New Podcast Episode: You protected the hour. Now define ‘done’.


Hey Reader,

"Done is not when the time runs out. Done is what you named before you start."

You likely already do the hard part. You build the block and defend it against everyone who wants a piece of you. Then you walk out and can't name what changed.

In Episode 75 of Leadership Unlocked, I walk through why this isn’t a discipline problem. A time block reserves the hour. But it never decides what has to be true when the hour is over. So the work fills every minute, because nothing inside the block holds it to a result.

I've done this more times than I want to admit. Protected the hour, worked the whole hour, walked out with nothing I could name.

video preview

In this episode of Leadership Unlocked:

  • Outcome Blocking is easier than it sounds. The fix takes sixty seconds.
  • Why it’s as simple as naming what done looks like before you start.
  • When the block ends, a master tip to make it stick: ask yourself “did it happen?

Know a leader whose calendar is full and whose week still feels thin? Send it their way.

Once you listen, hit reply and tell me what you named as done for your next block.

P.S. Time blocking is the floor. Outcome blocking is the return. If you haven't built the time block yet, E39 of Leadership Unlocked walks through how.

Arcqus Group
(704) 237-0767
1750 HWY 160 W STE 101-297, Fort Mill, SC 29708

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