Hi Felix,

Why High Achievers Need to Focus on the Few That Matter

Many high performers find themselves spread thin across countless tasks, from minor administrative chores to never-ending email threads. Yet the real key to accomplishing more lies in directing your limited time and energy into the handful of tasks that truly propel your career or business forward. This concept comes from the Pareto Principle: roughly 80% of your outcomes often come from just 20% of your efforts. To step up your game, it’s essential to identify which activities produce the greatest returns—and to systematically reduce or remove those that don’t.

Identifying and Cutting Out Low-Value Tasks

• Perform a quick audit of your day.
  Look at each recurring task and ask yourself: Is this contributing significantly to my goals, or does it just keep me “busy”?
• Delegate what you can.
  If a task is important but not necessarily demanding your specific expertise, pass it on to someone capable of handling it.
• Leverage technology.
  Automated reminders, email filters, and time-tracking tools can help you streamline tasks that you can’t eliminate entirely.
• Consolidate similar tasks.
  For instance, group all administrative or email tasks into specific time blocks instead of scattering them throughout the day. This ensures your mind spends less time shifting gears between different types of work.

As you refine your focus, don’t overlook the power of strategic no’s. When you decline invitations or projects that aren’t in line with your primary objectives, you free up bandwidth for high-impact opportunities. This is where you’ll see the most substantial gains, because each new commitment you take on will be strategically chosen rather than reflexively accepted.

Action Step

Make a “stop-doing” list of tasks you can eliminate, outsource, or automate. Be ruthless in questioning which tasks genuinely warrant your attention. Even a modest reduction in low-value busywork can translate into major improvements in your overall productivity, creativity, and energy levels.

Personal Note

Early in my career, I believed that saying “yes” to every project and doing everything myself made me indispensable. The truth was that I was drowning in mundane tasks and barely moving the needle where it mattered most. By systematically removing distractions, delegating smaller duties, and being selective about new commitments, I started accomplishing more in less time. That shift didn’t just boost my productivity—it revolutionized how I approached growth and success.

Wishing you a clear and productive week,

Felix Brabander
Founder of SensitiveHighAchievers.com