http://publicstrategist.com/2008/08/pay-attention-to-what-you%e2%80%99re-paying-attention-to/ Working to make government work better Mon, 09 Jan 2012 23:01:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://publicstrategist.com/2008/08/pay-attention-to-what-you%e2%80%99re-paying-attention-to/comment-page-1/#comment-46 Lucinda Thu, 14 Aug 2008 17:49:41 +0000 http://publicstrategist.com/?p=62#comment-46 It would be easy if thinking and emailing were two separate activities. But email has changed the way I think about thinking. When I sat at a standalone PC, awaiting the thump of envelopes in the in-tray in the morning, I was more careful about selecting my thinking partners. I thought more before I met, talking through my problems with fewer, better placed people than is usual in the current email trail. Now, we email when we think there is a problem, and again when we know we have a problem; we email our thoughts on other people’s problems and we click too many invitees when we hastily set up (yet another) telekit. All this means we have to scroll through too many, fragmented pieces of thought as we inch our way down our virtual in-trays. Tomorrow I will start a new day’s resolution to think more, email less. It would be easy if thinking and emailing were two separate activities. But email has changed the way I think about thinking. When I sat at a standalone PC, awaiting the thump of envelopes in the in-tray in the morning, I was more careful about selecting my thinking partners. I thought more before I met, talking through my problems with fewer, better placed people than is usual in the current email trail. Now, we email when we think there is a problem, and again when we know we have a problem; we email our thoughts on other people’s problems and we click too many invitees when we hastily set up (yet another) telekit. All this means we have to scroll through too many, fragmented pieces of thought as we inch our way down our virtual in-trays. Tomorrow I will start a new day’s resolution to think more, email less.

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