Leadership, like genius, often involves making something complex seem simple. Leaders must learn to simplify the world and situations around them in a fashion that produces more effective results. Specifically, too many times leaders fall into the trap of hacking away at leaves while ignoring the roots. A quote by college football coach Lou Holtz speaks directly to this: "Decisions are easy to make if you know what your priorities are." I have always liked that quote. The clearer we are on the roots of a situation, the harder it will be for us to get distracted by the leaves. The stronger our priorities, the better we can navigate the obstacles in our path.
How is this done? By understanding first principles, by knowing the "big rocks" we want put into the jar before concerning ourselves with the smaller rocks, by knowing "what's important next."
So clean up your thinking. Focus on priorities and first principles. Find points of agreement with others on the big picture of things first, before dividing yourselves up on technicalities. Have a clear objective and resist the urge to get distracted by smaller things. Work at the root level of things, and you'll often find that the leaves take care of themselves.
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