*Use this model when considering how to manage your commitments and choices.*
##### what is it?
This is a model for thinking about paying attention to the right things through building a system that supports [[focus attention]] on [[Doing]] over planning.
![[MOB.jpg]]
*Margin* is defined as the difference between your limit and your load. It is the gap between what you have to do and what you have time for. If you have a tiny bit of space, you have room for your plan going differently, which always happens. Margin allows you to [[Plan on your plan not going to plan]]. [[Four Thousand Weeks]] tells us we can never do everything, so we better give ourselves a bit of a gap. You can find margin in your time, your money, your emotions and your energy.
_Climbing is a barometer of margin. If I'm spending the time I want to, if I'm outside as much as I want to be, then I have margin. It keeps me out of overload._
The [[Seasonal Note Template]] & [[Weekly Review Template]] are ways to keep awareness of the margin.
[[The solution is not to decrease your capacity, the solution is usually to decrease your load.]] You have two levers, one is be "more efficient," the other is to [[remove to gain]].
*Ownership* is understanding what it is that you actually control. Sometimes you feel if you are in charge that you have ownership of some things but not everything. If you feel you are at work for someone else, you feel like you have no ownership. The truth is you typically have ownership between those two spectrums. What is it that you control is a key question that you can use to figure out how to live your values within your domain. Claiming ownership causes you to also take responsibility.
- Time ownership
- Figure out what elements of your time you do have control over, and within those periods, do your best. \
> If you decide you are going to work at this job, you have 3 hours of meetings a day that are outside of your control. You still have 5 hours of work within your control. Focus on doing the most with those hours.
- Task ownership
| | Things I love | Things I hate |
| ------------------------ | ------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Things only I can do** | High value, do more | Can't delegate, but if you recognize the importance because it can contribute to an outcome you value. Over time, you can learn to love these. |
| **Things anyone can do** | Traps | Automate or outsource<br> |
*Boundaries* are defining what is your and what is not yours. These are not permanent (a fence), instead in this context don't think of them as perfect walls, think of them as a way of keeping the good stuff in and the bad stuff out. They are a defensive tool not an offensive weapon. Something that people don't even notice. Occasionally people bump into this, but it isn't in their face. It can be difficult to establish. This works with ownership to help you have a margin.
Of course, there's an interface between these, better understanding of your ownership lets you make better decisions about boundaries, which can give you a margin.
##### why does it matter?
If we can create a shared mental model about the boundaries and expectations (such as a communication expectations matrix), we can set the right boundaries and the best expectations.
##### This reminds me of
[[Design principles for EMR alerts]], we should use design principles for our work alerts so we are doing less context switching. [[My life as a design challenge]] is a great framework.
##### What would the opposite argument be?
Things need to be negotiated. There is a balance between what I want and what others need of me.
tags: #note/growing | #on/busy | #on/margin | #on/burnout | #on/boundaries |
##### Sources:
https://www.relay.fm/focused/211