One of my favorite podcasters and online marketers, Pat Flynn, just released a new book called Lean Learning and I started reading it today.

I’m only on Chapter One so I make no promises about when or if I’ll actually complete it (shout out to all the half-read books piled on my nightstand).

He starts out the book describing this four square grid he calls the “Inspiration Matrix”, a tool that helps you prioritize what to focus on based on how exciting and how important something is.

I immediately thought back to October of last year right after my co-founder stepped away from PodiatryMeetings.com. I was now flying solo, had a one month old baby, was homeschooling our other two kids and I was struggling to manage my own tasks, let alone take on the tasks that were previously handled by someone else.

What needed my attention first? What could be handed off to someone else? How to actually let go of the tasks that should be delegated (I’m a bit of a control freak)… that’s another story.

Enter one of my favorite people and certainly a mentor of mine, Dr. Lowell Weil, Jr.

During one of our calls, we were talking about the changes I’d been going through and what I was having trouble with. He told me about the Eisenhower Matrix.

His version labeled the axes as Value (low to high) and Enjoyment (low to high). I immediately pulled out a mini dry-erase board and drew my matrix.

Fast forward to about a month ago when he and I chatted again and I told him about all the things I was delegating using the matrix and how I have grown my team.

You know what he called me? A CEO. I laughed. No way, not me… I’m a “doer”, not a leader. I’m an integrator, not a visionary…

Is it possible I’m becoming both?

Anywho, Pat’s version in his book labels the quadrants as:

Passion Pursuits (High Priority | More Exciting)

Junk Sparks (Low Priority | More Exciting)

Why Tho? (Low Priority | Less Exciting)

Critical Commitments (High Priority | Less Exciting)

Productivity versions label the quadrants as:

Do (Urgent + Important)

Schedule (Not Urgent but Important)

Delegate (Urgent but Not Important)

Delete (Not Urgent + Not Important)

Whatever version works for you, this is a powerful tool whether you’re leading a team, running a practice, or trying to figure out what the heck to focus on next.

Want to try it for yourself? I made a blank matrix just for you. You’re welcome.

-Ann Dosen