Proactive Priority Management

Time Isn’t the Issue. Priorities Are. After 30+ years in the corporate world - leading turnarounds, scaling global teams, surviving crises, and launching innovation - I’ve learned one unshakable truth: Time management is a myth. What we really need is priority management. In my early days, I thought I could "manage" time - color-coded calendars, detailed to-do lists, 12-hour workdays. It looked productive, but I was often exhausted and chasing the wrong things. Here’s what decades in leadership taught me: Not everything urgent is important. I used to respond instantly to emails marked “high priority.” Now I pause and ask - is this aligned with my long-term goals? If not, it waits. The 80/20 rule is real. 20% of your efforts lead to 80% of your outcomes. Identify your “vital few” and go deep. Delegate or delay the rest. Saying no is a leadership skill. Every “yes” is a “no” to something else. I've declined high-profile panels, investor meetings, even partnerships - because they didn’t align with my or my company's true north. Protect your deep work zone. My mornings are sacred. No meetings before 10 AM. I use that time to think, write, plan, and build. Leaders aren’t paid to be busy. We’re paid to think clearly. Review your calendar like a budget. Every Sunday, I audit my calendar. Does how I spent last week reflect what I claim to value? If not, I correct course - ruthlessly. Here’s my filter: Does this move the needle on our purpose, people, or performance? If yes, I invest time. If not, I reassign or release. The higher you rise, the more people want a piece of your time. The challenge isn’t finding time - it’s guarding your energy, focus, and intention. To any emerging leader reading this: You don’t need to do more. You need to do what matters more.

You have a choice. Be a reactive Product Manager. Or be a proactive Product Manager. Same title. Very different outcomes. I used to think being busy and responsive meant being effective. -> I answered every Slack instantly. -> Jumped into every fire drill. -> Shipped every stakeholder request. But I wasn’t managing the product. I was reacting to it. Then it hit me: I wasn’t a Product Manager. I was a Product Janitor. Cleaning up issues instead of preventing them. 👉🏽 The shift—from reactive to proactive—changed everything: Not just how I worked, but the results I drove. Here’s the difference between a Reactive Product Manager and a Proactive Product Manager: Customer Feedback → Reactive: We need this feature NOW—customers are complaining. → Proactive: “We validated patterns → shaped a solution → reduced churn by 12%.” Roadmap Planning → Reactive: Leadership added X to the roadmap. I guess we’ll build it. → Proactive: We secured exec alignment 2 quarters ahead → drove +18% revenue with strategic bets. Team Collaboration → Reactive: Design’s blocked? I’ll scramble to unblock them. → Proactive: We mapped dependencies pre-sprint → boosted delivery velocity by 15%. Metrics → Reactive: What does leadership want to see this week?” → Proactive: We defined north star metrics tied to business outcomes → built trust + autonomy through weekly reporting. ✅ The takeaway: Proactive PMs don’t just respond faster. They design systems that scale decision-making, alignment, and outcomes. They shift from task managers → to impact multipliers. If you’re stuck in reactive mode, block 2 hours this week for proactive moves: -> Align stakeholders before conflicts emerge -> Review metrics that tie to business outcomes -> Map dependencies before they block you -> Validate patterns, not one-off requests Final thought: You don’t need permission to be proactive. You need a system. And it’s on you to build it. It starts with a small mindset shift. And leads to big leverage. — 👋 I’m Ron Yang, a product leader and advisor. Follow me for insights on product leadership & strategy.

