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This Spreadsheet Can Help You Focus on What’s Important

Because your to-do list isn’t cutting it

Dave Bailey
Forge
4 min readJun 10, 2020

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Photo: JGI/Tom Grill/Getty Images

Are you a productive procrastinator?

Maybe your friends see you as fiercely productive, but you’re secretly avoiding the one thing that actually matters — that difficult conversation with an underperforming employee or addressing a key threat in your business.

To the outside world, I’m one of the most fiercely productive people around. But on the inside, I know there are a few things I’ve been putting off — important things that need my attention.

Even if you’re a relentlessly productive person, there’s probably something important you’re avoiding, often on a subconscious level. Perhaps it’s having that difficult conversation with an underperforming employee. Or addressing a key threat in your business.

Three forces drive us to procrastinate. The first is having a long, aimless to-do list. Sure, to-do lists can be helpful, but not if the most important items aren’t on them. Too often, we only add tasks that are urgent or deadline-driven, forgetting about the actions that actually bring us closer to our goals.

The second force is having a disabling narrative. This is that little voice in your head that gives you all the reasons you need for not acting. Maybe…

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Published in Forge

A former publication from Medium on personal development. Currently inactive and not taking submissions.

Dave Bailey
Dave Bailey

Written by Dave Bailey

CEO of Founder Coach, providing training and mentorship for the next generation of great CEOs. Visit FounderCoach.com for details.

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