When is a Full Plate TOO full? How to Identify Burnout Before it Happens.

Down to Earth Garden Center Team

Do Not Copy, Post, or Distribute

This work may not be reproduced, modified, publicly displayed or distributed in any form by any means without express written permission of AmericanHort and the presenter. To secure permission, please contact AmericanHort.

​

Presentation Disclaimer

Presentations are intended for educational and informational purposes only and do not replace independent professional judgement. Statements of fact and opinion expressed are those of the presenters individually and, unless expressly stated to the contrary, are not the opinion or position of AmericanHort, its cosponsors, or its committees. AmericanHort does not endorse or approve, and assumes no responsibility for the content, accuracy or completeness of the information presented. Attendees should note that sessions are recorded and may be published in various media, including print, audio and video formats without further notice.

This presentation and its contents are provided “AS IS” without warranty of any kind, either express or implied, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement.

“Most leaders are not overwhelmed because they have too much work. They’re overwhelmed because too much of the wrong work is still on their plate.”

THE REAL 80/20 RULE

• “80% of your time should be spent on the 20% of responsibilities that only YOU can do.”

​

• Everything else should eventually be:
• Delegated
• Systemized
• Automated
• Trained Downward
• Or Temporarily Retained with an Exit Strategy

THE PLATE CONCEPT

Owner/Senior �Leader Example

The 20% Only They Can Do:

• Vision
• Culture
• Major financial decisions
• Leadership development
• Strategic direction
• Key hiring decisions
• Protecting standards
• High-level partnerships

​

The 80% That Should Move Downward:

​

• Answering routine operational questions
• Approving every small decision
• Solving department-level conflicts constantly
• Rewriting schedules
• Fixing avoidable staffing gaps
• Checking and rechecking tasks
• Reacting to every email/text immediately
• Handling issues managers should resolve
• Micromanaging execution details
• Putting out preventable fires all day
• Being the communication middleman
• Attending low-value meetings
• Daily inventory troubleshooting
• Repetitive administrative work
• Constant interruption management
• Rescuing underperforming leaders instead of developing accountability
• Being the “backup plan” for every department
• Doing tasks simply because “I can do it faster”
• Retaining responsibilities no one else was trained to own

Supervisor/Department Lead Example

Their 20% May Include:

• Coaching team members
• Setting daily priorities
• Accountability
• Training standards
• Team Development
• Communication
• Problem prevention
• Developing future leaders
• Leading customer experience

​

​

The 80% They Shouldn’t Be Doing:

​

• Fixing every mistake personally
• Answering every radio call
• Handling every upset customer
• Redoing work instead of coaching
• Being the ‘hero’ every shift
• Solving problems the team should learn to solve
• Constantly watering because no else was trained
• Fixing merchandising every morning
• Constantly reworking inventory problems
• Being the ‘plant problem person’
• Doing tasks instead of walking the floor as the leader

TIME BLOCKING

Time Blocking

What it is NOT:

• Rigid scheduling
• Calendar perfection
• Productivity obsession

​

​

What it IS:

​

• Intentional protection of high-value leadership work

Reactive Leaders vs. Intentional Leaders

Reactive:

• Answers everything immediately
• Allow interruptions all day
• Constantly shift priorities
• Live in emails/texts/radio chatter
• Spend all day solving other people’s problems

​

​

Intentional:

​

• Create protected focus windows
• Proactively lead priorities
• Build structure
• Train teams to solve independently
• Spend time where they create the most impact

​

​

Owner/Senior Leader Example

Protected Time May Include:

• Strategic thinking
• Leadership meetings
• Financial review
• Hiring
• Culture development
• Growth planning
• Coaching managers

​

​

“If owners spend all day in reaction mode, the business eventually stops growing and starts surviving.”

Supervisor/Department Lead Example

Protected Time May Include:

• Team coaching
• Training
• Shift planning
• Walking departments intentionally
• Observing customer experience
• Employee development
• Proactive communication

​

​

“Great supervisors create capable teams. They don’t create dependence.”

Practical Applications: Daily

Owner/Senior Leader:

(Protect the first 60–90 minutes of the day from reaction mode)

​

Use it for:

• priorities
• planning
• leadership communication
• strategic thinking
• reviewing key metrics

​

Supervisor/Department Lead:

Protect time daily to:

• walk the department intentionally
• coach team members
• observe standards
• identify issues early

​

Not just:

• watering
• task work
• reacting to radios all shift

Practical Applications: Weekly

Leadership Alignment Time

Weekly protected time for:

• Labor review
• Staffing gaps
• Sales trends
• Operational priorities
• Biggest upcoming problems

​

Use it for:

• Priorities
• Planning
• Leadership communication
• Strategic thinking
• Reviewing key metrics

​

Coaching Time

Protected time for:

• Accountability
• Development
• Check-ins
• Feedback

​

Plate Review

Ask:

• What am I still carrying that shouldn’t be on my plate?
• Where is dependency forming?
• What interruptions keep repeating?

​

Practical Applications: Spring Chaos

Owners / Senior Leaders

​

Should focus on:

• staffing escalation
• leadership support
• culture
• removing obstacles
• operational flow

​

NOT:

• getting trapped in one department all day
• solving every customer issue
• becoming the emergency cashier

​

Department Leads

​

Should prioritize:

• communication
• standards
• customer flow
• team direction
• anticipating breakdowns

NOT:

• disappearing into task work for hours

​

Recap

The Goal:

​

The goal is NOT:

• Doing less work
• Lowering standards
• Avoiding responsibility

​

The goal IS:

• Creating higher-value leadership
• Building stronger teams
• Increasing organizational capacity
• Removing dependency from one person

​

​

4 Steps:

​

1. Build the Plate
2. Circle the 20%
3. Label the Remaining Items (delegate, develop, systemize, temporary hold – with an exit plan)
4. Time Blocking

​

​

We Want Your Feedback!

Review this session at

Cultivate.cnf.io

​

Scan the QR code:

1) Open the camera app on your � mobile device  

2) Point camera at the QR Code

3) Tap the web link