What Are You Prioritizing? - MAC103
What You Prioritize Is What You Grow
In your career—just like in life—whatever you prioritize is what takes root, grows, and ultimately defines your trajectory. Whether you’re intentional about it or not, your attention acts like sunlight and water: it nourishes certain parts of your professional life while leaving others to wither. Even worse is when you don’t make a conscious choice at all—when your career just “happens to you.” That passive approach can lead to years of drifting, missed opportunities, and invisible ceilings. So take a moment to reflect: what are you truly prioritizing right now? Is it visibility? Skill-building? Leadership? Or are you unconsciously prioritizing comfort, routine, or the path of least resistance? Because the answer to that question is shaping your future whether you realize it or not.
Alignment Isn’t Optional—It’s Essential
This kind of prioritization—this optimization of where you direct your focus—doesn’t mean you stop putting effort into other areas of your role. Of course you’ll still deliver on your responsibilities. But when given a choice—when you have limited time, energy, or visibility—what do you lean into? More importantly, how does that focus align with your Career Vision (see https://managingacareer.com/102) and how does it align with your company’s goals? Because when your day-to-day priorities and your long-term goals don’t line up, you’ll feel it. It shows up as stagnation. As burnout. As growing frustration that no amount of “working harder” will fix. Misalignment creates drag in your career—alignment creates momentum.
Different Priorities, Different Trade-Offs
It’s important to recognize that not everyone is—or should be—prioritizing the same things at every stage of their life or career. Your current focus is often shaped by your personal context, responsibilities, and what you value most right now. For example, someone who prioritizes stability might choose low-risk, steady assignments that keep them securely in their current role. That’s not laziness—it might be the smart move for someone managing heavy responsibilities outside of work, like caring for young kids or aging parents. Someone who prioritizes growth is always looking for stretch roles, pushing past their comfort zone, and seeking out skill-building opportunities. But taken too far, this can lead to burnout or even career dead ends if the growth isn’t guided by strategy.
Others may prioritize recognition, opting for high-profile assignments, even if it means working longer hours and living with the pressure of being in the spotlight. Meanwhile, those who prioritize money might take on roles or projects that are financially rewarding, but ultimately draining or disconnected from their passions. Some professionals prioritize influence, focusing on roles that expand their network and informal power within an organization. Others may lean into flexibility, taking roles that allow them to control their schedule, even if that slows their upward trajectory. None of these choices are inherently wrong—but they all come with trade-offs. The key is to make those choices consciously, and ensure they support—not sabotage—your long-term vision.
Two Paths, Two Outcomes
Let’s look at two professionals working at the same company: we'll call them Maya and Jordan. On paper, they’re equals—both mid-level managers with solid reputations and strong work ethics. But beneath the surface, their careers are unfolding in very different ways.
Maya has taken the time to define her Career Vision. She knows she wants to move into a strategic leadership role within the next two years. Because of that clarity, she filters every opportunity through a simple lens: Does this get me closer to the leader I want to become? If a project offers exposure to senior leadership, requires cross-functional collaboration, or ties directly to company strategy, she’s all in. But when she’s asked to join projects that are time-consuming but don’t move her forward—like internal task forces or repetitive ops work—she diplomatically declines or negotiates her role to stay focused on her long term plan. That doesn’t mean she’s selfish. It means she’s intentional. And leadership has noticed. Her name is now coming up in succession planning meetings.
Jordan, on the other hand, hasn’t set a clear vision for his future. He’s known as someone who can be counted on—a dependable team player who will roll up his sleeves and help wherever needed. His inbox is always full. His calendar is packed. His colleagues love working with him. But he’s also exhausted. Despite all his effort, Jordan’s career growth has stalled. He’s been passed over for stretch assignments and promotions more than once. He doesn’t understand why—after all, he’s working harder than ever. But the truth is, he’s prioritizing being helpful over being strategic. His focus is everywhere, so his impact isn’t felt anywhere. And that misalignment is wearing him down.
