How to Choose Which Ball to Drop
A new year is here, and with it, the ushering in of the latest strategies, initiatives, and projects to kick off the first quarter. You may quickly find yourself unable to juggle everything, despite your best efforts to prioritize, delegate, and negotiate. One of those balls will drop; the question is, which one?
Easy. Ask yourself which project, task, or initiative is a rubber ball and then drop that one.
Let me explain.
Several years ago, a colleague shared with our team a great way to prioritize tasks: simply determine if the task, project, or initiative is a rubber ball, steel pipe, or priceless crystal. Each has its unique characteristics:
Rubber Ball - If you drop a rubber ball, it barely makes any noise and bounces right back.
Steel Pipe - If you drop a steel pipe, it makes a lot of noise but stays on the ground undamaged and is easy to retrieve later.
Priceless Crystal - If you drop crystal, it also makes a whole lot of noise but shatters, rendering it useless.
So, ask yourself whether the task at hand is a rubber ball, steel pipe, or priceless crystal. For example, you may have to decide between dropping a weekly one-on-one meeting with a team member (a rubber ball easily rescheduled later in the week) or getting the numbers right for tomorrow's budget meeting (a steel pipe that can be picked up later, but will sure make a whole lot of unnecessary noise).
See how easy it becomes to make the right choice?
If a particular task or project doesn’t happen, how much noise will it generate and how hard will it be to recover?
This technique doesn't just apply to tasks; it is a great way to prioritize projects. If a particular project doesn’t happen, how much noise will it generate and how hard will it be to recover?
One caveat. Don’t gain a reputation as the juggler who constantly drops things. That’s no fun to watch. Juggling is an art and so is the ability to keep multiple projects and tasks going at the same time. But, on those occasions that demand a prioritization decision, choose the priceless crystal and let the rubber ball quietly bounce just one more time.
