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Hi Reader,

On one of my morning walks this week, I came across a rock with a quote painted on it:

“Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does.” W. James

And this inspired today's email because the way you prioritize makes a huge difference in how you handle deadlines.

Because the quickest path to overwhelm isn’t a full schedule… It’s a schedule where everything feels equally important.

And the past months reminded me of that in a very real way.

With the start of a new MBA semester, my inbox fills up quickly with deadlines:

👉 readings
👉 discussion posts
👉 tests
👉 team assignments
👉 prep work
👉 group presentation

Each subject brings its own avalanche, and while I like snow, I don't like it coming crashing down on me 😏

Some deadlines stand out. Others hide quietly in the course outline until...they suddenly matter (I'm sure you know that feeling when talking about deadlines).

Like the classic:

“Submit the group paper by X date.”

At first glance, it seems like you have plenty of time. So you focus on other “urgent” things first.

But to deliver that group paper, you actually have to:

1. finalize the topic
2. meet with your group
3. divide roles and responsibilities
4. collect research
5. write the analysis
6. edit the final document
7. submit it on time

Preferably without pulling an all-nighter or creating unnecessary stress on your team.
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That’s not one step. That’s seven!

And that’s where so many people get stuck.

They look at the big deadline… but forget about the dozens of micro-deadlines hiding underneath it.

And I'm sorry to bring the bad news, but your future overwhelm isn’t caused by the big task, it’s caused by ignoring the small steps leading up to it.

The same applies outside of university:

• launching a project
• planning an event
• preparing for a performance review
• submitting a grant
• even organizing your home

It all comes down to one thing:

Setting priorities before priorities are set for you.

Here’s the tricky part (and you know I’ll always be honest with you):

Sometimes we trick ourselves into thinking we’re prioritizing when we’re actually procrastinating.

If you catch yourself saying:

• “Let me clean my desk first…”
• “I need to get my inbox to zero or I can’t focus…”
• “I’ll start once I reorganize this…”

…you might not be prioritizing (and I'm sure that more than one person reading this can relate 😅).

You might be avoiding.

And if last week’s email on procrastination resonated with you, this is your friendly nudge to pause and ask:

“Is this truly a priority? Or is this me trying to delay something that feels uncomfortable?”

So here’s your simplicity practice for the week:

1. Look at your deadlines. All of them. Even the tiny ones.

2. Break them into small steps. No step is too small. If it takes 10 minutes, write it down.

3. Create micro-deadlines. This reduces stress, improves quality, and avoids last-minute chaos.

4. Ask yourself honestly: “What matters most today?

Not someday.
Not eventually.
Today.

And next week, we’ll take it one level deeper… because your planner is NOT your to-do list (and once you understand the difference, planning gets so much easier).

In the meantime...Act as if what you do makes a difference.

Because it does.

Sending you clarity from Canada 🍁

Peggy

xo