Adopt a CEO’s thinking schedule to spark breakthroughs

You glance at your calendar—another week filled end to end. Then you carve out two 30-minute slots labeled “thinking time,” color-coded in bright orange. When Tuesday morning arrives, you close your office door, silence your phone, and plant your feet on the ground. You pull up your notes on that big project and ask, “What if we tried it this way?” Your mind stretches, and the door that felt shut yesterday now swings wide open.

On the first Friday of the month, you take a four-hour retreat: coffee in hand, a fresh notebook, and no Zoom calls. The dull hum of the air-conditioning fades into the background as you reflect on progress, sketch new goals, and map next steps. You’re surprised by how much clarity you gain in just a few focused hours.

Research on time blocking confirms that deliberate, uninterrupted thinking sessions significantly boost creative output and strategic planning. Treat these sessions as sacred, and watch how your best ideas finally get the attention they deserve.

You begin by auditing your calendar to spot pockets of free time, then reserve two 30-minute slots weekly labeled “thinking time” and block a half-day each month for deep ideation. Make these meetings unbreakable, and you’ll start generating breakthrough actions instead of scrambling through chaos. Give it a try this week.