So easy to give it away

Have you ever blocked time in your calendar to focus on something important, only to have it not happen?

If the answer is yes, here’s the big question: why?

Bonjour. In this video, I want to share one simple advice for you to spend more time on your key priorities.

I hear this all the time from people who feel overwhelmed with their endless to-do lists. They block time for their key priorities, but when that time rolls around, nothing gets done.

Why? Well, there are a few reasons:

  • Something more urgent pops up, and you give away that time.
  • You’ve blocked the time for focus, but it’s late in the day, and you’re absolutely cooked.
  • You start working, but then distractions creep in, and suddenly you’re chasing emails or scrolling aimlessly.

The Simplest Advice: Be Specific!

The easiest way to fix this? Book specific meetings with yourself.

The word “specific” here is critical.

Most people block vague chunks of time in their calendars:

  • Priority Time
  • Big Rock Time
  • Me Time
  • Work Time

And then they wonder why it’s so easy to get distracted. Here’s the thing: you can’t really call something a “distraction” unless you know exactly what it’s distracting you from.

When your calendar just says Work Time, there’s no clear purpose. So, it’s easy to let that time slip away to emails, meetings, or even procrastination.

But if your calendar says ‘Prepare off-site agenda for next week with the team’ or ‘Draft proposal for client XYZ’ suddenly you’ve got a clear, specific focus. Now, if you’re tempted to check emails or scroll through Instagram, it’s obvious what you’re being distracted from.

Specific meetings with yourself are much harder to give away. Why? Because they’re tied to an outcome. There’s a purpose to that block of time, and it’s not as easy to justify pushing it aside for something less important.

So, my question to you is: Do you book meetings with yourself?

And if you do, do you book specific meeting with yourself?

If you want to spend more time on your key priorities, this little tweak can make a big difference.

So, grab your calendar, and start getting specific.

This is this week’s Work Smarter: Live Better tip.

Hope you have a lovely day!

A bientôt,

Cyril

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