From Tasks to Strategy: A Leader’s Guide to Prioritization

Most PMO and transformation leaders face a painful paradox: they tell everyone they are strategic, but their calendars tell a different story. If your day is a wall of status reports, admin work, and tactical firefighting, you are sending a clear message to your organization: "I am in the weeds, and I am not available for the conversations that matter." 

Your time tells the truth, even when your words do not. 

The Luke Story: Planning Over Doing 

Years ago, I worked with a leader named Luke. While I was running on coffee and adrenaline, bouncing from one fire to the next, Luke was calm. Every morning, he spent an hour writing in a notebook. He left the office earlier than I did, yet his results were consistently better. 

Luke had a system. He knew that "busy" gets in the way of productive. He prioritized outcomes over activity. That hour in the morning was his power hour, where the real leadership happened. He understood that leadership is not a result of having more time: it is a result of what you do with the time you have. 

The Math of the "Busy Trap" 

Let's look at the numbers. If you earn $100,000 a year, you are making roughly $50 an hour. If you spend three hours a day formatting status decks or chasing data, you are doing $15 an hour work on a $50 an hour paycheck. 

This isn't just inefficient: it is a threat to your value perception. Those $15 tasks are costing you $100 opportunities. When you spend your energy on the urgent but low-value tasks, you have no capacity left for truly important activities like stakeholder engagement and vision. Just because you can do a task doesn't mean you should. 

The Cost of "Comfort Work" 

PMO leaders often retreat into their comfort zones. It feels safe to polish a dashboard or tinker with a template. It feels like progress. But it isn't strategic. This kind of work will not get you promoted, and it will not earn you a seat at the table. 

"Comfort work" is the silent killer of PMO credibility. It keeps you busy enough to feel productive while ensuring you never have the difficult conversations required to drive real business IMPACT. 

Stop Managing Activity, Start Managing Value 

To be seen as a business leader, your actions must say: "I know what matters. I make decisions like a leader. I spend my time on outcomes, not just outputs." 

You don't become a business leader when someone gives you the title. You become one when your actions prove you know what to prioritize. Leadership isn't about doing more; it is about doing what matters and letting go of what doesn't. 

Press ▶️ play above to hear the full breakdown of how to audit your time and reclaim your strategic rhythm. 

P.S. Looking for more guidance on how to build your strategic value as a PMO, transformation, or strategy delivery leader? The IMPACT Engine System helps leadership teams shift from reactive oversight to outcome ownership with the strategic alignment and clarity they need. Learn more and get started today!