Work is messy. Requests, tasks, and inspiration come flying at us every minute. Soon we feel like we’re in the middle of a kids’ room. Don’t look now, but you’re about to step on a LEGO!
We need to conquer the mess, to reclaim our life and to make serious progress on the builds that matter most. We need to limit our work in process (WIP) to spend more time creating and less time pulling LEGOs from our feet. How can we get there? How can we maintain focus on our priorities day after day?
Let’s try a simple tool – LEGO construction permits. We’ll first make a physical set of permits to define and enforce a limit to our work in process (a WIP Limit). We’ll only work on an idea, issue, or interrupt if we permit ourselves to do so. Make them as fun, simple, or creative as you wish:
And start cleaning your messy room, assigning a permit for each work in process:
If something doesn’t get a permit, it goes back in the box for another day. Maybe it will get a permit later, maybe never. Soon you’ll go from playroom overload to sanity:
So try it today! Make a set of physical permits and restrict yourself to only work on what has a permit. Start with physical permits over digital because they’ll:
- Give you more flexibility to tune your process
- Nag you as a persistent reminder
- Bring fun to work!
Limit your work in process to give focus to what matters, making real progress and a real impact.
Bring this tool to your kids too! All photos are from my son cleaning his LEGOs. We ignited the conversation with observing those paper permits in windows around town. We then flowed to a conversation on why we have city councils and planning boards in the first place. We finally brought it home by using permits as an engaging way to clean his room. Have fun making the permits with your kids too out of whatever they want, even out of LEGOs. Don’t have too much fun, though, as you’ll have to remember to stop at your limit number.
When you make your permits, we’d love to hear what you used or, better yet, see a photo in the comments!