You know that feeling you get when you work all week, barely sleep, checking and answering emails late at night, and then Friday hits and you think… “Wait, what did I actually do this week?”
Yeah. That.
Here’s what nobody tells you. You’re probably only spending 7 hours a week on stuff that actually grows your business. The rest of the time? You’re basically a very expensive administrative assistant who also fixes the printer.
The other 33+ hours go to emails that could’ve been texts, meetings about meetings, and putting out fires your team should handle.
Good news! This is fixable. And it only takes about three weeks.
Week 1: Track Everything (Yes, EVER-Y-THING!)
For five days, write down what you do at work. All of it.
Answered an email? Write it down. Spent 20 minutes finding that file? Write it down. Scrolled Instagram because your brain was fried? Write it down. No judgment. I know it sounds overwhelming. But it’s worth it and you’ll be glad you did it.
Use three columns:
- What you did
- How long it took
- Was it important? (High, medium, or low)
High = Makes money or uses your actual CEO brain
Medium = Keeps things running but anyone could do it
Low = Why are you even doing this?
By Friday, you’ll probably want to cry a little. I know I did when I saw what was consuming most of my time. Most CEOs spend 15-20 hours weekly on low-value stuff and another 15-18 hours on medium stuff their team could actually handle.
But you can’t fix what you don’t know about.
Week 2: The “Strategic Seven” – Your “Only You Can Do This” List
Make your VIP list—the seven things ONLY you should do:
- Big-Picture Planning – Where’s this business going?
- Key Relationships – Major clients, partners, investors
- Big Sales – Closing major deals, setting pricing strategy
- Leading Your Team – One-on-ones, culture-building, developing leaders
- Product/Service Innovation – Customer feedback, competitive analysis, pivots
- Money Decisions – P&L review, resource allocation
- Thought Leadership – Content and speaking that positions your expertise
Real talk: If you’re building without a fancy MBA or well-connected mentor, this matters even more. Most successful CEOs learned this through expensive coaching or country club conversations. But here’s the secret; the smartest move isn’t doing more, it’s doing less. Now you have the same playbook.
Your list might look different depending on your business. That’s fine. The point is figuring out where you’re truly irreplaceable.
Everything else? Time to let it go.
Week 3: Delete, Automate, Delegate, or Batch
For every task not on your Strategic Seven, pick one:
Delete It
That weekly meeting where everyone reads email updates out loud? Kill it. That report nobody reads? Gone. If it doesn’t grow your business or keep you out of jail, delete it.
Automate It
Use Calendly so people stop emailing 47 times to schedule. Set up auto-replies. Use Zapier to connect your tools. Spend one Saturday setting this up—you’ll save 3-5 hours every week forever.
Delegate It
Your team can handle more than you think. Create clear rules: “You own all decisions under $5,000. Come to me with solutions, not problems.”
Then let them make different choices than you would. They might not do it your way. And, that’s okay. Your way isn’t the only way.
Batch It
Check email twice daily instead of 47 times. Hold “office hours” on Tuesdays and Thursdays instead of answering random questions all day. Batching trains your team to solve problems before running to you.
What This Actually Looks Like
Let’s say you run a consulting firm. You work 65-hour weeks.
Your time audit is ugly: 12 hours weekly formatting proposals, doing paperwork, and playing calendar Tetris. Another 8 hours in meetings that could’ve been two-minute voice memos. And you answer every client email within 20 minutes, 24/7.
After three weeks: You reclaim 22 hours monthly. You’ve used that time for two things that actually scaled your business—building partnerships and creating content that attracts premium clients.
Six months later: Increased revenue. Same team size. Home by 5:00 most days.
No magic. Just math.
Let’s Make This Your Reality
Starting Monday, track your time for five days. Use Toggl, RescueTime, or a Google Sheet. Track the work, the interruptions, the social media scrolling when you’re fried. All of it.
By Friday, you’ll know exactly where your hours go. More importantly, you’ll know which 20+ hours you’re taking back.
The CEOs who win aren’t working the hardest. They’re working the smartest. And “smart” usually means doing way less than everyone thinks.
SUMMARY TABLE
| Week | Action | Time Investment | Expected Outcome |
| Week 1 | Time Audit | 30 min/day | Identify 30+ hours of delegable work |
| Week 2 | Define Strategic Seven | 2 Hours | Clarify CEO-only activities |
| Week 3 | Delegate & Eliminate | 5 hours setup | Reclaim 20+ hours monthly |
