We are now in the end of the year. This is by definition the mother of all panic weeks for the year.

Only it’s not. Look, don’t tell anyone I said this, but between last week and this week this is the slowest I’ve had it in a long time. All year, seems like. There is probably some heroic thing I am supposed to be doing to make sure Acme doesn’t leave one penny on the table, but when I look around me what I see is that most people are too busy to give me work. I get to sneak off and do something I want to do.

I didn’t quite get to realize this dream today because I am substituting for someone who is on vacation. The only emergency I had today came from that corner. Covering for TB kept me busy enough so I couldn’t do more than open my pet database and tweak a few things. My only regret, though, is that I felt too guilty to make my pet project a higher priority. Surely at the end of the year there is some revenue-generating horse I am supposed to be flogging… it’s the worst time to be indulging in optional projects with dubious payoff somewhere down the road.

But the open secret of the business world is that things don’t get done until somebody breaks the rules. That’s also how things often get wrecked, too; discernment is worth more than three college degrees. You can’t walk away from your primary responsibilities, but if you’ve got them covered looking for more work is suicide. Seize the moment.