Are you very busy? Are you constantly reaching for the phone, or banging out an email to try to get something done or make something happen? The effect of tighter budgets all round is pushing lots of organisations into overwhelming initiatives, most of which will achieve nothing more than corporate exhaustion. So

Now more than ever is the time to think before you act:

The competition is ferocious. Plan a phone call carefully before you make it - at least a minute of planning for each expected minute of the call. Rehearse your sales pitch carefully – remember it's more about consultative sales skills than great presentations.

Do your homework on the actual value of the change to the organisation. Build a clear Line of Sight between the changes at the bottom and the organisational goals.

Now is the time to focus on performance improvement and productivity gains. Build the skills you need and measure performance tightly.

Focus on the long term need for skills and remember how much everyone has invested in talent management. Some companies come through downsizing with a strong team, and others destroy value all around.

Stay calm - downsizing is not fun - and concentrate on how you are securing the long term for many, rather than the distress of those who may have to leave.

What ever you are doing, plan it first – and that means create a model (it can be very simple) of what you expect the business out come to be. Work on maximising the potential value (and avoid needless value destruction), and then measure it as you go along. It's the mantra of the ROI Academy(TM), and it works.