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The Dilemma of Communication: When to Speak, When to Wait

In today’s fast-paced world, where information spreads like wildfire, one of the toughest challenges faced by leaders, organizations, and even governments is knowing when to communicate with the public about issues that may or may not affect them. This dilemma often revolves around whether to alert people early on, even if facts are still unclear, or to wait until all the facts are available. It’s a balancing act that requires careful consideration of both ethical responsibility and the potential consequences of premature communication.

The Power and Pitfalls of Early Communication

In the age of instant information, the public expects to be kept informed, especially during times of uncertainty or crisis. Whether it’s a potential public health threat, environmental hazard, or political controversy, there is an inherent pressure to communicate early. The idea is to be transparent, build trust, and prevent rumors from taking hold. But what happens when you don’t have all the facts?

Advantages of Early Communication:

Transparency and Trust: People appreciate being informed, even if the situation is still developing. Offering early alerts shows that you are on top of the situation and care about keeping the public in the loop.
Preventing Misinformation: Early communication can help combat rumors or misinformation by providing an official voice in the conversation. Without it, social media and other platforms might fuel speculation, creating unnecessary panic or confusion.
Preparedness: Informing people early allows them to take precautionary actions, which can be crucial in some situations, such as natural disasters or public health risks.

Challenges of Early Communication:

Uncertainty and Inaccuracy: One of the biggest risks of speaking too early is the potential for spreading misinformation. Without concrete facts, any message sent out can be incomplete, misleading, or even damaging.
Overreaction: Premature communication might create unnecessary panic or stress among the public, especially if the information turns out to be less severe than initially feared.
Credibility Issues: If an early warning is later proven to be exaggerated or wrong, the damage to credibility can be long-lasting. People may lose trust in future communications, making it harder to engage them during future incidents.

The Alternative: Waiting for the Facts

On the flip side, waiting for independent reports or more reliable data can seem like the safer route. It ensures that the information shared is accurate, verified, and thorough. But this approach is not without its own set of challenges.

Advantages of Waiting:

Accuracy and Credibility: By waiting for the facts to be confirmed, the information shared is more likely to be correct. This helps maintain trust and ensures that no one is misled by inaccurate information.
Clearer Picture: Waiting allows the situation to unfold, providing a fuller understanding of the issue at hand, its scope, and its potential impact.
Preventing False Alarms: Sometimes, the initial panic or concern might be unwarranted. By waiting for a thorough report or expert opinion, you can avoid unnecessary fear or actions that may ultimately be unnecessary.

Challenges of Waiting:

Perception of Inaction: People may perceive waiting as a lack of transparency or as an organization dragging its feet. This can lead to frustration and dissatisfaction, particularly when the public feels left in the dark.
Missed Opportunities: In some cases, timely communication can help mitigate a situation or enable people to take proactive steps. Delaying information may limit those opportunities.
Rumors and Speculation: When information is scarce, people will fill the gaps with their own theories and assumptions. Without an official voice to clarify things, rumors can take root and spread more quickly than any organization can manage.

Striking the Right Balance

So, what’s the right approach? The key lies in finding a balance between premature speculation and excessive delay. Here are a few guidelines for navigating this complex challenge:

1. Transparency is Key: Even if all the facts aren’t available, acknowledge the uncertainty and make it clear that the situation is being investigated. People can handle uncertainty if they understand that the situation is being managed.

2. Update Regularly: Instead of waiting for the entire picture to emerge, provide regular updates as more information becomes available. This helps manage expectations and shows that progress is being made.

3. Avoid Speculation: It’s tempting to share early predictions or assumptions, but these can often be wrong and lead to confusion. Stick to what you know, and be honest about what you don’t know.

4. Set Clear Expectations: If you decide to wait for independent reports or confirmation, be clear about your timeline. Let the public know when they can expect more information and from whom. This reduces frustration and sets realistic expectations.

5. Assess the Risk: Consider the potential consequences of both early and delayed communication. In some cases, it may be better to risk communicating early, especially if lives are at stake. In other situations, waiting for clarity may be the more prudent option.

Conclusion

There is no one-size-fits-all answer to the question of when to communicate. The decision to alert the public early or wait for independent confirmation depends on the nature of the issue, the potential impact on people’s lives, and the level of uncertainty involved. By carefully considering the pros and cons of each approach and striving for transparency, leaders can navigate this difficult terrain with integrity and responsibility. Ultimately, it’s about building trust, managing expectations, and making decisions that prioritize the public good.

