I’ve written before about how you must choose one thing to optimize, and then maybe a distant second. This is simple reality.
Project managers know that you navigate the 3 classic elements of tradeoffs: Scope, Time, Resources. Sometimes you’ll hear “Pick any two.”
This pattern is widespread:
Want to buy a car? Exactly what you want, customized? You’ll pay more and wait much longer than accepting one of the cars available on the lot.
Health coverage options? People want universal coverage, low prices, and high quality – but the reality is that you must pick 2 of these.
Leadership decisions are frequently about these kinds of tradeoffs. Lean into options and be prepared to explain to people (repeatedly) why their fantasies of optimizing on all three dimensions is impossible.
One more thing: If someone gives you an example of all three, I guarantee that someone else is subsidizing the costs or absorbing some complexity.
