I was driving to the office the other morning, coffee in hand, when a podcast episode caught my attention: Kevin O'Leary: This $28 Habit Is Keeping You Poor! from The Diary of a CEO (watch it here). In it, Shark Tank investor Kevin O’Leary shared a powerful story about Steve Jobs – a story that, as an executive coach, immediately struck a chord.
O’Leary recalled working with Jobs in the 1990s and described him as unlike any other business icon he’s encountered. Jobs, he said, was obsessively focused on one thing: the signal – the few critical priorities that truly moved the needle – while ruthlessly blocking out everything else: the noise.
This wasn’t productivity hackery or minimalist mythmaking. It was a performance discipline. Jobs defined “signal” as the top three to five most important things that needed to be accomplished in the next 18 hours – high-leverage, mission-critical actions. Everything outside of those? That was “the noise” – distractions, low-value tasks, and the illusion of progress that often fills our days.
As I listened, I realized: I’ve seen this dynamic play out in nearly every executive I coach. We live in an age of hyper-responsiveness. Emails, meeting invites, Slack messages, phone notifications – we react to all of it, instantly. We become masters of responsiveness but lose our grip on intentionality. Like many of my clients, I too have caught myself slipping into performative busyness – doing things that look productive or please others but aren’t truly impactful.
The truth is, most leaders aren’t overwhelmed because they have too much to do. They’re overwhelmed because they haven’t firmly decided what matters most. As one leadership expert put it, “Clarity and focus are the antidotes to overwhelm. It’s not about doing more – it’s about doing what matters most.”
In other words: If everything is important, nothing is.
So how do we, as senior leaders, cut through the noise and find our signal? In this article, we’ll explore what that means – starting with the Steve Jobs example – and then dig into why staying focused is so difficult in today’s leadership environment. Finally, we’ll cover five high-performance habits to help you anchor your attention on what truly matters… and a self-diagnostic to assess how much of your leadership time is signal – and how much is noise.
Why Modern Leaders Struggle to Focus on the Signal in a Fast-Paced World
If focusing on the signal is so crucial, why do even experienced leaders find it difficult today?
The answer lies in the realities of modern leadership: unprecedented speed, digital overload, and expanding responsibilities. In short, the noise has never been louder.
Below are five major reasons leaders lose sight of the signal—and how each one contributes to overwhelm, distraction, and underperformance.
1. Information and Notification Overload
We operate in a hyper-connected world.
Research shows that knowledge workers spend 28% of their week on email and 20% searching for information—leaving less than half their time for meaningful, deep work.
Constant pings from Slack, email, and phone notifications fracture focus. After each interruption, it takes more than 20 minutes to refocus. Without strong digital boundaries, everything starts to feel urgent—when in reality, very little truly is.
2. The Always-On, Always-Available Culture
What was once marketed as “increased efficiency” now breeds burnout.
Many executives feel pressure to be reachable 24/7, respond instantly, and attend every meeting—to prove commitment.
But that pressure leads to reactive leadership. Your time is no longer driven by strategic intent—it’s dictated by the latest message, fire drill, or request.
As HBR aptly puts it: “If you don’t prioritize your life, someone else will.”
Unless leaders proactively design their focus, other people’s priorities will run their day.
3. Complexity and Scope Creep
Senior leaders today wear many hats—managing multiple projects, regions, or even global teams. With that comes scope creep: the subtle accumulation of “just one more thing.”
Urgent issues—client escalations, supply chain hiccups, people problems—can hijack entire days.
Without a system for triaging requests, leaders can spend all day firefighting noise instead of advancing their signal work, like strategy, decision-making, or team development.
4. The Seduction of “Busy = Important”
There’s a subtle ego boost in being busy.
In many organizations, the busiest leader is seen as the most committed. But “busyness as a badge of honor” is deceptive.
It’s easy to confuse activity with progress.
Psychologists note that high-achievers often default to being the fixer, the hero, the doer—even when it’s not the highest use of their time.
Saying “yes” to everything may feel virtuous, but it often stems from:
A lack of clear priorities
Poor boundary-setting
The desire to please or prove worth
This creates a culture of performative busyness, where looking busy becomes more important than actually being effective.
5. Emotional Comfort in Noise
It sounds counterintuitive—but noise can be a form of comfort.
Tackling signal work—the big bets, creative thinking, long-term strategy—is hard. It requires solitude, risk, and emotional resilience. It’s far easier to knock off 50 emails or sit through a low-stakes meeting than to engage in deep, uncertain work.
Busywork offers dopamine. Signal work offers meaning—but it demands courage.
The Takeaway: Clarity Is the Antidote to Chaos
All of these forces—overload, urgency, complexity, ego, fear—make it harder to emulate the Steve Jobs level of clarity.
But that’s exactly why today’s leaders need to build intentional practices to reclaim their focus.
