Schedule What Matters
Many leaders do not leverage their calendars as the powerful productivity tool it was designed to be.
Instead, they cringe every time a calendar notification yells at them from one of their devices. I’m sure you can relate. However, there is another perspective. Imagine if your calendar could become more than just a gumbo of annoying meetings, untenable deadlines, and Zoom calls. What if your calendar could become a great productivity tool and a visual representation of our energy and our values?
Similar to the message behind the adage, ‘measure what matters,’ we can apply the same principle to our calendars by scheduling what matters. In his book, Great Leaders Have No Rules, Kevin Kruse researched how the best leaders leverage their calendars to schedule time for what really matters to them:
“Great leaders actually schedule everything. Instead of placing tasks on a to-do list, they pick a date, time, and duration and schedule it on their calendar. This is the only guaranteed way to know that you are investing your minutes in alignment with your values and goals.”
We know that how we spend our time and our money often reflect what matters most to us. So, by moving our MITs (Most Important Tasks) from our to-do list to our calendar, we assign a specified time block to what matters to us. Here’s a quick example: my wife is the epitome of a busy leader, barely finding enough time to eat during the day. Last year, I noticed that she had a time block on her calendar labeled: “Husband Huddle”. She explained that it’s a 15-minute block she puts on her calendar every night before her first meeting of the next day to schedule time with me. Now, I’ll be honest...I didn’t like the idea of it initially. I didn’t understand why I had to be ‘scheduled’ into her day like a meeting. Upon further reflection, I realized that she was, in fact, prioritizing spending time with me before stepping into the whirlwind of her day. This way, our days don’t start with us whizzing past each other like cars in rush hour traffic heading to work. We actually have scheduled time to connect and start our days together, intentionally and on purpose. She scheduled what matters!
So, leaders...is your calendar a pot of meeting gumbo or does it accurately reflect what matters most to you? Are you willing to leverage your calendar in a new way? Consider taking time to move those MITs from your to-do list to scheduled days and times on your calendar. Who knows? Maybe the next calendar notification you get will be something you’re actually looking forward to doing! Leaders, schedule what matters!
Quote for Growth
“An effective goal-setting system starts with disciplined thinking at the top, with leaders who invest the time and energy to choose what counts.”