A friend recently asked for advice on how to approach a particular organization with a written proposition. My advice was simple yet strategic: let the recipients read the document at their own pace, and before any discussion begins, ensure that everyone has had the chance to review it. This way, they are already informed and ready to provide feedback.

Take Amazon, for example. They reportedly require everyone to read a full-length document and fully understand it before engaging in any debate. This approach is a valuable one because it ensures that everyone has a clear understanding before discussions start.

When presenting a proposition, the order of feedback matters. Rather than leading with your own proposal, it’s more powerful to begin by asking others to share their thoughts. This places you in a stronger position to gauge their reactions and build on their feedback. By listening to everyone’s input, you can then draw the discussion to a close by summarizing their ideas and offering a final, cohesive response.

This method is like setting up a domino effect – whether you are the first or last to speak. Starting with your advocates or those likely to support your proposition can create a momentum that leads into your final conclusion. If you speak last, you can seamlessly bring all the key points together and offer a unified summary of your stance.

Another useful guiding principle is the question: Does it need saying? Does it need saying now? Does it need saying by me? This simple reflection can help you decide whether it’s best to stay silent or contribute. If you allow others to voice your thoughts, your argument is stronger because it’s no longer just your opinion – it’s a collective consensus.

Additionally, there are other phrases to keep in mind: Is it truthful? Is it informative? Is it necessary? Is it kind? These criteria help ensure that what you contribute adds value to the conversation.

Sometimes, silence is the most constructive contribution you can make. By allowing others to think, process, and engage, you create the space for emotional and intellectual shifts that ultimately lead to the consensus and support you seek. After all, it’s not just about getting your message across – it’s about allowing the team to arrive at a shared conclusion.

The Power of Alignment: Vertical and Horizontal in Organizations

What Happens When Alignment Fails?

Imagine a car with amazing parts: a powerful engine, smooth wheels, and a sleek body. However, they don’t fit together. The result? A car that looks great but doesn’t drive. This is what happens when vertical and horizontal alignment are lacking in an organization. When teams or departments fail to align, the whole system becomes inefficient, no matter how strong individual parts are.

Vertical Alignment: Connecting the Individual to the Organization

Vertical alignment ensures that corporate goals, budgets, risks, and personal performance targets are connected. If you’re responsible for a particular goal, you should also understand the budget and risks tied to it. This way, you’re empowered to manage your tasks with full responsibility and accountability.

John Adair, one of the world’s leading authorities on leadership, emphasizes the importance of alignment in leadership and organizational success. He argues that when goals, risks, and resources are clearly linked, individuals are more likely to meet objectives effectively. Congruence between personal targets and corporate goals increases motivation and clarity. The clearer the path from individual performance to organizational success, the better the chances of achieving those goals.

The Consequences of Misalignment

When personal goals don’t match corporate goals, motivation drops. Employees may focus on what benefits them personally rather than the organization. This disconnect can cause disengagement and low morale. Furthermore, when daily tasks don’t align with the bigger picture, people might feel their work is meaningless. The key to overcoming this is ensuring that individual performance reviews, goals, and personal development plans reflect the broader organizational strategy.

Horizontal Alignment: Breaking Down Silos

Horizontal alignment is about collaboration. It’s ensuring that departments and teams work together rather than in isolation. If departments focus only on their specific tasks without understanding how they fit into the organization’s larger picture, opportunities for collaboration, resource sharing, and risk mitigation are missed.

For example, if one department is working on a project that relies on another department’s work, but they’re unaware of the other’s timeline or priorities, delays and inefficiencies can occur. It’s like trying to build a house where the rooms, wiring, and plumbing are all perfect, but they don’t connect to form a functioning home.

The Importance of Cross-Department Collaboration

When departments understand each other’s goals and how their work fits into the bigger picture, collaboration becomes easier. This leads to better resource management, quicker decision-making, and stronger overall performance. When people from different departments come together with shared goals, the result is much greater than the sum of their parts. Team spirit thrives when everyone sees themselves as part of a collective mission.

Why Does Misalignment Persist?

In many organizations, vertical alignment is lacking. People aren’t clear about how their goals tie to the company’s strategy. Even if their tasks are important, they don’t feel connected to the broader mission. This lack of congruence causes frustration and disengagement.

Horizontal misalignment can be just as damaging. Departments may work in silos, unaware of how their work impacts others. This lack of cooperation stifles innovation and progress. When departments don’t collaborate, they end up competing with each other, rather than working together toward common objectives.

