The first time I picked up three juggling balls, I was convinced it would be easy. I had seen plenty of people do it, tossing them effortlessly through the air. How hard could it be?
Then I tried. Within seconds, balls were bouncing in every direction. My hands weren’t fast enough, my throws weren’t controlled, and the whole thing was a mess.
Leadership, I would later realize, feels a lot like that first attempt at juggling. You step in thinking you’ve got it all figured out—only to discover that keeping everything in the air is much harder than it looks.
Lesson 1: You Will Drop. A Lot.
Every juggler knows the truth: dropping is inevitable. It doesn’t matter if you’re a beginner or an expert; at some point, something is going to hit the ground.
The same goes for leadership. Mistakes will happen. Projects will fail. Plans will go sideways. The difference between a good leader and a great one isn’t whether they drop—it’s what they do next.
When I first started juggling, every drop felt like a failure. But then someone told me, “A drop is just proof you’re learning.” That shift in mindset changed everything. Instead of getting frustrated, I started paying attention to why I dropped and what I could adjust.
Great leaders do the same. They don’t dwell on mistakes—they learn from them, pick up the pieces, and keep going.
Lesson 2: Focus on the Pattern, Not Just the Pieces
In juggling, if you focus too much on any one ball, you’re doomed. The moment you track a single object, everything else falls apart. Instead, you have to see the whole pattern—the flow of movement—and trust your hands to do their job.
Leadership requires that same kind of vision. It’s easy to get caught up in the details of one crisis or one big decision, but a leader has to keep their eyes on the bigger picture. They have to trust their team to handle individual tasks while maintaining the overall rhythm.
I once watched a seasoned juggler performing a six-club routine while casually talking to the audience. Someone asked how he could focus on so many things at once. He smiled and said, “I don’t focus on each club—I focus on the space between them.”
Great leaders don’t just focus on tasks; they focus on the space between them—the connections, the flow, and the long-term movement of a project or team.
Lesson 3: Passing is Everything
When I learned to pass clubs with a partner, I realized that juggling isn’t just about what you can handle alone—it’s about what you can share. You throw, they catch. They throw, you catch.
Leadership is the same way. A leader who tries to do everything alone will quickly burn out. But a leader who knows how to delegate, trust their team, and pass responsibilities? That’s someone who can keep things moving smoothly.
I’ve seen great jugglers take a beginner aside and say, “Here, try this.” They pass them an easy trick, offer some encouragement, and before you know it, that beginner is juggling like a pro. A great leader does the same—empowering others, sharing knowledge, and helping their team grow.
Lesson 4: The Show Must Go On
I once saw a juggler drop a club in the middle of a performance. Without missing a beat, he turned to the audience, grinned, and said, “Gravity is working today!” The audience laughed, and he smoothly picked up the club and kept going.
That’s leadership. Things will go wrong. Plans will fall apart. But how you recover matters more than the mistake itself. Do you panic? Do you freeze? Or do you acknowledge it, adapt, and keep the show moving?
Great leaders, like great jugglers, understand that perfection isn’t the goal—resilience is.
Lesson 5: Keep Practicing
No one masters juggling overnight. It takes time, effort, and a willingness to keep trying, even when you feel like you’ll never get it right. Leadership is no different. You learn, you adjust, and you improve over time.
So if you’re leading a team, a business, or a community, remember: leadership is juggling. Focus on the pattern, trust your team, and when you drop the ball, don’t worry—just pick it up and keep going.
Leave a Reply