task - make an immediate decision to postpone the task to a later time. Make sure to schedule a time to complete it.

  The next time someone says to you, “Will you..." or "Can you..."

  You can say, “Ask me later, I have enough Monkeys on my back right now!"