Remember the last time you were in a toy store with your terrible two? This is an experience I am sure you would not forget. Children always enjoy a side trip to the toy store. It is always a treat because everything looks so good that they want it all and sometimes, they end up overdoing it.
Unfortunately, self-control is something that is not easy to learn. Just think about the number of times you told yourself that you would go on a diet or that glass of beer is the last one for that night and you would know what I mean. Setting a limit is not always easy, that is why we should keep realistic targets.
With any business, it is important that you set realistic targets. If you have too many things that you want to accomplish, chances are you end up accomplishing nothing. I know of an envelope printing company who had to take in more than 100 projects at one time. This could have been a fantastic business were it not for the fact that the print envelopes were behind schedule and that their workers felt overloaded.
Despite the realization that this envelope printing company had too much on their plates, their management team still struggled with narrowing their targets. They felt that the projects could be done on time and that nothing could be dropped without serious consequences. They felt that all 100 projects are called priority. The thing is, if they considered the entire envelope printing projects priority then nothing really is. What is worse is that the rank-and-file, those who run the machines, are faced with the impossible task of trying to accomplish everything, ending up deciding what is important based on their ability to get things done. By not identifying what are the priorities, management unintentionally let people at lower levels decide on how to run the business.