If you’re leading a team—or even just leading yourself—the difference between getting things done and actually moving things forward can be spectacular. Through the years, I’ve experimented, failed, tweaked, and refined the way I set up my personal productivity system. I used to think being efficient was all about getting through an endless list of tasks as fast as possible. But then I realized: without a conscious approach, productivity just amplifies busyness—not progress. Let me show you what’s made a real difference, mixing discoveries from insightful leaders and some really practical routines you can implement now.

Take the classic challenge of starting each Monday. Many people lunge into their inbox, trying to catch up or get ahead. But I block out time for a planning ritual. This simple act of stepping back before rushing ahead is where real leverage lies. It isn’t enough to make a to-do list. I ask: “Which of these tasks really aligns with the top priorities for my team or organization?” When you begin with strategic alignment rather than urgency, you avoid the trap of letting others’ priorities hijack your agenda. Steve Jobs once said, “Deciding what not to do is as important as deciding what to do.”

I craft the week by setting aside 30 minutes, usually Sunday evening or early Monday, to zoom out. Where do I need to push on key projects? Where can I give my team support—or get out of their way? By blocking off calendar space for the two or three projects I know will move the needle, I guard against a week that fills itself with reactive work. If you find it hard to stick to this ritual, try setting up a standing appointment with yourself—just like you would for a board meeting. Would you cancel on your board without a good reason? Neither should you skip this review.

But planning is only half the story. Even with a great calendar, your energy fluctuates from hour to hour. Peak mental states are scarce, especially as a leader confronted with constant context-switching. I’m most mentally clear in the mornings—so that’s when I attack challenging decisions or creative work. Administrative work or routine check-ins, I schedule for lower-energy parts of my day. The difference is striking: a decision that might take an hour at 4 p.m. can take 15 minutes at 8 a.m. Have you noticed your own energy rhythms fluctuate?

“One cannot manage too many affairs: like pumpkins in the water, one pops up while you try to hold down the other.” – Chinese Proverb

To get this right, many executives I know have experimented with tracking their mental energy for a week. It’s eye-opening. Once you know your rhythm, you can design your daily flow to match your best hours with your hardest work. Try it out: for the next five days, set a timer for a few points in the day and jot down how alert or drained you feel. You’ll likely discover patterns you never noticed.

Let’s talk about the methods and tools we use. Productivity advice is everywhere—apps, notebooks, elaborate systems—but more isn’t better. Over time, I’ve found my output improves when I deliberately keep my toolkit simple. For me, that means a digital calendar, a lightweight task manager, and a journal for jotting big ideas. Others swear by analog notecards or visual Kanban boards. The real power lies in choosing tools that align with your own way of thinking. For example, a highly visual leader might love a physical whiteboard in their office to track work-in-progress, while someone else finds calm in digital lists sorted by project.

If your current system feels clunky, ask: “Am I using these tools because they genuinely make decisions easier—or just because they’re popular?” You don’t need the latest app. You need a frictionless way to capture, review, and act. Famous executives like Jack Dorsey are known for using nothing more than handwritten notes to drive billion-dollar priorities. Simple works when you stick with it.

“Do the hard jobs first. The easy jobs will take care of themselves.” — Dale Carnegie

This takes us to prioritization—and here, I’m ruthlessly selective. It’s common for leaders to feel buried under “urgent” requests and quick wins. The trick? Learn to distinguish importance from urgency. I use a question: “If I could only deliver on three outcomes this week, what would make the biggest difference to my team’s long-term success?” I’ve had weeks where saying no became my main growth area—refusing time-wasting meetings, requests for involvement on low-impact committees, or emails disguised as priorities.

Practically, I often block a full day a week with no meetings, giving space for deep work. If that feels impossible, start with half a day—and guard it fiercely. Leaders who drive change know how to protect their calendars from the demands of others. Microsoft executive Satya Nadella reportedly schedules “think time”—meetings with himself on the calendar—and nobody interrupts them. It’s not about being unavailable; it’s about being available for what matters.

How do you decide which battles to fight, and which to ignore? One unconventional tip: keep a “stop-doing” list. For every new task you take on, consider what you must let go. Overwhelm doesn’t come from what you’re doing—it comes from what you refuse to drop.

Now, let’s talk about staying on track. Most people assume accountability means only tracking your own goals, but in leadership, progress is a team sport. Creating transparent systems for tracking not only your deliverables but your team’s creates shared ownership. I’ve used public dashboards, weekly updates, and even short team huddles to keep work visible. This isn’t about micromanaging—it’s about modeling clear progress. When my team sees that I check in every Friday on what moved forward (and what didn’t), they know this matters. Data from companies like Toyota and Apple shows that visible metrics have a multiplier effect: when everyone can see the scoreboard, collective performance improves.

Winston Churchill put it best: “However beautiful the strategy, you should occasionally look at the results.”

Practically, I keep a one-page summary of my team’s critical projects on the wall. We revisit it weekly. This keeps us honest about whether we’re actually moving the needle. For individual contributors, I encourage them to create their own visual progress trackers—Kanban boards, task streaks, or even a simple line chart. The method matters less than the discipline.

Here’s a question that often surprises people: Are you busy, or are you effective? It’s tempting, especially in times of rapid change, to fill every day with activity. But activity without progress is a form of procrastination. I once fell into the trap of optimizing email response times. Only after cutting my inbox checks to three times a day did I notice how much time I reclaimed for focused work. Many C-suite leaders swear by time-blocking or batch-processing email and administrative work, freeing entire mornings or afternoons for strategic thought.

Meetings are another classic time thief. I review my calendar monthly, asking: “If I canceled half these meetings, would anything break?” Often, nothing happens except that we all get time back. When meetings are essential, I insist on a clear agenda and pre-read. Running tighter meetings modeled for my team a new, higher standard. It’s impressive how quickly this ripples outward: colleagues start showing up better prepared, and poorly run meetings naturally drop off the calendar.

Decision-making is another overlooked lever for productivity. Many leaders burn mental energy agonizing over reversible choices. Jeff Bezos calls these “two-way door” decisions—you can try, learn, and adjust. For these, I’ve learned to decide quickly and move on. Save energy for “one-way door” decisions, which are high impact and hard to reverse. How many decisions this week could you have made faster with 70% of the information?

“Success is not the result of spontaneous combustion. You must set yourself on fire.” — Arnold Glasgow

Through all these elements—strategic planning, energy awareness, minimal tools, sharp prioritization, and transparent accountability—a leader shapes their own bandwidth. But it’s more than a personal quest. Your system becomes a signal for your entire team. I’ve found that when I consistently demonstrate clarity and structure in my own approach, others naturally mirror it. Productivity isn’t just about what I get done, but about creating a culture that values thoughtful progress over performative busyness.

Imagine if your work week ended with you feeling clear about what truly moved forward—not just what you checked off. What would that change for your leadership, your team, or even the larger mission you’re after?

If you want to inspire strategic thinking and create space for real development—your own and your team’s—start small, but start today. Block your planning ritual. Experiment with energy matching. Trim your tools. Learn to say no with conviction. And above all, let your progress be visible. In time, you’ll see that mastering your productivity system is one of the most generous things you can do for everyone you lead.

“Don’t mistake activity with achievement.” — John Wooden

So I challenge you: What’s the first thing you’ll drop, redesign, or rethink in your own system? The space you create isn’t emptiness—it’s potential. Let’s make it count.