Hey Justin, I’m not sure I’m 100% following what you’re saying. Can we hop on a quick call for clarity? Monday or Friday at 5 am EST are good for me. Shouldn’t take more than an hour. Thanks.
Justin, this hits at the core lie of the modern professional world: the equation that Busyness = Importance. It’s a habit learned in the corporate machine, and it’s the hardest one to unlearn.
This is the ultimate application of the EVOLVE pillar (Essenzialismo). It’s not about finding more time; it’s about ruthlessly eliminating the friction that destroys focus. That "nine meetings in four days" realization is the pain point that forces the shift.
But the true gift of the empty calendar isn't just "flow." It’s the constant, uninterrupted presence—the BEING pillar—that you reclaim. When you stop context switching, your mind stops fragmenting. You're not just getting more writing done; you’re living more of your life intentionally.
That intentionality is what makes the deep work (the REALIZE pillar) possible. A full calendar is a full prison. Thank you for this essential truth.
Love this! Pre-covid I would do 6/7 meetings a day. Nowadays, even 1 meeting definitely breaks my flow, unless it's really early in the morning. I'm totally going to use "can you send me a Loom" genius!
Hey Justin, you’re absolutely right. Having a empty calendar means you’re the king. I’m talking about the money side of the same thing this Monday in my newsletter. Would love to hear your thoughts on that.
It's easy to make fun of all that "hop on a call and circle back" stuff, until you're billing by the hour. I have entrepreneurial activities where I just need to be aware of what's going and am happy to just get some teams chat updates when the team has time.
But I also do some hourly work as a corporate consultant. Not only is it corporate but it is also consulting! That is like corporate on steroids. In that case, I'm more than happy to circle back, follow up, check in, and I'm also well rehearsed on BSing and keeping that conversation going for the full hour! :)
On the entrepreneur side, I get that same sense of unease when I don't see a lot of meetings. I think it's a false sense of control. Comes from the "ABC: Always Be Closing" mentality. If you're not working your next lead, you're out of work in a week. Keep filling the pipe, etc.
But when you have projects that have long lead times and everything is on track, then what do you need to meet about? Maybe 30 min a week is fine to see if any major issues coming up.
Couldn't agree more. Tons of wasted time with meetings. Too many people show up. Too many tangents. Too many follow-on meetings. People feel the need to consume the entire amount of blocked time. And the list goes on...
If any of you haven't seen/heard Jason Fried's TED Talk titled "Why Work Doesn't Happen at Work", I'd highly recommend it. It's a strong reinforcer to this great essay. And if you're still in the corporate world -- and especially if you're a leader within your organization -- it will offer up some really good thought-provoking advice.
Interesting. I downshifted years ago to do the work I am absolutely best at, which is 1:1 support of Brave Leaders ready to lead Massive Change. To do this at my best, I only work with up 6 people at a time, averaging an hour or less with each of them each week.
This means I am "always active, never busy", with a diary that is not empty, but not far away from empty.
I've never heard of Loom until you mentioned it, so thank you, will look at that.
It also has me think about the fact that I do more video calls with people that are unrelated to my client work than I do client calls. These are often mentoring calls, or simply staying connected to people in business and life that I like to be in relationship with. In considering your Loom idea (and can see the efficiency and value in that), I also recognise how much I value the human side of connecting. Many past clients are lifelong friends, that takes time and 1:1 connection.
Hey Justin, I’m not sure I’m 100% following what you’re saying. Can we hop on a quick call for clarity? Monday or Friday at 5 am EST are good for me. Shouldn’t take more than an hour. Thanks.
😂
Justin, this hits at the core lie of the modern professional world: the equation that Busyness = Importance. It’s a habit learned in the corporate machine, and it’s the hardest one to unlearn.
This is the ultimate application of the EVOLVE pillar (Essenzialismo). It’s not about finding more time; it’s about ruthlessly eliminating the friction that destroys focus. That "nine meetings in four days" realization is the pain point that forces the shift.
But the true gift of the empty calendar isn't just "flow." It’s the constant, uninterrupted presence—the BEING pillar—that you reclaim. When you stop context switching, your mind stops fragmenting. You're not just getting more writing done; you’re living more of your life intentionally.
That intentionality is what makes the deep work (the REALIZE pillar) possible. A full calendar is a full prison. Thank you for this essential truth.
Love this! Pre-covid I would do 6/7 meetings a day. Nowadays, even 1 meeting definitely breaks my flow, unless it's really early in the morning. I'm totally going to use "can you send me a Loom" genius!
Hey Justin, you’re absolutely right. Having a empty calendar means you’re the king. I’m talking about the money side of the same thing this Monday in my newsletter. Would love to hear your thoughts on that.
Now that I'm on my own, I look forward to meetings because that type of engagement inevitably leads to more work from my clients.
It's easy to make fun of all that "hop on a call and circle back" stuff, until you're billing by the hour. I have entrepreneurial activities where I just need to be aware of what's going and am happy to just get some teams chat updates when the team has time.
But I also do some hourly work as a corporate consultant. Not only is it corporate but it is also consulting! That is like corporate on steroids. In that case, I'm more than happy to circle back, follow up, check in, and I'm also well rehearsed on BSing and keeping that conversation going for the full hour! :)
On the entrepreneur side, I get that same sense of unease when I don't see a lot of meetings. I think it's a false sense of control. Comes from the "ABC: Always Be Closing" mentality. If you're not working your next lead, you're out of work in a week. Keep filling the pipe, etc.
But when you have projects that have long lead times and everything is on track, then what do you need to meet about? Maybe 30 min a week is fine to see if any major issues coming up.
In my corporate job, if we have a stand-up meeting instead of sitting around a conference table, everyone is motivated to wrap it up more quickly.
Who wants to work overtime to make up for lost time spent in an unproductive meeting?
Not me.
The distinction between being busy and being productive....
I run my business theworldunfolding.com 95% async. Meetings are so overrated.
I wish I could find a way to also create this effect on my entire life.
Meetings are not really my challenges, but I realize I get too busy doing nothing.
Where would you start?
Time blocking is great!
this is it! i am aiming to have no meetings until 12PM every day and to have 2-3 fully creative days.
Amen. With Loom, you don't waste other people's time.
Couldn't agree more. Tons of wasted time with meetings. Too many people show up. Too many tangents. Too many follow-on meetings. People feel the need to consume the entire amount of blocked time. And the list goes on...
If any of you haven't seen/heard Jason Fried's TED Talk titled "Why Work Doesn't Happen at Work", I'd highly recommend it. It's a strong reinforcer to this great essay. And if you're still in the corporate world -- and especially if you're a leader within your organization -- it will offer up some really good thought-provoking advice.
Interesting. I downshifted years ago to do the work I am absolutely best at, which is 1:1 support of Brave Leaders ready to lead Massive Change. To do this at my best, I only work with up 6 people at a time, averaging an hour or less with each of them each week.
This means I am "always active, never busy", with a diary that is not empty, but not far away from empty.
I've never heard of Loom until you mentioned it, so thank you, will look at that.
It also has me think about the fact that I do more video calls with people that are unrelated to my client work than I do client calls. These are often mentoring calls, or simply staying connected to people in business and life that I like to be in relationship with. In considering your Loom idea (and can see the efficiency and value in that), I also recognise how much I value the human side of connecting. Many past clients are lifelong friends, that takes time and 1:1 connection.
I work alone. In my office in Upstate NY. Yet have teams everywhere in the nation. So, I definitely relate with meetings breaking up the day.
I love flow state as well. But 1 meeting will happen everyday. The one with my wife. Although it’s not a “meeting” but you get the point.