Recruiters! dont you love it when all your open roles are P1 emergencies? “Mission-critical.” “Needed yesterday.” Here's a fix 👇 If everything is a priority, then nothing is. And it’s costing your business money, time, and trust in TA. I see this all the time during headcount planning: 50 live roles. 49 of them tagged as P1. And five different execs all asking: “Why aren’t the two recruiters we didn't lay off last year working my roles like the P1s they are?” Here’s how to fix it: - Create a shared definition of priority. - Use a simple decision tree everyone agrees on. You can even build it straight into your role request form. Here’s an example framework you can steal from me: Priority 1 - Business Critical Ask: Is the business missing a critical function without this role? If yes - it’s P1. Examples: Compliance or audit deadlines Meeting legal or regulatory obligations Keeping the product or platform functioning Priority 2 - Commercial or Product Roadmap Dependency Ask: Are our technical or product roadmaps, release dates, or commercial targets unachievable without this role? If yes -it’s P2. Examples: Launching a key product feature Delivering on a signed client commitment Achieving revenue milestones Priority 3 - Team-Level Objectives Ask: Are an individual team’s agreed goals at risk without this role? If yes - it’s P3. Examples: Increasing bandwidth or reducing burnout Team restructures or backfills Internal team goals (not business-critical) Priority 4 - Everything Else If none of the above? It’s a nice-to-have. Examples: Opportunistic or exploratory hires Roles without clear scope or timing Back-pocket reqs How to implement it: 1. Get your founders or execs to sign off on the framework. 2. Add the questions into your role request form 3. Assign priority based on those answers. That way your stakeholders aren't event asked the priority, they just have to use their discretion to answer the above questions and priority is assigned programatically, not gut feel. And leadership can always adjust any edge cases. Now you’ve got a consistent decision tree recruiters can plan resources better and forecast time to hire better. Now your stakeholders know how priorities actually work. Below is a free flowchart to get you started. How about you? Does this resonate? Tell me in the comments!! ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hi 👋 I’m Luke. I empower recruiters with data. Want to get data-driven for free? Link in my profile for my weekly newsletter. #recruitment #talentacquisition #recruiters #recruiting

As CPO, I went where my calendar dictated. Then I’m sneaking glances at my email and Slack, and growing more stressed at more work accruing elsewhere. I was reactive. Each meeting spawned more follow-up meetings because I wasn't well prepared, or the right people were not present. To truly spend most of my time on my top priorities: 1️⃣ Make a top-down view of time spent that reflects your P0/P1’s. What initiatives, decisions, or strategies are they responsible for driving? 2️⃣ Divide your list into three sections: P0’s (only I can do), P1 (critical priorities that I cannot miss), and P2 (important to get done). 3️⃣ Assign a percentage of your time to each section: If your time spent reflects your priorities, this is what it should look like in aggregate. 4️⃣ Ruthlessly clean your next month of meetings. Delegate where you are not critical. Combine similar conversations. Shorten or reduce meeting frequency. Delete…and ask for forgiveness — because you’ll end up asking for it anyway on the day when you are triple-booked. Remember, if you are struggling with time management, the first step is not to open your calendar to ad hoc edit, but to map out your true priorities to set a strong foundation for your adjustments. 

If you’re an assistant who has ever worked with me, chances are very high you’ve heard me say: “Slow down, gunpowder.” That’s my way of saying take a beat, breathe, and let’s get clear on what actually needs to happen right now. Because here’s the truth: Urgent and priority are not the same thing. Let’s break it down: 🔺 Urgent = Time-sensitive. It needs to be handled fast or there’s a consequence. It’s reactive. It shows up in bold red text. It disrupts your flow. Example: The CEO’s flight just got canceled and they need a new itinerary ASAP. Legal needs a signed contract in the next hour to avoid delaying a deal. A last-minute exec meeting got added to the calendar, and the prep deck isn’t done. 🌟 Priority = Impactful. It might not be screaming for your attention, but it’s tied to a goal, a deliverable, or your exec’s big-picture success. It’s proactive. It’s planned. It deserves your focus. Example: Finalizing that board meeting deck due Friday. Prepping your exec for an investor call next week. Building out a new process that’ll save hours long-term. See the difference? If you treat everything like it’s urgent, you’ll always feel behind. But if you protect time for true priorities, you start driving outcomes as opposed to just reacting to chaos. Knowing the difference between urgent and priority protects your focus, your time, and your sanity. It allows you to lead instead of chase. So the next time someone sends a Slack message with 🚨 emojis? Pause. Assess. And remind yourself: “Slow down, gunpowder.” We don’t do panic. We do purpose. Be honest: did you spend more time reacting or prioritizing this week? Let’s talk about one thing you’re doing to shift from chaos to control. 👇 #evolvedassistant #administrativeassistant #executivesupport #administrativeprofessionals #executiveassistant