Rocks, Pebbles, Sand

Pitfall Remedy

Pitfall: Spending too much time on unproductive activities.

Remedy: Create a strategy for prioritization. Reflect on your Rocks, Pebbles and Sand.

Track: Management and Leadership

Stages: Initial Operations & beyond

Symptoms/use this if you see one or more of:

You are over-booked, over-worked and running ragged
Key pieces of work are “falling off of your plate”
You have lost a deal or opportunity because you didn’t keep your “eye on the ball”
You are being repeatedly being sucked into time-consuming activities that seem unproductive

Resources, Actors & Participants: CEOs, managers, sales people

Tools (links): Value Judgment Analysis Tool – a simple, but effective tool that helps you to understand your priorities and decide between alternatives. (The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People )

Parable:

(This parable, author unknown, has been slightly modified to reflect the priorities of an Early Stage business.)

A business school professor stood before his class with some items on the table in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with rocks, about 2" in diameter.

He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was. So the professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles, of course, rolled into the open areas between the rocks.

He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else.

He then asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous "Yes."

The professor then produced two cans of beer from under the table and proceeded to pour their entire contents into the jar, effectively
filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

"Now," said the professor, as the laughter subsided, "I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life.

The rocks are the important things - your family, your business, your health, your friends, your best clients - things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter - like your sales pipeline, your products, your product development efforts, your office environment.

The sand is everything else. The small stuff." "If you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there is no room for the pebbles or the rocks. The same goes for your life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get exercise. Call your best clients. There will always be time to clean the office, attend a cocktail party and fix the shredder.

Take care of the rocks first - the things that really matter.

Set your priorities. The rest is just sand."

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the beer represented.

The professor smiled. "I'm glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of beers."

Description:

This Remedy is about priorities. Before you can set priorities, you need to understand what you really want from your business. Why are you starting a business:

Are you in it to try your hand at running your own business? Being the CEO?
Are you looking for a lifestyle business that will generate income and free-time.
Do you want to make a stack of cash through an IPO or by selling to another company?

Each of these paths will indicate a different set of priorities. Ask if your business plan is aligned with these goals. What does your plan say about getting there? Where are you spending your time?

Once you have a solid understanding of your personal and business priorities, you can tackle problems more effectively using some simple tools that assist in organizing your thoughts.

Tool #1: Covey Priority Matrix

Stephen Covey promoted the idea of the four quadrants as a way to think about your time more effectively (see below). You can organize your activities into these four quadrants to see where you are spending your time.

While many of us spend too much time in the two left hand quadrants, it is really the upper right quadrant that provides us with the power of leverage. The upper right quadrant represents an investment that we make which will yield returns over and over.

Think about how you can shift more time to the upper right and eliminate time from the lower two quadrants as much as possible.

Rocks, Pebbles, Sand

Tool #2: Value Judgment Analysis Decision Method

Critical Success Factors:

Know yourself – understand your goals and objectives
Recognize when you are being pulled into unproductive activities
Learn to delegate

Resource Books Mentioned: