“Everyone is so busy and nothing is getting done.”
You know your teams need to stop starting and start finishing.
You know they should do less at once in order to finish anything at all.
You know every time they try to fix it, it somehow transforms into another “task” to “make time for” in their already impossibly-full schedules, so of course nothing changes.
So, busy and ineffective we stay!
It’s widely accepted, but in truth it’s unacceptable.
Protracted busyness, overwhelm, and stress burns people out, which is inhumane and wrong to do. It also happens to be hilariously slow and wasteful, incurring extra time, extra costs, and serving no one (not even the money people).
Ben’s Ode to Little’s Law
Is “as-fast-as-I-can” your working rate? (λ)
Is “too-much-work-at-once” what’s on your plate? (L)
Little surprise here, it’ll all be late! (W)
Well, here’s the step-by-step guide to escaping this situation.
The key is to teach people to be a good disappointment.
Schedule a 1:1 with someone who’s stressed out, offering a clear what and why in advance: ”You’re so busy and stressed. We need to do something to make that better. Let’s talk about it, okay?”
In your meeting, start with a quick check-in. Good human stuff.
Once you’re both settled, set an expectation: “In order to reduce your busyness and stress, we need to decide together who to disappoint.”
Next, work together to make a list of stakeholders — all the people who expect something from our stressed out individual. Don’t get distracted talking about each one. Just make a big list. Take 5 minutes, tops. (Set a timer if it helps keep you moving.)
Now, make a second list, this time of needs. Go stakeholder by stakeholder, and write down each need they have (“What do they expect from you?”), then draw a connecting line from the stakeholder to their need(s). Keep each need to 1-3 words, no longer. Move quickly, spending not more than 30 seconds per stakeholder. Do not stop to research, look up specifics, etc.; placeholder needs like “things” or “stuff” are fine.
Try to take only 15 minutes total getting to this point in the meeting.Finally, decide together who to disappoint and how by putting a “pause” symbol over specific lines between lists. This will be the hardest part, because the two of you will have to work out what matters and why. (Your job is especially to learn from this moment, because the reason they are so busy is often because you haven’t equipped them with guidance to tell the work that really matters from “everything else." Notice the patterns and consider sharing those lessons more widely.)
You might end up with something like this:
You’ll miss some stakeholders and needs.
Good enough > perfect.Now, set new expectations everywhere you’ve paused a need. Either equip your stressed out person to do that, or go provide the air cover yourself. (“Heads up, Leon is focusing on something really important for me. We haven’t forgotten your need for X, but it may have to wait for now. We’ll reach out as soon as that changes.”) That’s what makes you a good disappointment instead of the regular kind.
Repeat this process with more stressed out folks, either 1:1 or even in small groups. Teach someone to run this exercise on your behalf and have them go help others, with your clear guidance for what needs to pause and how.
"In my workplace..."
An exercise like the above won’t fix everything. Obviously.
But it does give you a shot at breaking the cycle.
All the best,
Ben and David
StrategyTeaming.com
P.S. Join us November 4th for a Strategy Teaming Open Space discussion on communication and leadership.
P.P.S. Need advice about a strategy, alignment, or leadership situation? Hit reply. We’re here for you. ☺️