This second Conversation from the Bookshelf arrives for anyone who’s ever felt like they’re juggling far too many balls - and wondering how on earth to keep them all in the air.
If you missed it the first conversation it explores “testing the water” from a different perspective.
In today’s conversation a stranger rushes in, a poem offers a shift, and suddenly the situation looks very different. If you’ve ever been overwhelmed by your own list, this one’s for you.
Before we step into today’s Conversation, a quick note from the Bookshelf itself: If you’re enjoying how metaphor opens new perspectives, you might love my upcoming masterclass taking place on 6th October for the Association of Business Poets - Harnessing the Power of Metaphor for Transformation. The shelves insist it’s exactly the kind of thing they approve of.
Juggling too many balls
“I've got too much to do," said the stranger, phone in one hand and a half-written list in the other, as they rushed through the bookshop towards the café on the mezzanine.
“At least you’re taking time to grab lunch,” said the Wellbeing book on the shelf next to them.
The stranger stopped in their tracks and didn’t quite know what to say - although after a little hesitation replied with, “lunch is on my list, and I know that if I go without it, that I drop even more of the balls I’m juggling.”
“Is that how you feel?” asked the book. “Like you’re juggling too many balls? It’s not something I can empathise about since books can’t juggle. However, metaphorically, I understand how you’re feeling.”
“Yes, by the time I get back to the office I bet there will be even more balls to add into the mix.”
“Whilst you wait in the queue for your lunch would you be open to reading a poem that might give you a different perspective?”
“At this point I’ll try anything.”
“It’s called Juggling too many balls,” the book said handing over a copy of the poem to the stranger to take with them whilst they stood in the queue.
Juggling Too Many Balls
How many balls can you juggle comfortably?
2, 3 or possibly 4?
And yet when we align with the saying
We're often imagining the impossible
8, 9, or even more
And then beating ourselves up for dropping them!
Unless you get paid for juggling balls
Unless you've honed the skill
You can't juggle more than 3 or 4
If the aim therefore is to juggle the balls
The question becomes
What do we do with the balls we're not juggling
How do we manage the balls?
Managing balls has different solutions
to trying to juggle more balls
Where to put the balls in the interim
Asking for help or delegating
Next time you hear yourself say "I'm juggling balls"
Why not change it to "I'm managing balls"
And notice what solution appears, because
The words you use really do have power
The stranger reread the poem a few times whilst they ate their lunch.
They exhaled, realising how long they’d been trying to keep everything in the air.
As they returned to work, they were eager to spend a few moments with the book before leaving the bookshop.
“It took me a little time to get into the zone of using a poem for insight – but I did like that poem. As soon as I started saying to myself that I was ‘managing’ balls instead of ‘juggling’ them it felt like a different situation altogether - with distinctly different next steps to take.”
“Yes, words have power,” replied the book. “I remember the author talking about a coaching session where another change of words made the difference from not knowing to knowing what to do. From memory I think it was changing ‘finding an answer’ to ‘looking for solutions’ and even went on to say that adding an adjective also helped i.e. ‘looking for innovative solutions.”
“That really requires me to notice when words are working against me,” added the stranger. “I can certainly see my use of ‘juggling balls’ has been describing the problem and not providing a solution. ‘Managing the balls’ shifts the responsibility, inviting me to consider what I can do differently.
“You know, I think my first next step will be to grab one of those leadership and management books whilst I’m here - because I realise I need to upwardly manage my boss – to help them understand that I’ve got already too much to do and can they please stop adding to my already full list.
“Now I think about it, I wonder if my boss knows how bad it is – because up until now I realise I’ve been the one trying to solve the problem – thinking I should be able to cope.”
“The author of the poem spoke about one person imagining the balls were Velcro - and putting all the Velcro balls on a board so that everybody could see the balls – i.e. they weren’t trying to catch every single one. The balls went into a sort of holding bay - that was the board - first, and they could then decide which ball to action - one at a time.”
“Yes, like putting all the plates you’re spinning on a plate rack first.”
As they heard this, all the books on the bookshelf waved their bookmarks in agreement.
Conversations from The Bookshelf
Short stories where books talk, poems think, and inner wisdom surfaces. A different stranger wanders in each time - perhaps one day it'll be you.
Conversations from The Bookshelf is a glimpse into the world of my forthcoming book, where one visitor's conversations with the shelves go much deeper.
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