I fell in love with this term after reading Rework by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson. A Judo solution comes from getting the maximum efficiency from the least effort. I will admit part of my love for the term comes from being a student of Judo for the last 5 years. The art of Judo comes from using little effort to win. You use the momentum from the person you are fighting to your advantage. Judo literally means, “the gentle way.” A successful student of Judo uses minimal effort in an artful way to win a battle.
This is me successfully using "minimal effort in an artful way" to throw my opponent. I'm the guy on the left.
How does this apply to you? Many website owners spent significant time and effort to create a successful site. Start from the “need-to-haves” and then work towards the “want-to-haves.” Ask yourself, if I took this thing away would my website exist? If the answer is yes, you might be focusing on the wrong things. Look at everything you need to do and Judo it! Don’t Judo chop it, however. Since, even though Austin Powers “Judo chops” things, chopping or hitting doesn’t exist in Judo.
“Judo-ing” something means you are making a decision. Moving forward is all about making decisions. Make choices that are little enough to be temporary, so that if you mess up it is easier to change. So go out there and Judo it!