Make Time: How to Focus on What Matters Every Day

by Jake Knapp

9. Block Your Calendar If you start with an empty calendar, you can schedule your Highlight for the ideal time, when your energy is highest and your focus is at its peak. But for most of us, starting the day with a blank calendar is about as likely as finding a thousand-dollar bill on the sidewalk: It certainly could happen, but we’d better not count on it.4 And if you work in an office where colleagues can add meetings to your calendar, forget about it. You’ll have to take a different approach: Use daily “do not schedule” blocks to make room for your Highlight. JZ learned this trick from his friend Graham Jenkin. In 2007 and 2008, Graham was JZ’s boss at Google, and to JZ, it seemed like Graham could do it all. He managed something like twenty people, and he gave each of them personal attention and true support. He also led the redesign of AdWords, Google’s flagship advertising product. This meant he was involved in everything from designing user interfaces, to testing with customers and reviewing specifications, to coordinating with engineers. Everyone wondered where Graham found the time, and most people (including JZ) assumed he worked really long hours. But they were wrong. In many ways, Graham had the typical schedule of a corporate manager. Each day was packed with meetings. But there was something unusual about his calendar: From 6 to 11 a.m. each day, Graham had scheduled time with himself. “That’s my time. I wake up early, get to the office early, hit the gym, gr...