Top Tips for Achieving Alignment

1. Link Personal and Corporate Goals: Ensure individual goals are directly tied to organizational priorities.
2. Promote Cross-Department Communication: Encourage collaboration between departments to break down silos.
3. Align Rewards with Organizational Success: Tie performance reviews and rewards to both personal and corporate achievements.
4. Ensure Regular Check-Ins: Monitor progress regularly to ensure that individuals and teams stay aligned with both vertical and horizontal goals.

Self-Evaluation Checklist

* Do my personal goals align with the company’s vision?
* Am I clear on the budget, risks, and resources for my goals?
* Do I understand the goals of other departments and how we can collaborate?
* How can I contribute to breaking down silos in my organization?

The Takeaway

Vertical and horizontal alignment are key to achieving organizational success. When these two alignments are in place, an organization functions like a well-oiled machine. So, what steps can you take today to make sure you’re aligned with both the organization and your colleagues?

Why We Avoid Decisions: Unpacking the Hidden Forces at Play

It’s fascinating to observe how behavior unfolds within teams and organizations. When decision-making slows down or when there’s hesitation in reporting issues to senior leadership, it’s easy to blame laziness or indecisiveness. But is that really the full picture?

The Subconscious Drive Behind Procrastination

Often, procrastination or reluctance to make decisions stems from deeper, unconscious forces. When a decision remains outstanding, it offers a sense of freedom. Without the finality of a conclusion, individuals are free from the constraints of a particular goal or objective. They can operate in a space of ambiguity, which allows them to enjoy the comfort of not being accountable.

Freedom in Ambiguity

Ambiguity can feel safe. It avoids the stress that often accompanies commitment. In the absence of clear decisions, individuals and teams can continue tweaking, analyzing, and improving. It creates a false sense of progress, even if no real progress is made. Instead of moving forward, people stay in a loop of revision, unable to commit to one direction.

The Fear of Accountability

But why is there such reluctance to make decisions? Part of the answer lies in the fear of accountability. A decision ties people to a particular outcome. When you make a choice, you are accountable for its success or failure. Avoiding decision-making helps avoid this responsibility, giving people an escape route when things go wrong. It’s easier to stay in the gray area than to face the potential fallout of a decision.

The Comfort of the Status Quo

Staying in a state of indecision can also be a way of preserving the status quo. It’s comfortable not to change anything because change often requires effort, discomfort, and the possibility of failure. A lack of decision means no need to disturb the current state, no need to confront the unknown. In some ways, not making a decision is a decision in itself, one that allows things to remain unchanged and familiar.

Avoiding Conflict

Another hidden reason behind decision avoidance is the unconscious fear of conflict. Decisions often require people to take sides, to argue for one direction over another. This can lead to tension and disagreements, which many would rather avoid. By postponing decisions, conflict is postponed as well. The team avoids the discomfort of navigating differing opinions and opposing interests.

The Unconscious Desire for Control

In a similar vein, procrastination may also be rooted in an unconscious desire for control. Without decisions, there is no external pressure to follow a certain path or outcome. The team or individual maintains the illusion of control by staying in the space of possibility. Once a decision is made, they lose the flexibility of adapting freely to changing circumstances.

The Shadow at Play

From a Jungian perspective, these behaviors are often tied to the shadow—those parts of the self or the group that are repressed or denied. The shadow might include feelings of fear, failure, or incompetence that are not consciously acknowledged but influence decisions. When individuals or groups avoid making decisions, they may be protecting themselves from these uncomfortable emotions, projecting them onto the environment instead.

What Can We Learn from This?

This reluctance to make decisions is not merely a flaw in the individuals or team members involved. It is a reflection of deeper psychological needs and fears that are operating beneath the surface. Understanding these unconscious forces can help leaders and teams break out of the cycle of procrastination.

Top Tips for Overcoming Procrastination

1. Acknowledge the Fear: Recognize that fear is often the root cause of indecision. Addressing it can lead to more confident decisions.
2. Set Boundaries: Limit the time spent on reviewing and revising. Set deadlines to force a decision.
3. Create Safe Spaces for Conflict: Encourage open discussion and disagreement in a safe, constructive environment.
4. Build Accountability: Make accountability a shared responsibility. This helps reduce the burden on one individual.
5. Understand the Shadow: Recognize the unconscious fears at play and work to integrate them into conscious awareness.

