In Adam’s lecture, he discussed how quality work is the foundation and basis for everything and every project. If there are constraints or limitations that result in impacting the quality of work, people will see through that.
Since the start of the pandemic, I have learned, and I am still learning how to produce quality work without sacrificing excellence. As I work in a lab in the hospital, ever since the pandemic hit, workload has amplified tremendously while staffing has only been decreasing. In the beginning, I was okay with taking on more tasks while delivering quality care to patients, but in doing that, it caused burn out which eventually might have led to decreased quality in work. Though I cannot think of a specific instance, I did not feel great about my work because I like to be methodical and meticulous about the results I give out to providers and there was a constant pressure of having to produce results quickly, lowering turn-around-time while we are short staffed, and workload was doubled (or more). Having worked through this pandemic (and still struggling even now), I realized how important it is to first prioritize myself. My mental health is the most important and if I am not okay, how am I able to take care of others while displaying excellence and integrity? I also realized how previously, I was willing to break my back for an organization that did not necessarily seem to care about my thoughts and well-being. At the end of the day, things were not being implemented to help our situation, turn-over-rate was extremely high because of that as well, which was fueling even more burn out. I questioned why I was willing to sacrifice myself when I was not being compensated for the amount of extra work I was doing, but at the same time not proud of the work I was producing.
After reflecting, the main thing I learned was to do what I can. I am not saying to simply do the bare minimum, but to realize as one human being, there is only so much we can handle. If we want to preserve the longevity of what we are doing (and life in general), we must pace ourselves and learn how to say no. Having a scarcity mindset can be toxic and knowing when to walk away from situations that no longer serve you is imperative. I can say for sure that the quality of my work has definitely improved.