A Simple Framework to Realign Your Focus
If you’re starting to wonder whether you’re more like Maya or Jordan, that’s a good thing. Awareness is the first step toward realignment. Here’s a simple framework you can use to check yourself: at the start of each week, take ten minutes to list your top five tasks or commitments. For each one, ask two questions:
- Does this task move me closer to my Career Vision?
- Does this task create value that is visible and aligned with my company’s strategic goals?
If the answer is “no” to both, that task might be a drain on your momentum. It’s not about abandoning your responsibilities—it’s about understanding which activities are investments and which are just busywork. When you consistently prioritize high-alignment work, even in small increments, you start to build career gravity. You’ll find yourself pulled toward more of the right opportunities—and less reliant on being lucky or liked to get ahead.
What to Do with the “Wrong Work”
Let’s be honest—there will always be tasks that don’t align directly with your career vision but still matter to the company. These assignments might not elevate your visibility, develop key skills, or move you toward your goals—but they still need to get done. The trick is learning how to manage them without letting them hijack your focus. Start by asking: Can this be delegated? Often, someone on your team may benefit from the experience or visibility that the task provides. Delegating isn’t about offloading—it’s about creating development opportunities for others while protecting your own strategic focus.
If it can’t be delegated, ask: Can I complete this efficiently—without overengineering it? Not every deliverable needs to be a masterpiece. Be professional, be timely, but don’t overinvest in low-impact work. You can also batch similar low-priority tasks together and knock them out in a focused sprint, leaving more of your mental bandwidth for high-value work. Finally, consider whether you can reframe or reposition the task: is there a way to tie it into a broader initiative that does align with your goals? Smart professionals don’t avoid misaligned work—they minimize its cost and maximize their time spent on what truly matters.
You Become Known for What You Consistently Do
Every time you say yes to a task, you’re not just managing your workload—you’re shaping your professional brand. Over time, people begin to associate you with the type of work you consistently take on. If you always jump in to fix operational fires, you’ll be seen as the firefighter. If you’re the go-to person for behind-the-scenes execution, that becomes your lane. And if you focus on visible, strategic, cross-functional work, you’ll be perceived as a leader who thinks big and delivers at scale.
That perception matters—not just for promotions, but for the types of opportunities people bring your way. It’s not just about being competent. It’s about being recognized for the kind of impact you want to have. So when you choose where to focus, you’re also choosing what kind of career you're building, and what kind of future others will imagine for you.
Your Weekly Focus Check-In
To stay aligned, you don’t need a career retreat—you just need a moment of clarity. Carve out five quiet minutes each week and ask yourself these five questions:
- What did I spend the majority of my time on last week?
- Did that work move me closer to my Career Vision or just keep me busy?
- What’s one task I’m carrying that someone else could take on and benefit from?
- What’s one opportunity I could say “yes” to that would stretch me in the right direction?
- If someone looked at my calendar, what would they assume I’m optimizing for?
You don’t need perfect answers—just honest ones. Because once you start recognizing the gap between where your time goes and where you want your career to go, you can begin to close it, week by week. And that’s how long-term career momentum is built: in the small decisions, made consistently.
Three Moves to Reclaim Your Career Focus This Week
If you’re ready to stop letting your career “just happen” to you, here are three steps you can take this week to realign your focus:
- Audit Your Calendar. Look at last week’s meetings and projects. Highlight anything that didn’t contribute to your goals or your growth. That’s your first clue for where boundaries need to tighten.
- Say No Once. Find one task, meeting, or request that doesn’t align with your vision—and practice the art of a professional “no.” Decline it, delegate it, or deflect it. Start small if you need to, but start.
- Choose One Priority That Matters. Pick a single high-value action that supports both your Career Vision and your company’s goals. Put it on your calendar. Protect it. Give it your best energy.
Your career will always demand your time. The question is whether you’re spending that time building momentum—or just maintaining motion.
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