Self-Evaluation Checklist

1. What patterns of procrastination have I noticed in my team or organization?
2. How do these patterns impact decision-making and progress?
3. What unconscious fears or conflicts might be driving these behaviors?
4. How can I create a culture that embraces decision-making and accountability?
5. What steps can I take to address the unconscious forces behind procrastination?

Final Thought

Procrastination in decision-making is more than just avoidance; it’s a defense mechanism against deeper psychological fears. What unconscious forces might be driving your team’s hesitation in making decisions? How can you address these hidden dynamics to encourage more decisive action?

The Politics of Change: It’s Not Just About Strategy

When we talk about organizational change, we often focus on strategy. But there’s something more powerful at play—something hidden beneath the surface. It’s the politics of change. And this politics isn’t about the usual office power plays, it’s about something deeper: the unconscious drive for belonging.

In many cases, the success or failure of change initiatives isn’t determined by how well the strategy is executed. Instead, it’s shaped by the unspoken dynamics of relationships, emotions, and culture. The need to belong is a powerful force that influences how people react to change. But to understand this, we need to look beyond the surface and dig deeper into the psychology of people and groups.

The Hidden Forces at Play

Change isn’t just about systems and processes. It’s about people and the complex web of relationships that exist within an organization. The political landscape of change is shaped by people’s motives, alliances, and even their subconscious need to fit in.

Eric Berne’s *The Games People Play* is a useful framework for understanding the subtle, often unconscious, games people play in organizations. These “games” aren’t always negative, but they can create patterns of behavior that influence decisions and actions. Often, these dynamics play out without anyone realizing it, yet they have a profound impact on the success of change efforts.

Beyond Strategy: The Power of Alliances and Enmities

Politics in organizations is about alliances, partnerships, and enmities. But these aren’t always visible on the surface. Many of these relationships are formed based on unspoken needs for belonging and validation. People tend to align themselves with others who share similar values, experiences, or goals, and these alliances play a significant role in how they approach change.

It’s important to recognize that politics isn’t just about the visible power struggles between leaders. It’s about how people form informal networks that influence decision-making. These networks shape the direction of change and can make or break its success.

Systems Theory: Emotion and Culture in Organizational Change

Systems Theory and Complex Adaptive Systems (CAS) teach us that organizations are dynamic, interconnected, and constantly evolving. These systems are not just mechanical—they’re susceptible to human emotions and cultural forces.

When we think about change from a systems perspective, we must also consider the emotional undercurrents that affect individuals within the system. Emotions like fear, excitement, trust, and insecurity can influence how people respond to change. The success of a change initiative often depends on how well these emotional factors are managed.

The Influence of Memetics and Fashion

Memetics— the study of how ideas and behaviors spread—helps explain why people adopt certain behaviors or attitudes during change. People often conform to social norms and follow trends to fit in, even if they don’t fully understand the reasons behind them. This is especially true in organizational change, where employees may “go along with the flow” of a new direction because they want to feel like they belong to the larger group.

The concept of *zeitgeist*, or the spirit of the times, is closely related. It suggests that people tend to adopt the beliefs and behaviors that are “in fashion” within their organization or culture. During a period of change, this can mean that people align themselves with whatever the dominant narrative or direction is, often because they want to belong.

In-groups, Out-groups, and the Need for Belonging

The need to belong is a primal human drive. Within organizations, this manifests as the creation of in-groups and out-groups. In-groups are those who are seen as “insiders”—people who share common goals, values, and beliefs. Out-groups, on the other hand, are those who are excluded, whether intentionally or unintentionally.

In times of change, this dynamic becomes especially important. Those who feel like they belong to the in-group are more likely to support change, while those in the out-group may resist, even passively. The fear of being excluded from the in-group can be a powerful motivator, influencing behavior in ways that may not be immediately obvious.

Top Tips for Navigating the Politics of Change

1. Map Relationships: Understanding the relationships between people can help you identify informal networks and alliances that may influence change. Use tools like Geno maps to visualize these relationships.

2. Pay Attention to Unspoken Dynamics: Not everything that shapes change is said out loud. Observe how people interact, the body language they use, and the conversations they have behind closed doors.

3. Acknowledge the Role of Emotion: People’s emotional responses to change can be just as important as the logical reasons behind it. Be mindful of how people are feeling about the change and address concerns directly.

4. Create Inclusive Spaces: To minimize resistance, work on creating an environment where people feel included. Those who feel part of the change are more likely to support it.

