Effective productivity requires managing energy, not just time. Color-code your calendar tasks: green for energizing, yellow for neutral, and red for draining. The goal is to systematically eliminate or delegate red tasks, thereby protecting your most valuable resource: your energy.

Your calendar provides a perfect, objective reflection of your actual values, regardless of what you claim they are. An audit will quickly show whether your passions, key relationships, and well-being are truly prioritized or are just afterthoughts.

Time management is a subset of a more critical skill: energy management. Instead of just scheduling your day, actively invest your energy in people and activities that replenish it, while divesting from those that drain it. This shift in focus is a more fundamental driver of productivity and well-being.

People fail at new goals because they treat their time and energy as expandable. The first rule is that to pick something up, you must put something down. Create a "subtraction list" of activities to drop to make room for the new "addition list."

Instead of optimizing a hundred small tasks, focus on the single action that creates the most leverage. Citing Tim Ferriss, Dave Gerhardt uses this question to identify the core task that, if completed, would simplify or eliminate many other items on the to-do list.

You are the designer of the 'hidden markets' for your personal resources like time and attention. Instead of reacting haphazardly, you can consciously set rules that optimize for efficiency (highest impact), equity (fairness), and ease (simplicity), thereby taking active control of your personal productivity and focus.

Your worth isn't measured by how much you can handle before you break. Instead of using your calendar to prove your capacity for work, use it to intentionally protect your peace. Radical prioritization and scheduling open space is a strategic move that enables better decision-making.

To overcome obstacles, conduct a "Time Log" for one week, noting every activity without judgment. This audit will reveal where your time is actually spent, allowing you to identify and "jettison" low-impact activities. This creates the necessary bandwidth to focus on your high-priority goals.

Leaders often try to "squeeze in" critical strategic work around a flood of meetings and daily demands. This approach is backward. To make meaningful progress, strategic priorities must be the first items blocked out on the calendar. All other, less critical tasks must then be fit into the remaining time, ensuring your schedule reflects your strategy.