How many angels can dance on the head of a pin..?

Working with Executive teams I have many times over the years sat in Board meetings astonished by the amount of time is spent discussing trivia. Observing the scene I would sit considering how much it was costing in the collective time of the most senior people in an organisation debating whether or not their brand voice should include use of the Oxford comma.

It brings to mind the classic question: 'How many angels can dance on the head of a pin?'

Now, historically, this was a theological debate. Today, it's every executive team meeting discussing the new coffee machine. Or, rather, the exact shade of grey for the bike shed.

G.K. Chesterton once said, 'The most important things are always in danger when the most trivial things are allowed to take up the most time.' Or in leadership it is often referred to as the Law of Triviality – or bike-shedding.

We'll spend hours, hours, debating the font on the presentation, while the actual multi-million-pound project sails through with a casual nod. Why? Because everyone's an expert on fonts. Or bike sheds. Nobody's an expert on, say, quantum entanglement… or the actual market strategy.

It is a sort of collective Imposter’s Syndrome

So, the next time you find your team meticulously redesigning the corporate logo for the eighth time, remember the angels. They're probably still waiting for someone to decide on the proper dimensions of their celestial dance floor.

And your actual strategic goals are probably still in limbo.

(This image was AI generated and answers the age old Theology issue of angels on a pin. The answer is apparently seven)