5. Leverage Group Influence: Group dynamics can be a powerful tool for driving change. Understand how groupthink works and use it to your advantage by building a coalition of people who can influence others.

6. Be Culturally Aware: Understand the culture of your organization and how it influences behavior. Culture can shape how people react to change, so tailor your approach to fit the cultural norms.

7. Be Patient with Resistance: Resistance to change is natural, but it often stems from fear of exclusion or insecurity. Take the time to understand the root causes of resistance and address them empathetically.

Self-Evaluation Checklist

1. Have I identified the key informal networks within my organization?
2. Am I paying attention to how people feel about the change, not just what they say?
3. Do I understand the emotional undercurrents that might affect the success of this change?
4. How can I create a sense of inclusion for those who might feel like outsiders during this change?
5. Am I acknowledging the role of cultural norms in shaping how people react to change?
6. Have I mapped out the potential in-groups and out-groups and developed strategies to minimize division?

The politics of change goes beyond strategy. It’s about understanding the hidden dynamics of belonging and exclusion. How are you addressing these unconscious forces in your own change initiatives?

Step-by-Step Process: Structuring and Managing Your Mission, Vision, and Projects

1. Why We Are Here
Mission: Why does your organization exist? Define the core reason your team or company exists and what purpose it serves.
Vision: Where do you see your organization or team in the future? Define a clear, aspirational vision for the long-term future.

2. What We Do, For Whom & How
What We Do: Clearly articulate the products, services, or solutions your organization provides.
For Whom: Identify your target audience or customers—who will benefit from what you do?
How We Do It: Outline the methods, approaches, and processes your team will use to deliver value to your customers or stakeholders.

3. Mission, Vision & Values
Values: Define the guiding principles or ethical standards that govern your team’s actions and decisions.
Key Objectives: List the primary objectives you want to achieve as an organization or team. These should support your mission and vision.

4. Key Objectives & Measures
Top 5 Objectives: Identify your ‘Purpose’ or ‘Goal’—the top 5 objectives that will drive your organization toward its mission.
These objectives should be SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound).
Measures: For each objective, establish measurable criteria to track progress and success.

5. Project Lists & Task Management
Strategic Priorities: List high-level projects or initiatives that align with your strategic goals.
Service Priorities: List initiatives related to customer service, satisfaction, or service delivery.
Operational Routine: Include ongoing tasks or processes required to maintain daily operations.

Challenge: Many of these initiatives will compete for time and resources. Prioritize based on urgency, importance, and alignment with overall goals.

6. Using Post-it Notes for Task Management
For each task or initiative, create a Post-it note or a task card. Include:
Task name, ID, assigned person, status, and due date on the front.
On the back: a detailed description, priority, relevant notes, checklists, and any blockers or dependencies.

Objective: To track and prioritize work effectively while ensuring clear accountability.

7. Task Segmentation by Board
Board 1: Capacity: Focus on the resources you need—whether staff, technology, or processes—to accomplish your goals.
Board 2: Capability: Identify the skills, knowledge, and data needed for success.
Board 3: Delivery: How will you deliver your products or services effectively and efficiently?

Note: Each task must be evaluated to understand its effect on these three categories.

8. The “Plate of Projects”
Team Goals & Collaboration: Emphasize teamwork over competition by clarifying roles and avoiding duplication or gaps in responsibility.
Clear Responsibilities: Use a RACI (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed) matrix to ensure clarity on who does what.

Tip: Break down tasks into actionable chunks to prevent overwhelm and ensure a healthy mix of work.

9. Planning Your Time
Model Week/Month: Create a weekly or monthly model to guide your time allocation and task completion.
Time Allocation: Book time into your calendar for urgent and important tasks, and use the principles of Do, Ditch, Delegate, or Delay for the rest.

Goal: Achieve more by focusing on high-priority, high-impact tasks.

10. Using Lead & Lag Indicators
Lead Indicators: These are predictive measures that forecast future outcomes or performance. Use them to guide decision-making.
Lag Indicators: These are historical measures that reflect past performance and impact. Use them to evaluate how well you’ve met your key objectives and goals.

11. Measuring Impact
Published Metrics: Share results that reflect actual impact, not just effort.
For example: How many people benefited from the service? What measurable outcomes were achieved?
In business, focus on profit, people, and the planet. Metrics should measure value, not just activities.

