1/3 – 2/3 Planning Rule
The 1/3 – 2/3 rule of planning simply says that leaders should take a third of the time until a deadline to make a plan, and then provide their subordinates with the remaining time to develop their own plans and execute them. It is a simple rule of thumb that prevents senior leaders from monopolizing all the time available and pushing their teams into a crisis mode.
This guideline is used in the military where missions are typically on a short timeline. It is easy for leaders to get carried away with trying to make the perfect plan and leave their teams little time to prepare. The 1/3 – 2/3 rule is most applicable to the civilian world for projects on a short, fixed deadline, as these situations most closely mimic military planning.
The 1/3-2/3 Rule Shows Respect for Your Team
With deadlines that are out towards the horizon, or those that have a flexible timeline, leaders should take a greater portion of the time for planning before implementing. There is a great value in formulating a well-thought out plan with a thorough understanding of the situation at hand.
The caveat to this, though, is…
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