clock face nearing 12 o'clock

How do you use a time windfall? āŒš

Today my client appointments all rescheduled for future dates. I find myself with a day free of calendar commitments. There’s a lot on my to-do list.

What’s the best use of the time?

The temptation is to focus on what I call “administrivia.” These are tasks that sorta, kinda, haveta (?) get done. Respond to routine emails, reconcile QuickBooks, enter coaching hours into the log, and so on.

It feels good to check them off the list. Like I’m making progress.

Yes, they may need to get done. But they are not the tasks that are going to move me forward in a big way.

What are better uses of time?

šŸ‘‰ Thinking about business strategy

šŸ‘‰ Connecting with people in a meaningful way

šŸ‘‰ Choosing one of the most important tasks to complete

How do you know if a task is important?

Ask: what’s the ONE thing, if you focused on it today, that would make the biggest difference in your career or business?

Not something that’s urgent or that represents other people’s priorities.

What’s YOUR priority?

Singular, as in ONE priority.

(Fun fact: the word “priority” began only in the singular form. Meaning that only one priority could exist at a time. Not the multiple priorities we now attempt to juggle daily and hourly. As if we ever could.)

My priority for today is creating a new program for our most loyal guests at our family restaurant Pacific Standard Prime. This is a team-focused effort, involving collaboration and iteration. The administrivia will wait until that’s done.

What’s YOUR priority today?