Let’s get honest.
Building a business that not only survives but thrives beyond the five- or ten-year mark isn’t about doing more; it’s about doing what actually matters.
Most people spend their time reacting —filling their schedules with tasks, meetings, and low-value noise.
But the top 1%? They operate on a completely different system.
It’s not about squeezing more into your calendar. It’s about stripping away what doesn’t serve the mission, protecting your energy, and engineering your time around outcomes — not tasks. If you want to make that leap, here’s where to start.
1. Guard Your Mornings Like a CEO
The most successful leaders don’t let their mornings get hijacked.
They start the day with their own priorities — not inboxes, not Slack, and definitely not someone else’s fire drill. One intentional win in the morning sets the tone for everything that follows.
When I stopped rushing into my day and started protecting my mornings, I noticed something big: I had gas left in the tank by 3 p.m.
Instead of running out of steam, I had energy to lead through the second half of the day. Your mornings are prime real estate. Treat them that way.
2. Say No to Meetings Without Purpose
If your calendar is packed with meetings, you’re probably not leading — you’re reacting.
Meetings should have a clear goal, an agenda, and a decision to make.
If it’s just an update? Send a memo. If it’s a decision point? Fine, put it on the calendar.
Here’s my filter: No default invites, no meeting without a purpose, and no meeting without an agenda.
My EA helps vet every request so I’m only showing up where my voice matters. It’s not about being unavailable — it’s about being indispensable only where it counts.
3. Schedule Strategic Time (and Actually Use It)
Thinking is not a luxury. It’s your job.
You’re not just the doer anymore — you’re the visionary. But if you don’t carve out time to think, create, and lead with intention, you’ll get stuck playing operational whack-a-mole.
Strategic time should be sacred. Don’t leave it to chance. Block it. Label it. Use it.
My Executive Assistant changed everything when she stopped leaving gaps in my calendar and started assigning real roles: strategy, creation, vision casting.
That margin is now where my best work lives.
4. Match Your Energy to What Matters Most
Forget time management — the real lever is energy management.
Your best thinking doesn’t happen when you’re drained. So align your peak energy hours with your highest-value work.
Are you sharpest in the morning? Don’t waste that window on admin or Slack messages. Use it for deep, strategic work that moves the needle.
For me, that’s when the big rocks get done — before lunch, before the fires, before distractions creep in.
5. Stop Holding Everything — Learn to Delegate Outcomes
The top 1% aren’t obsessed with control. They’re obsessed with outcomes, and they know they can’t own every outcome alone.
That’s why they delegate — not just tasks, but results.
Hiring great people and teaching them to own outcomes is the real growth strategy.
Delegation isn’t just about handing off what you don’t want to do. It’s about multiplying your impact.
If you’re still the bottleneck, your growth stops with you. Build systems. Teach people. Let go.
Here’s the truth: The most successful leaders aren’t overworked. They’re intentional. They run their days — their days don’t run them. And they’re ruthless about focus.
Start small. One protected time block. One less meeting. One outcome you no longer own. That’s how the top 1% got there — and it’s exactly how you will, too.
Start with this video.