Always running out of time, or just carrying too many monkeys?

Originally posted on LinkedIn on 12 Aug 2025

Always running out of time?…

or just carrying too many monkeys? 🐒

You want to delegate.
You know it’s the right thing to do.
But somehow… you end up carrying everyone else’s problems.
This is what William Oncken Jr. and Donald L. Wass described in their classic Harvard Business Review article, Management Time: Who’s Got the Monkey?

In their metaphor, the “monkey” is the next move in a project or problem.

Someone on your team comes to you with an issue. You listen. You want to help. You say:
“Let me look into this.”
And in that moment, the monkey that was on their shoulder… is now on yours.

One monkey becomes five.
Five monkeys become a zoo.
Your time disappears, and your team’s growth stalls.
So here’s the real question: Are you helping them, or yourself, by taking on that monkey?

What if, instead, you focused on keeping the monkey on their shoulders, and building their capacity to take care of their own monkeys?
By asking questions. By guiding. By coaching.
That way, you not only free up your own time, but you also prepare them for the next monkey that’s bound to show up.

When was the last time you realised you were carrying a monkey that wasn’t yours? What did you do with it?