Admin Monday
Dear Erin,
Ugh. Today was a long day.
I’ve had the idea now for a few weeks that I should set aside Monday to be all-Admin. Of course, in my mind I assumed it couldn’t POSSIBLY take all day, and that if I just knocked those pesky administrative issues off the task list, I’d be back to the fun stuff by lunchtime.
Yeah, not so much.
When I teach nonprofit management, I emphasize that admin work is one of the six foundations of a healthy business, and that it needs time and attention - and more than a little expertise. It can feel like just a bunch of little stuff: scheduling meetings, filing documents, cleaning out email, tracking down expense receipts, doing HR and payroll work, making sure we’re in compliance with all the various regulators and government institutions. I personally don’t find it super interesting, and even the dopamine hits of checking off all the little boxes on my to-do list can’t change my mind. But it’s important. Absolutely critical work for keeping the organization afloat.
Today was my first real day of Admin Monday. Wow. I spent 12 hours on it. So much for wrapping it up by lunchtime. Now, there were a few items that shouldn’t have taken so long, but I had fallen quite behind. There’s hope that next Monday admin won’t take nearly as long. But it will probably still take 8 hours, if I do it thoroughly and well.
I feel like you schedule in two admin half-days throughout the week. Good for you!! I should have followed your lead awhile ago. Whether or not I like doing the work, I can tell you for sure I don’t like being so far behind that I need to spend 12 hours on it in a single day to catch up. If the work is important, which it is, it deserves dedicated time to get it done correctly. Admin, as one of the six foundations, simply cannot be squeezed into a few 10-15 minute time slots between projects I’d rather be doing. Block some time out - whether that’s Admin Monday, a few half days, or 60-90 minutes every morning. Get it done.
Help me stay honest! I could use an accountability buddy. Ask me when we talk how my Monday went…and if I don’t say “I did some awesome admin” then I invite you to give me the what for.
Talk soon,
Love,
Mom