“The noise begins to fade when you are clear about your why and what truly matters.”
—Debbie Peterson, Leadership Coach
When you know your purpose, you can filter out the distractions and say no with confidence.
In the next section, we’ll break down five high-performance habits to help you stay attuned to your signal—and cut through the noise, once and for all.
5 High-Performance Habits to Focus on the Signal (Over the Noise)
Focusing isn't a one-time decision—it’s a leadership discipline. These five high-performance habits will help you continually orient your time and energy toward the signal (high-impact work) and away from the noise (low-value distractions).
1. Define Your North Star and Vital Priorities
Clarity is your starting point.
If you haven’t clearly articulated what truly matters—for your role, your team, or your business—you can’t filter effectively.
Define your North Star: the core purpose or long-term vision that guides your decisions.
Identify your top 3–5 strategic priorities for the quarter—those that dwarf everything else.
Then, ask daily: What 1–2 actions today will move those priorities forward?
Steve Jobs famously slashed Apple’s product line to focus on a few excellent offerings. He treated his own to-do list the same way—just a few mission-critical tasks, relentlessly executed.
Pro tip: Write down your top 3 priorities every morning. Treat them as non-negotiable anchors in your schedule.
If you or your team have 10 “top priorities,” that’s a red flag.
When everything is a priority, nothing is.
2. Practice Ruthless Prioritization – and Graceful “Nos”
Even with clarity, noise creeps in. That’s why high performers build the muscle of real-time prioritization.
Ask constantly: Is this aligned with my strategic goals—or is it a distraction?
Say “no” (or “not now”) to requests, meetings, or tasks that dilute your impact.
Frame your no as protecting space for the signal, not rejecting the person.
As Greg McKeown wrote in Essentialism:
“The path of the non-essentialist is the undisciplined pursuit of more. The antidote is the disciplined pursuit of less.”
One CEO I coach keeps a “Stop Doing” list beside their to-do list. It’s a reminder that every yes to noise is a no to signal.
Reframe busyness as a boundary problem—not a badge of honor.
3. Leverage Your Unique Value: Only Do What Only You Can Do
Ask yourself: What are the activities that only I can do in this role?
Focus your time on work that leverages your unique authority, skills, and impact.
Delegate, automate, or eliminate everything else.
Think of your tasks in value tiers:
$10/hour work (scheduling, formatting)
$100/hour work (routine management)
$1,000/hour work (strategic planning, team development)
$10,000/hour work (vision, investor conversations, critical decisions)
If you’re a senior leader spending hours in email triage or formatting decks, you’re likely operating below your highest contribution zone.
Delegation isn’t dumping—it’s maximizing organizational efficiency.
It also creates growth for others and prevents you from being the bottleneck.
The more you operate in your “$10K zone,” the more value you generate.
4. Schedule Signal Time—and Guard It Fiercely
Open your calendar: how much of it reflects your true priorities?
For most leaders, their week is reactive—filled with back-to-back meetings and shallow tasks.
Flip the script.
Block time for strategic, high-focus work—and protect it like your most important meeting.
Turn off notifications. Close apps. Go offline if needed.
Let your team know you’re in “do-not-disturb” mode for deep work.
Leaders like Jeff Bezos structure their days to support energy and focus:
High-cognitive tasks in the morning
No heavy meetings after 1 PM
Design your day around your peak focus hours.
Also consider:
Meeting-free days or afternoons
One “maker day” per week for strategic thinking, planning, or writing
Every hour spent on signal work compounds value. Every hour lost to noise drains it.
5. Reflect and Realign Often
Focusing on the signal isn’t a one-time calibration—it’s a weekly practice.
End each day with 10 minutes of reflection:
What did I do today that mattered most? What crept in as noise?Do a weekly check-in:
What were my wins? Did they align with my key priorities?
Some leaders conduct quarterly calendar audits, tracking time vs. outcomes. Patterns emerge:
Do you do your best thinking in the morning—but spend it in email?
Is a recurring meeting consistently low value?
Adjust ruthlessly.
Reflection creates self-awareness. Realignment prevents drift.
Also, ask for feedback from your team or coach:
“What low-value work do you see me doing that I might not notice?”
Clarity isn’t a trait—it’s a discipline.
When practiced consistently, it becomes your edge.
These five habits aren’t just productivity tips—they’re leadership practices that separate the reactive from the truly strategic. When applied consistently, they create a feedback loop that reinforces clarity, focus, and high-impact execution. Defining what matters, saying no to distractions, leveraging your unique value, protecting deep work time, and regularly realigning your efforts—all of these build a leadership rhythm that cuts through the chaos. It’s not about perfection or rigid control; it’s about committing to what only you can do and creating space for it to thrive. The result is more than just better time management—it’s a more purposeful, empowered way of leading. Up next, a self-diagnostic tool to help you assess how much of your leadership time is currently spent on signal—and how much is lost to noise.
