A Simple System to Reclaim 10 Hours a Week

A few years ago, I was involved in a deal that had potential, but deep down, I knew wasn’t going to work out.

I wanted everybody on both sides to win. So I poured myself into it—working with every party, trying to find creative solutions, bending over backwards to make it positive for everyone.

It was stressful. And here’s the reality… even if I had found a solution, it wouldn’t have been a true win for me.

When I finally walked away and looked at it from 30,000 feet, I couldn’t believe how much time, energy, and focus I had spent on something that my gut told me early on wasn’t aligned.

That same year, I watched several friends build incredible, exciting projects. In the same period of time that I spent trying to salvage something I knew wasn’t likely going to work, they made progress on things that mattered.

That contrast hit me very hard.

It’s why I now do a quarterly time audit that helps me course correct. As they say, time flies, and every hour you spend on the wrong thing isn’t just lost—it’s stolen from the right thing.

‍

The System: A Simple Time Audit

Here’s the 3-step process I use today. It works just as well for business as it does for life.

‍

Step 1: Track Without Judgment

For one week, write down everything you do in 30-minute blocks.

• Work meetings, emails, workouts, Netflix, family dinners—log it all.
  
• Don’t optimize, don’t edit—just capture reality.

👉 Radical awareness is the critical first step.

‍

Step 2: Sort by Energy, Impact & Value

At the end of the week, label each block by asking two questions:

• Energy: Did this give me energy or drain me? (🔥 Yes, 🧊 No)
  
• Impact: Did this move me closer to where I want to go, or keep me stuck? (⬆️ Yes, ⬇️ No)
  

When auditing your time at work, also assign a simple dollar value to every task:

• $10 Work → admin, inbox, scheduling
  
• $100 Work → management, project execution, content production
  
• $10,000 Work → closing enterprise deals, key hires, strategy
  

👉 When you see your calendar laid out, you’ll notice: most people (and most founders) are stuck doing $10 and $100 tasks. The kind of work that keeps you busy but not growing.

‍

Step 3: Cut, Automate, or Delegate

Now that you’ve seen the truth, redesign your week:

• Cut: ruthlessly eliminate what drains you with little impact.
  
• Systemetize/Automate/Delegate: offload the necessary but low-value stuff (AI workflows, outsourcing, batching).
  
• Double Down: create more space for the activities that give you energy, have high impact, or are $10,000/hour work.
  

👉 Over time, your calendar becomes a mirror of your priorities.

‍

Ask this simple question each week:

“Which 2 hours of my week created the most value?”

Then reorganize your calendar to create more of those moments.

‍

Why It Works

The time audit forces alignment between your calendar and your ambition.

Every wasted hour compounds into lost opportunities and slower growth.

Every reclaimed hour compounds into sharper decisions, faster execution, and bigger wins.

‍

The Takeaway

Do a time audit once a quarter.

It’s the simplest way to measure where your hours are really going, cut the noise, and put more time into the things that matter most—in business and in life.

Because scaling a company is important. But scaling a life you actually want? That’s the real win.

‍

👉 Question for you: If you ran a time audit today, what’s the one activity you already know you’d cut or delegate?