Focusing on the right work has always been one of the most essential skills for leaders. In the environment we’re operating in right now, it matters more than ever.
Demands keep rising. Decisions have to be made faster. Teams are leaner. AI has increased capability and noise. And the leaders I’m working with continue to be asked to deliver bigger results with fewer people, budget and time to think.
The question I ask my clients more than any other these days is a simple one: Are you focusing on the most critical work? When the answer is yes, leaders accelerate their results and impact, even under pressure. When the answer is no (and it often is) they run hard, often with no end in sight.
The pattern shows up in different forms. Some leaders are overloaded with work that’s urgent but not important. Others are working hard on something without clearly defining it first. In other words, they’re deep into the how before fully agreeing on the what. Either way, the capacity gets eaten up on activity that isn’t moving anything forward, and the work that would move things forward gets pushed farther and farther out.
Being an effective leader does not mean working more hours than everyone else. It’s about getting clear on what really matters in your role, and building the discipline to protect time for it. Focusing on the right work is also one of the Core Strategies on our New Lens® leadership development platform, because I’ve seen, again and again, that it shifts how leaders show up under pressure. If you only have time to focus on one area of leadership development right now, this is the one that drives everything else.
Stressed Leaders vs. Strategic Leaders
In my coaching work, I’ve found that many leaders fall into a couple of broad categories:
Stressed leaders get pulled into urgency. Their calendars fill with meetings that could have been emails, decisions that could have been delegated and reactions to things that would probably have resolved themselves. Over time, they fall into destructive patterns like micromanaging, avoidance and overwork.
Strategic leaders are busy, but they deliberately protect what gets their deep attention. They focus long-term. They delegate with intention. They stay curious under pressure. And they guard their time and energy for the important work that uses their unique capabilities.
The shift from stressed to strategic doesn’t require more hours in the day. It simply comes down to a few specific moves.
Identify Your Big 3
Your Big 3 are the three areas where you can have the biggest impact on your organization, given your role and strengths.
If you’re like many high performers, you often overlook your strengths. You might set the bar so high for yourself that you stop noticing what you actually bring to the table and why it matters. But as you focus on the next challenge or opportunity, don’t lose sight of how you are already making a difference. Start by identifying your top three strengths and then go a step further: Define the “so what” of each strength: What does it enable you to do that others can’t easily do? How does it create tangible value?
Let’s say approachability is one of your strengths. The “so what” might be that people openly tell you what’s really going on—which means you surface issues earlier, solve problems before they become crises and build the kind of trust that makes teams perform at a higher level.
Put Your Big 3 Into Action
Once you identify your Big 3, determine what percentage of time should be spent on each and start making shifts. Then look at your calendar for insights. What does it tell you about how you currently spend your time? I am always amazed at how much you can notice just by pausing for a moment.
Next, look for opportunities to drive more alignment with your Big 3. What’s getting in the way of your Big 3? Create capacity as needed. Maybe there’s a project you could delegate to a team member that could also be a development opportunity for them. Or perhaps you bow out of a low-value meeting or try to reduce the frequency of the meeting. (The other attendees will probably be 100% behind you!)
As you free up time, start adding dedicated blocks for focused work in your Big 3 and schedule it for when your energy is naturally highest. For most of us, that’s in the morning. Shut out email, calls, Slack and other distractions as much as possible. Each interruption costs you from eight to 25 minutes of productivity.
Aligning your calendar with your Big 3 isn’t a one-time exercise. The leaders I’ve worked with have found that taking even 15 minutes of reflection per week helps them stay strategic instead of slipping into reactive mode.
Align Others Around Your Big 3
Don’t keep your Big 3 to yourself. Share them with others.
Start with your manager. The two of you should agree on your Big 3, what they are and how much time to allocate to them. Once you’re aligned, make a habit of regularly sharing how you’re driving results in these areas. Take at least five minutes at the end of each week to notice what you accomplished and the impact. Remember, part of your manager’s job is to maximize your potential, and they can more easily do that when they can see how you’re creating value.
Your team members also need to know your Big 3, to help them understand what’s important and why. If you don’t explain the why, they’ll fill in the blanks themselves. To take it a step further, help each of your direct reports identify their own Big 3 and guide them in making the necessary shifts in how they spend their time.
Just Get Started
This week, I want to challenge you to identify your Big 3. You can’t afford not to. It’s a critical first step in turning stressed leaders into strategic leaders (whether we’re talking about you or your team members). We’ve been down this path with so many leaders over the past 18 years, and can give you perspective, guidance and support along the way. Just get in touch to learn more.
Don’t wait for performance to drop before taking action. Discover how the New Lens® platform helps organizations support managers with bite-sized, actionable learning—built for today’s fast-paced, high-stress environments.