The Power of Power Hour
Unlock your hidden productivity with the Power Hour — a simple tactic to finally tackle the important tasks that always get sidelined
This week, I want to share a tactic I’ve started using on the advice of my productivity coach (yep, I have one of those). It’s called the Power Hour, and it has already made a massive difference in how I handle my workload and projects.
As someone who loves diving into various creative projects — whether it’s related to my startup Nitron or writing articles for Medium — I’ve often found myself in a productivity trap: always focusing on what’s urgent, and leaving important yet non-urgent work on the backburner.
The Eisenhower Matrix: A Quick Refresher
In the world of productivity, there’s a concept called the Eisenhower Matrix. The idea is simple: we split work into four categories:
- Urgent and Important (Do it now)
- Important but Not Urgent (Schedule it)
- Urgent but Not Important (Delegate it)
- Not Urgent and Not Important (Delete it)
The challenge for me (and many of us, I’m sure) comes with the “Important but Not Urgent” category. I’ve got a few different projects in that zone, whether it’s expanding my startup or creating new content. But because the urgent stuff screams louder, those projects often get sidelined.
Introducing the Power Hour
Recently, my productivity coach suggested a strategy called Power Hour, and it’s been a game changer. Here’s how it works:
- Every morning, right after breakfast and my first cup of coffee, I dedicate one uninterrupted hour to focus exclusively on “Important but Not Urgent” tasks.
- No emails, no notifications, no distractions. This hour is solely for the projects that matter most to me in the long run but don’t have a looming deadline.
For instance, even if I’ve got a big deadline for a sponsored project coming up the next day, I’m not allowed to touch it during Power Hour. Instead, I’ll work on longer-term goals, such as developing new strategies for Nitron or planning out my upcoming blog posts.
How Power Hour Changed My Workflow
It’s only been two weeks since I started doing this, but the results have been incredible. I’ve made huge progress on an exciting new project (I’ll share more on that next week), and here’s the best part: nothing truly urgent has fallen through the cracks.
I’m also starting to see how applying this strategy could help me in other areas, like working on my next article series or even setting aside time to read those books that have been sitting on my shelf for months.
Final Thoughts: Embrace the Hour
I’m excited to see where this Power Hour practice takes me over the next few weeks, and I highly recommend giving it a shot. The beauty of it is that it forces you to make time for the things that really matter but usually get pushed aside.
That’s it for now — I’ll report back soon with updates! Have a great week, and here’s to making progress on the stuff that matters!
