🚦 How to Triage Q3
Card spec — 🚦 How to Triage Q3 (Urgent ✖ Not Important)§
| Field | Fill with → |
|---|---|
| Card title | 🚦 How to Triage Q3 (Urgent ✖ NOT Important) |
| Put it in list … | 📥 Inbox (park just under “🚦 How to Triage Q2”) |
| Label(s) | ⚙️ Workflow • 🧑✈️ Delegate |
| Why it must be there / how it’s used | Q3 holds the distractions that scream but don’t move the mission. This card shows you how to neutralise, delegate, or automate them inside 10 minutes, so they never clog your Q1 focus lane. |
Card Description (copy ➜ paste)§
# 🚦 Q3 — Urgent BUT Not Important
> *Goal → kill the distraction or hand it to the right owner in ≤ 10 min.*
---
## When to open this guide
* A Slack ping, email, or Trello tag blows up **but** the work has **zero impact on this quarter’s goals**.
* Phase-D Sim-Day & real life: any card sitting in **Q3** list.
---
## Timer syntax
Start **one** timer:
`Delegate:Q3:Triage – <topic>`
Paste delegation / automation link in the timer description before you stop it.
---
## 6-Step Lightning Protocol ⚡️
| # | Step | What to do |
|---|------|------------|
| **1** | **Reality-check “Urgent”** | Is it truly time-sensitive (client blocked, system down)?<br>✗ No → move to **Q4 Delete** → Archive.<br>✓ Yes → continue. |
| **2** | **Find the rightful owner** | • Client request → create card on **Client board** & @mention client PM.<br>• Internal ops → move to **Ops Team board / Backlog** & assign Ops Lead.<br>• Pure admin → email finance@ / hr@. |
| **3** | **Package the ask** | Turn the noise into a crisp task:<br>**What + Why + Link to context + Desired by \<date\>.** |
| **4** | **Hand it off** | a) Move/Copy card to the owner’s board **OR**<br>b) Post `/delegate <@user> <one-liner>` in *#manager* Telegram.<br>Add ⛓️ **Waiting-On** label & link in this card. |
| **5** | **Design the trip-wire** | Prevent repeat pings ➜ add:<br>• Butler rule, zap, or saved reply **OR**<br>• Kaizen idea card (Q2) if the system needs a new SOP. |
| **6** | **Log & leave** | • Comment on this card: “Delegated to \<@owner> — link”.<br>• Move card ➜ **🔸 Waiting Response**. Archive when owner closes the loop. |
---
## 2-Minute “Do-Now” exception 🕓
If the entire fix takes **≤ 2 min** (update doc link, toggle setting) →
Do it immediately, label **⚡️ Quick-Fix**, log the 2-min timer, ✔️ archive.
---
## Checklist (tick before moving card) ✅
- [ ] Confirmed *truly* urgent, not important
- [ ] Owner identified & task packed
- [ ] Delegated / Quick-Fix executed
- [ ] Comment added with delegation link
- [ ] Timer link pasted (Clockify row OK)
- [ ] Card moved → 🔸 Waiting Response **or** archived
---
### Pro-tips 💡
* **Macros beat memory** – if you replied more than twice this week, build a canned response or Butler rule.
* **Colour-code** urgent-noise cards (e.g. red cover) so they shout in Q3 and you’ll zap them first.
* A Q3 card lingering > 7 days = it was never urgent. Archive & move on.
* Any recurring “urgent-noise” → create a 🔵 Kaizen card; aim for root-cause removal.
---
**Non-negotiable:** You must run *this* protocol before ever dragging a Q3 card into **Q1 Doing**.
Keep this card parked in **📥 Inbox** forever as your “fire-blanket” for noisy but low-value work.
Attachments to add once§
- Self-Help Checklist (KQ-SOP-3) — so you can prove you tried the bot first.
- GF-SOP-1 Gap-Patch link — in case the noise points to missing process.
- Delegation email / Slack template (Google Doc) — one-click copy for packing the ask.
With this guide front-and-centre, operators can squash “urgent-but-meh” pings in minutes, safeguard their Q1 focus, and still give stakeholders confidence nothing falls through the cracks.