12. Continuous Improvement
Reflection & Adjustments: Regularly assess your progress, revisit your objectives, and adapt strategies as necessary.
Feedback Loops: Ensure continuous learning by incorporating feedback into decision-making and project adjustments.

By following this structured approach, you can ensure that your team’s objectives are clear, projects are effectively managed, and progress is measurable. It’s about aligning your mission, vision, and values with specific actions, time management, and continuous evaluation to drive meaningful results.

Why Trying to Do It All Will Only Hold You Back

It’s easy to fall into the trap of trying to do everything at once. We want to deliver the best service, help as many people as possible, and solve all the problems. But the reality is, this approach rarely works.

When organizations attempt to do too much, they often miss out on what truly matters. Instead of focusing on delivering services effectively, they spread themselves thin. Without the competence, capacity, and drive to back it up, the result is often suboptimal outcomes. The result? A lot of energy spent on good intentions, but little to show for it.

The Myth of Pleasing Everyone

Trying to do everything for everyone can create chaos, confusion, and competition. It’s impossible to please all the people all the time. When we’re stretched too thin, we risk failure or mediocre results. It’s time to rethink the idea that we need to do everything all at once.

Prioritization is Key

The secret to success lies in managing your time effectively. Rather than drowning in a sea of tasks, focus on what matters most. If you prioritize, you’ll achieve success incrementally, one step at a time. This isn’t just about doing less; it’s about doing what matters more.

Start by being clear on your mission, vision, and values. Ask yourself: What are the top five things you need to achieve? Once you know that, everything else falls into place. You’ll have a clear sense of purpose and direction.

Build Your Capacity and Capability

Knowing what’s important allows you to allocate resources more effectively. But it doesn’t end there. You need to build the capacity and capability to deliver on your priorities. This means ensuring you have the right skills, systems, and people in place to achieve your goals.

Constant Improvement through Measurement

Measuring progress is vital. You need to know how you’re doing, what’s working, and what needs to change. This is where the principle of Kaizen, or continuous improvement, comes into play. It’s about learning and adapting as you go. And to do this effectively, you need to engage your frontline staff. They’re the ones who will help find creative solutions to challenges.

Plan, Schedule, and Leave Room for the Unexpected

Having clarity allows you to plan and schedule effectively. We all know how to plan for events like Christmas or holidays, but why do we struggle to do the same for work? The key is allowing time for the unexpected. You can plan for unpredictability. Set aside time each day or week for urgent matters, but also schedule time for strategic thinking.

Top Tips for Effective Time Management:

1. Identify your top five priorities. What really matters?
2. Build the capacity and skills to meet those priorities.
3. Measure progress regularly and adjust where needed.
4. Engage your team for fresh ideas and improvements.
5. Plan ahead, but leave space for unexpected tasks.

Self-Evaluation Checklist:

Are you clear on your mission, vision, and values?
Have you identified your top five priorities?
Do you have the resources and people needed to succeed?
Are you measuring progress regularly?
Are you leaving time for strategic thinking and unexpected challenges?

Conclusion

The key to success isn’t about doing more; it’s about doing what truly matters. By focusing on your top priorities, building the capacity to deliver, and measuring progress, you’ll find that you can achieve far more with far less stress.

What’s one priority you’ll focus on today to move your goals forward?

Typical Setup and Solution for Balancing Everyday Tasks with Strategic Goals

Many professionals face a situation where everyday tasks consume most of their time, leaving little space for long-term strategic goals. Without clear measures for progress or performance, and no ranking of priorities, it’s easy to feel like you’re stuck in a cycle of short-term tasks. Resources and funding often seem disconnected from what truly matters, making it harder to focus on what aligns with your strategic vision.

SUMMARY

To regain control, follow a structured approach:

1. Identify & Prioritize Strategic Goals: Break down long-term objectives into actionable, ranked priorities. Use frameworks like the Eisenhower Matrix to distinguish between urgent and important tasks.
2. Set Clear KPIs: Establish measurable performance indicators for each strategic goal to track your progress and maintain focus.
3. Align Resources Strategically: Map resources (time, budget, manpower) to your ranked priorities to ensure they are being directed where they matter most.
4. Balance Time for Strategic Work: Dedicate specific blocks of time to work on high-priority goals, and tackle short-term tasks in designated windows.
5. Regular Reviews & Adjustments: Set regular check-ins to assess progress against KPIs and adjust priorities and resources as necessary.

By aligning your time, resources, and focus with strategic goals, you’ll create a more balanced and purposeful approach to both short-term tasks and long-term objectives.

