Managing Competing Commitments
When everything matters, nothing moves. Take time to surface hidden commitments, renegotiate priorities, and navigate tradeoffs without burning out.
20 Ideas for Managing Commitments
- Write all commitments on one page.
- Circle the top three that unlock the rest.
- Identify “loyal soldier” beliefs that overcommit you.
- Practice a weekly renegotiation script.
- Use “yes, if…” when asked for more.
- Move deadlines before they move you.
- Create criteria for new requests.
- Limit active projects to five.
- Protect recovery time post-deadlines.
- Share constraints transparently.
- Automate one recurring task.
- Delegate 10% more than feels comfy.
- Replace guilt with data (hours vs. results).
- Build a “not now” archive.
- Schedule decision time, not just doing time.
- Name tradeoffs aloud.
- Track sunk-cost triggers.
- Close loops on stale commitments.
- Celebrate graceful nos.
- Review in 30 days—lighter yet?
5 Questions to Consider
- What does harmony look like this month?
- Where are the discordant notes?
- What expectations can you reset?
- Who could help tune your week?
- What will you protect at all costs?
Closing Thought
Design your days to match your season—not someone else’s.
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