?? New Side of Bacon: Ruthless Prioritization – Protecting Your Time Like a CEO ??

If you’re short on time, skip to the TL;DR. We are all about practicing what we preach: prioritization. If you’re ready to dive deep, keep scrolling for the full buffet. Either way, you’re making the right choice. ??

TL;DR

1. Get Clear on What Matters: Know your goals so you can decide what’s most important.
2. Plan for Results: Structure your week to balance deep work and meetings.
3. Communicate Clearly: Set realistic expectations with your team—don’t be a “yes” person if you can’t deliver.
4. Be Accountable: Follow through on your commitments to avoid creating bottlenecks.
5. Follow Up & Communicate: Keep the lines open, pivot when needed.

Overwhelmed? Try the Pomodoro method: brain-dump your tasks, categorize them (Urgent & Important, etc.), and suddenly the world feels manageable. Covey’s 7 Habits fans, you know the drill: “Put First Things First.”

Prioritization is about planning and taking action. Now go forth, conquer your day, and keep moving forward. ??

The Whole Story: Side of Bacon – Ruthless Prioritization

Prioritization: the ability to decide what’s truly important—and urgent. It’s more than a skill; it’s a superpower, especially when you’ve got emails, Slack messages, WhatsApp pings, and Zoom notifications coming at you non-stop.

So, how do you prioritize? How do you know when to respond to that email versus letting it sit so you can focus? Here’s my take.

Step 1: Get Clear on What Matters

If you don’t know what your top priorities are, everything will feel like a fire drill. To be truly effective, start with clarity about what you're working towards—be it daily, weekly, monthly, or even yearly goals. For example, if one of my priorities this week is to close a deal with a prospect, then answering their emails quickly makes sense. But if I'm working on a big-picture strategy, my top priority becomes carving out focused time—mornings, late afternoons, evenings—whatever works best.

Step 2: Plan for the Results You Want

With priorities clear, the next step is planning your time around them. I build my week to balance deep work and the meetings that require prep, follow-up, and my full attention. For me, it's all about leaving room to actually think, create, and, well, get stuff done. Overschedule your calendar, and you’ll find that the things that matter most are constantly getting bumped.

Step 3: Communicate Clearly & Set Expectations

Direct communication is my favorite. When I have a request for a team member, I’m specific: “Hey [Name], I need this by [Date]. Is that doable?” And if it’s not, I expect to hear a realistic alternative: "I can’t do it by 4 PM today, but 10 AM tomorrow works. Does that work for you?” One of my pet peeves is when someone says "yes" but doesn’t deliver. If it's not possible, communicate it up front. I'd much rather know your real timeline than be left waiting.

Saying "yes" to everything might make you a star and be what’s required in the early stages of your career. But there comes a time when the real win is in being reliable and discerning—knowing when to say "yes," and being honest when you can’t.

Step 4: Be Accountable

Prioritization isn't just about knowing what to tackle first—it's about following through to the finish line. When others rely on you and you don't deliver, you become a bottleneck that slows down progress. Accountability means honoring your commitments: doing what you said you would do, when you said you would do it, and delivering it as intended.

Be the person others can count on. Your accountability not only propels your success but also fuels the momentum of those around you.

Step 5: Follow Up & Keep Communicating

Prioritization isn’t just about getting things done; it’s also about learning from the process. Constantly communicating and checking in can reveal insights that may require you to pivot or reprioritize. Keep your team in the loop—especially if new developments come up that change the plan.

Great leaders set the vision, and great teams execute on it. But if no one knows what the priorities are—from the company level to their individual role—it’s easy to get lost. Prioritization is a rinse-and-repeat process: start big, narrow it down, and keep refining. It’s tempting to get distracted by shiny new software or the latest "productivity hack," but the truth is, you’ll make progress by doing the core work that drives results.

What to Do When You Feel Overwhelmed

Lack of prioritization often leads to overwhelm. Our team uses a no-fail process: the Pomodoro method. Here’s how it works: Set a timer for 20 minutes, turn off distractions, and brain-dump everything on your mind. Once it’s all on paper, categorize each task:

• Urgent & Important
• Urgent & Not Important
• Important & Not Urgent
• Not Important & Not Urgent

Look familiar? If you’ve ever read Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, this is Habit 3: “Put First Things First.” Covey’s matrix is a great way to get clear on what needs your attention right now—and what can wait.

This exercise ALWAYS works. And I mean always. Most of the time, we’re not as overwhelmed as we think—we’re just carrying mental noise. Once you get it out and categorize it, suddenly it’s all manageable.

The real secret to prioritization? Make the time to do it. And then, execute. Keep moving forward, one prioritized step at a time.