How Big Is Your…List of Responsibilities?

This is the time of year when most companies have managers sit  down with employees to conduct employee reviews. Regardless of your position in a radio station there is one concern/complaint that I’ve heard, I share and that I believe is keeping most people from performing their very best — too many responsibilities.

As the industry evolves — endless digital platforms, video, audio on demand, podcasting, blogging, social media, and more — we all end up adding duties and responsibilities to our list of things to do. The problem is these rarely get prioritized and never get removed or reassigned – even if they’re old, out-dated, and unimportant.

It’s okay to ask – why are we doing this? Should we still be doing this? And as I add this to my list of responsibilities – which take priority? Can we re-assign any to someone else?

Sometimes the answer will be no. Sometimes your manager isn’t aware of all you do.

Do yourself a favor. Write down a list of everything you do. Identify the things you think you do best, the things you believe to be most important, and the things you enjoy doing. What’s left over? Talk to your supervisor and find out if your assessment of your job responsibilities is accurate in his or her eyes. If not, you just opened the door to a great discussion that will likely lead to some kind of change.

Communication. Sometimes we’re so far in it, we forget how to do it.