Tell me about a time you had several urgent things competing for your time. How did you prioritize, and how did you communicate the trade-offs?

Imagine you're a chef with three tables ordering at once, each claiming their dish is urgent. You can't cook everything at the same time, so you decide which dish takes least time, which customer is most important, and tell each table honestly how long they'll wait. That's what this question is about: making smart trade-offs and keeping everyone informed.