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Picture this: Your team is drowning in chaos. Meetings feel like fire drills, priorities conflict, emails ping non-stop... You get the picture. It’s overwhelming, right?
So, here’s a question for you:
What’s the real problem here?
Your gut says, "Everything!"
But I'll lovingly push back.
Here’s what I see:
- The team’s scrambling in different directions, tripping over conflicting priorities.
- Emails, Slacks—notifications don’t stop. The cycle is relentless.
- Balls are dropping, deadlines slipping. Everyone’s stretched to near transparency.
- Meetings? They’re more like emergency drills. There’s zero time for creativity, let alone strategy.
It’s a mess. I know it. You know it. But here’s the thing:
Trying to fix everything at once? That’s the real problem.
When clients come to me overwhelmed by the sheer volume of issues, they ask the same question:
"How do we make meaningful progress on everything?"
But they’re asking the wrong question. What they should be asking is:
What’s the root cause of all this chaos?
Because the truth is, the chaos you're seeing is often a symptom—not the real problem.
In my experience, the root cause usually comes down to one thing: leadership’s failure to prioritize effectively. When priorities aren’t clear, teams end up in survival mode—reacting instead of proactively planning, imagining, or innovating.
What you’re really seeing is the result of scattered focus:
- Deadlines are missed because nobody’s sure what should come first.
- Meetings become firefights because there’s no clear direction.
- Creativity dies because there’s no mental space left for it.
So, how do you fix it? Start at the beginning.
Ask yourself: Is there one problem—just one—that, if solved, would positively impact almost everything else on the list?
The answer is usually yes. In most cases, it’s about setting clearer priorities for your team. When leaders focus on defining what matters most, the noise dies down. Your team stops chasing after everything and starts making real progress on what’s essential.
Here’s how to start:
- Identify the root cause. What’s truly creating the chaos? Is it unclear priorities? Lack of resources? Communication gaps?
- Solve one problem first. Ask yourself, What’s the one issue, if fixed, that would have a domino effect on the rest? Often, it’s defining and communicating priorities.
- Empower your team to focus. Once you’ve addressed the root cause, make sure your team knows what’s most important—and let go of the rest, at least for now.
So, the next time your team is caught in a whirlwind of problems, pause and ask: Am I solving the root cause, or just treating symptoms?
What’s one issue you could focus on today that would clear up the rest? Let’s discuss—drop your thoughts in the comments or message me to share your own leadership challenges.