DETAIL

When you are juggling multiple tasks without clear metrics or a strategic framework to guide your time and resources. This is anapproach organizing and aligning your efforts.

1. Identify and Prioritize Strategic Goals
Start by articulating your long-term objectives. Break these down into actionable strategic goals and prioritize them based on their importance and impact. For each goal, rank them in terms of urgency and alignment with your overall vision, using a framework like Eisenhower Matrix (urgent vs. important) or MoSCoW method (Must have, Should have, Could have, Won’t have).

2. Set Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
For each strategic goal, establish measurable KPIs to track progress. This could be output-based (e.g., number of new initiatives launched) or outcome-based (e.g., measurable improvement in business results). These KPIs will help you assess whether you’re moving forward or getting sidetracked by everyday tasks.

3. Allocate Resources Strategically
Align your resources (time, funding, manpower) to your ranked priorities. Map out your current resources and create a budget or resource plan that directs them towards the most critical tasks. This ensures that you’re not spreading resources too thin across less impactful areas.

4. Implement Time Management Techniques
To address the balance between short-term and long-term, use a time-blocking or weekly planning system. For example:
Block time each week for strategic work: Dedicate specific hours for your high-priority, long-term goals.
Daily task list: Start with the most important or strategic tasks and ensure they’re tackled first. Use methods like Eat the Frog (tackling the hardest tasks first) or The 80/20 Rule to focus on what delivers the most value.

5. Review and Adjust
Set up regular reviews (monthly or quarterly) to assess your progress towards strategic goals. Adjust as necessary, but ensure that the reviews focus on evaluating performance based on your KPIs and shifting resources or priorities if required.

By creating clear priorities, setting measurable goals, and organizing your time and resources around them, you’ll be able to more effectively balance the immediate demands with your long-term strategic vision. Would you like help refining the specific goals or a draft of a simple prioritization framework to get started?

Swarming a Problem: Bringing Together Expertise for a Unified Solution

Swarming a problem is a collaborative approach where a group of people with diverse skills and expertise come together to solve a specific challenge quickly and effectively. This process is particularly useful when a problem is urgent or complex and requires different perspectives to resolve. The key idea is to leverage collective intelligence and act fast.

1. Identify the Problem
The first step is to clearly define the problem. Everyone involved must have a shared understanding of the challenge. This ensures alignment and prevents confusion during the problem-solving process.
It’s important to communicate the issue’s scope, urgency, and any constraints that need to be considered.

2. Gather the Right People
Assemble a team of people who have the relevant expertise to address various aspects of the problem. This could include individuals from different departments or backgrounds—such as technical specialists, business experts, project managers, and other stakeholders.
Each person should bring a unique perspective or skill set to the table, ensuring the team can look at the problem from all angles.

3. Collaborate and Share Ideas
Once the team is in place, the next step is to work together intensively. Each team member should freely share their knowledge and expertise without holding back.
It’s crucial to foster an environment where every idea is considered, and there is open communication. Collaboration tools, whiteboards, and brainstorming sessions can be helpful for organizing ideas.

4. Rapid Problem Solving
In swarming, the goal is to work quickly. Everyone focuses on solving the problem at the same time, often in parallel, rather than sequentially.
The team tackles different aspects of the problem simultaneously, using their individual strengths and knowledge. This ensures a faster, more efficient process compared to solving the problem piece by piece.

5. Adapt and Iterate
As the team collaborates, they may encounter new insights or issues. Swarming requires flexibility and the ability to adapt. If a solution or approach isn’t working, the team should be ready to adjust and try different strategies.
Feedback loops and continuous iteration are key. The team may pivot their approach or refine the solution as new information emerges.

6. Implement the Solution
Once a solution has been identified, the next step is to implement it. The team can divide responsibilities based on individual strengths, ensuring that everyone plays a role in the execution.
After implementation, it’s important to monitor the solution’s effectiveness and check if the problem is fully resolved.

7. Review and Learn
After the problem is solved, take time to reflect on the process. What worked well? What could be improved next time? The feedback and lessons learned should be documented to help improve the swarming process in the future.

Why Swarm a Problem?

Efficiency: By bringing together multiple experts at once, the team can resolve issues much faster than if individuals worked in isolation.
Comprehensive Solutions: With diverse perspectives, solutions are often more holistic and consider all angles of the problem.
Collaboration Boosts Creativity: The combination of various minds can spark new ideas, and brainstorming in a group often leads to creative and innovative solutions.
Team Engagement: Swarming a problem creates a sense of urgency and teamwork, which can increase engagement and morale among team members.

