The Targum Pseudo-Jonathan preserves the triage principle Jethro proposed: "Let them judge the people at all times, and every great matter bring to thee, but every little thing let them judge themselves, that they may lighten the burden that is upon thee, and bear it with thee" (Exodus 18:22).
The Aramaic phrase "at all times" is crucial. Justice cannot wait. Under Moses's old system, where every case queued before the prophet, a small dispute might wait days or weeks. Under the new system, ordinary matters are resolved immediately by local judges.
The distinction between great matter and little thing is not about money — it is about legal novelty. A great matter is one without precedent, one requiring fresh ruling, possibly fresh revelation. A little thing is a case where the law is already clear and simply needs application. The Talmud in Sanhedrin 8a expands the principle: "a dispute over a perutah shall be as great in your eyes as one over a hundred," meaning judges must take small cases seriously, even while Moses handles the novel ones.
And then the phrase that defines partnership: "bear it with thee." Jethro does not offer to remove Moses's burden. He offers to have it shared. Leadership does not become lighter through abandonment. It becomes lighter through company.
The takeaway: the relief a leader needs is not fewer problems. It is more partners who understand the problems and can solve them in parallel.