Protecting time

I’ve got an ultra short week with the Juneteenth holiday and my flight to Japan tomorrow. In my younger days, I’d probably have filled up my schedule end to end and tried to squeeze every last individual in before my trip, and then taken some calls once I landed. I’m glad to report that those days are largely over.

I’ve spent the last couple of years really trying to protect my time more. Early on in my career, I wanted to speak to and meet as many people as possible. I definitely don’t regret it, but I probably spent way too much of my time chasing dead opportunities and getting taken advantage of.

As I’ve gotten older and advanced in my career, I find myself with less and less time on my hands. I’ve had to triage a lot of calls and meetings in order to save my sanity. Some times that means pushing the meeting back a week or two to when I have more time. Other times it means just not be able to take the call or meeting in general.