When to Use the Swarming Approach?

When the problem is urgent and needs immediate attention.
When it’s too complex for one person or team to handle alone.
When you need diverse expertise to arrive at the best solution.
When there’s a need for creative solutions or a fresh perspective.

In short, swarming a problem is about gathering the right people, working collaboratively, and focusing collective expertise on solving an issue quickly and effectively. It’s a great way to leverage diverse knowledge and experience for faster decision-making and problem resolution.

Do More by Doing Less: Why Focus Beats Overload in Performance and Projects

It’s easy to fall into the trap of believing that doing 100 things at once is the key to success. But here’s a thought: *what if doing less, but doing it better, was actually the answer?*

This is a lesson I’ve learned both in the world of projects and in sport performance. Let me explain why focusing on one thing at a time and doing it well leads to better results in the long run.

The Power of Doing One Thing at 100%

Trying to juggle too many tasks at once is like trying to row a boat with each crew member rowing at a different pace. The result? Chaos. Disastrous performance.

On the other hand, when you commit to just one task and give it your all, you make real progress. You finish it. You move on to the next. Then the next. This way, you’re gradually building momentum and achieving more, one step at a time.

Quick Wins Build Momentum, But Beware the Trap

We’ve all heard about the power of quick wins and momentum. They’re often seen as stepping stones that get things moving. But if we focus only on the short-term gains, we risk neglecting the long-term solutions that are truly needed.

Quick fixes can give us a sense of achievement in the short term, but if they don’t align with the bigger picture, they might just be adding more problems down the road. When you prioritize immediate fixes at the expense of long-term solutions, you’re essentially placing a Band-Aid over a broken system.

The Big Picture: Alignment and Cohesion

Imagine you’re in a rowing boat with four excellent rowers, each excelling at different speeds. One’s at 26 strokes per minute, another at 27, another at 28, and the last one at 29. Even though each person is performing excellently on their own, the boat won’t move in harmony.

The key is alignment. To make the boat go faster, all rowers need to work together, with a shared rhythm and common cadence. It’s not about individual excellence—it’s about collective coherence.

This is where systems thinking comes into play. Instead of relying on individual silos of excellence, we need to consider how the pieces fit together. A car with the best engine, wheels, and chassis doesn’t necessarily make the best car if they’re not properly aligned. The same applies to teams and projects.

Coproduction and the IKEA Effect: Embracing Collaboration

Earlier this year, I discussed coproduction—the idea of getting people involved in the creation process. Initially, I was skeptical. I believed that experts working together would lead to better results. But I’ve been persuaded otherwise.

The IKEA effect shows that people are more likely to value and commit to something they’ve helped create. This principle applies to projects and teams. Collaboration, even if it results in suboptimal outcomes at first, leads to solutions that are more likely to be adopted and supported. When people feel they have a stake in something, they’re more likely to buy into the idea and make it work.

Balancing Individual Focus and Collaboration

In my past experiences, both as a project manager and as an athlete, my success came from a strong, singular focus on delivering results. But now, I see the value in collaboration and compromise. It’s easy to get caught up in the pursuit of perfection or to focus on individual achievement. However, true success comes from finding a balance between leading with purpose and working together as a team.

Change is never easy. Not everyone will be happy, and not every approach will be a winner. But this is where strong leadership comes into play. It’s about empowering and supporting others without compromising on delivery.

Top Tips for Balancing Focus and Collaboration

1. Prioritize your tasks: Focus on what truly matters, and give it your full attention.
2. Find the right rhythm: Like rowers in a boat, alignment and cohesion are key to success.
3. Use quick wins wisely: Build momentum, but don’t sacrifice long-term solutions for short-term gains.
4. Embrace collaboration: Get people involved in the process to build ownership and buy-in.
5. Stay focused on delivery: Leadership is about getting things done, not just being a spectator.

Self-Evaluation Checklist

– Are you spreading yourself too thin with too many projects?
– Are you focusing on short-term solutions at the expense of long-term results?
– Do you ensure alignment and coherence in your team or project?
– Are you embracing collaboration and involving others in the creation process?
– Are you balancing individual performance with the collective good of the team?

Final Thought: Is focusing on one thing at a time the key to better results? Or is it about balancing focus and collaboration for sustainable success? Let’s discuss.