Move What Matters Most

In leadership there is always more to do than time allows. The difference between progress and pressure is knowing what to move first.

Strong execution has always been central to how I lead, though at times it came at a cost. Moving quickly creates energy, but without structure it also creates noise. The real discipline lies in deciding what deserves attention and what can wait.

Early in leadership, it is easy to mistake activity for achievement. Many of us have tried to fix everything at once with new playbooks, dashboards and initiatives. The intent is good, but the outcome is often a team that looks busy rather than effective. Experience taught me that effort without focus only creates movement, not progress.

"There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all"

-Peter Drucker

To stay fast but purposeful, a simple way of thinking emerged over time, a natural filter for deciding what truly matters. It mirrors the logic of the Eisenhower Matrix, the idea that not everything urgent is important and not everything important is urgent. Most actions fall into one of four categories:

1. Important and urgent, act immediately

2. Important but not urgent, plan and prioritise

3. Not important but urgent, delegate or minimise

4. Not important and not urgent, ignore

The framework does not need to be written out to work. What matters is training the mind to sort decisions this way, focusing on what moves things forward rather than what simply demands attention.

In today's environment, execution often slows not because people lack effort, but because focus gets lost. Teams are pulled in too many directions, chasing multiple priorities that all seem urgent. Every project becomes a "must win" and the result is that progress feels busy rather than meaningful.

I recently spoke with a VP who said her team was juggling six "focus priorities". By the time she listed them all, it was clear why results had stalled. They weren't short of energy, they were short of clarity. Each week brought new reports, new initiatives and cross functional updates, but little space for deep, outcome-driven work. The pace was high, but the impact was low.

When everything matters, nothing does. The best leaders narrow the field, focusing their team on what truly moves the business forward. Progress accelerates when people understand not just what to do, but what to ignore.

A principle that has served me well is simple: do what you say you will do. Commitments should carry weight. When people know your word means something, they stop checking up and start trusting. That trust creates freedom, freedom to move faster, make decisions and execute without hesitation. Consistency builds confidence, confidence builds trust and trust removes friction. When people can rely on you to deliver or raise issues early, they give you the freedom to lead.

As goals grow larger, I learned that vision only matters if people can see the path to reach it.

I remember one quarter where our team had already hit its target with three days to spare. We had just finished celebrating when my manager called to ask if we could find another €200,000 to help the wider organisation hit its number. I said I would try.

When I met the team the next morning, the room was still buzzing from the day before, proud, tired and ready to exhale. I knew the way I framed the request would decide whether we built frustration or momentum. Asking one Account Executive to find €200,000 would have felt impossible. Asking around 30 AEs to find roughly €6,000 each felt different. Still a stretch, but achievable. After explaining the situation and why it mattered, everyone agreed to try. We added everyone's name to a big visible board and celebrated each AE as they contributed their part.

Once we started getting closer to our new goal and achieving it felt possible, energy replaced fatigue and ownership replaced pressure. By the end of the week, we had achieved it. That moment stayed with me. Clarity does not just guide execution, it transforms belief.

The strongest execution cultures are built on clarity, consistency and belief. Clarity about what matters, consistency in delivering it and belief that it can be done. Execution is not about speed for its own sake, it is about direction and discipline.

In the end, great execution is not about doing everything. It is about doing the right things well, finishing what you start and creating enough belief that people want to keep going. The leaders who do this best are not the loudest or the fastest. They are the ones who help their teams move what matters most.