Self-Diagnostic: 30 Questions to Gauge Your Signal vs. Noise
Grab a pen and be honest with yourself. Here are 30 yes-or-no questions, organized into 10 key categories, to help you evaluate how well you’re focusing on what truly matters. Each category has three questions. If you find yourself answering “no” or “not sure” to many of these, that may indicate areas where noise is creeping in. Use this as a starting point to pinpoint where you can sharpen your focus.
Clarity of Purpose and Vision
Do I have a clear, written vision or “North Star” for my role or business that guides my decisions?
Can I articulate the top 2-3 long-term outcomes I am working towards right now?
When new opportunities or requests arise, do I evaluate them against whether they serve my defined vision and goals?
Priority Setting
Do I identify my top priorities (the critical few tasks or objectives) at the start of each day or week?
Am I confident that if I accomplish those top 3 priorities, the day/week will be a success (even if I must ignore other tasks)?
Do I regularly communicate my key priorities to my team, so they understand what matters most (and why)?
Time Management and Boundaries
Do I block out time on my calendar for high-value work (strategic thinking, key projects) and protect it from interruption?
Have I established specific “focus hours” or “meeting-free” periods in my week for deep work?
Do I feel in control of my schedule, rather than constantly at the mercy of meetings and urgent demands?
Delegation and Empowerment
Do I routinely delegate tasks that someone else could do, even if I can do them faster or better?
Are there tasks I’m doing that are below my pay grade or outside my unique expertise that I haven’t delegated yet?
Do I trust my team to handle critical tasks in their areas, without my constant involvement or micromanaging?
Decision-Making and Saying No
Do I have clear criteria for what I say “yes” to, and do I politely decline requests that don’t meet those criteria?
When I’m invited to meetings or projects that aren’t closely aligned with my priorities, am I willing to say no or suggest an alternative?
Can I think of a recent example where I said “no” to something significant, in order to protect time for what mattered more?
Managing Distractions (Tech & Communication)
Do I control my communication channels (email, messaging, phone) rather than letting them control me (e.g., by turning off non-essential notifications or scheduling specific times to check email)?
Can I work for at least 30-60 minutes on an important task without checking email, messaging apps, or social media?
Do I avoid multitasking during meetings or focused work blocks (e.g., not constantly glancing at inboxes or texts)?
Meeting Discipline
Are the meetings on my calendar ones that truly require my presence and add value to my goals? (Or do I find myself in meetings thinking, “Why am I here?”)
Do I ensure meetings I run have a clear purpose, agenda, and end time, so they don’t meander or steal more time than necessary?
Have I eliminated or minimized recurring meetings that don’t clearly contribute to our objectives?
Proactivity vs. Reactivity
Do I start my day with a plan (proactive) rather than immediately diving into emails or fire-fighting (reactive)?
When unexpected issues or “fires” arise, do I triage them against my priorities, handling truly critical ones and deferring lesser ones?
Do I make time for strategic activities like planning, learning, and relationship-building before they become urgent needs?
Personal Energy Management
Do I prioritize sleep, exercise, and breaks so that I have the mental and physical energy to tackle important work when it matters most?
Am I able to step away from work and unplug at regular intervals (evenings, weekends, vacations) to recharge, knowing that rest enhances my focus when I return?
Do I notice when I’m spread too thin or nearing burnout, and take corrective action (like re-prioritizing, seeking support, or saying no)?
Continuous Improvement and Reflection
Do I regularly reflect on how I’m spending my time and whether it’s aligned with my priorities (e.g. through journaling or weekly reviews)?
Have I identified any habits or activities in my routine that are “time wasters” or low-value, and taken steps to reduce them?
Am I open to feedback from colleagues or coaches about my focus and effectiveness, and willing to adjust my habits accordingly?
Take a look at your responses. Patterns here can reveal your personal challenges with signal vs. noise. For instance, if you answered “no” to many questions in Delegation, you might be drowning in work that others could do – an opportunity to train and trust your team more. A lot of “no” answers in Managing Distractions may mean it’s time to institute stricter tech boundaries or focus practices. Use this diagnostic to target 1-2 areas for change. Remember, even small improvements (say, cutting two low-value meetings out of your week or delegating one recurring task) can free up significant bandwidth for high-impact leadership work.
Conclusion: Legacy, Clarity, and the Courage to Tune Out the Noise
In that podcast, Kevin O’Leary shared a simple but powerful lesson he learned directly from Steve Jobs: “Focus on the signal, O’Leary. Focus on the signal. That’s it.”
It sounds easy. But living that principle—day in, day out—as a leader? That takes vision, discipline, and courage. It takes the courage to say no when people expect yes. To stay anchored in your values when the world is pulling for your attention. To choose meaningful over visible, and purpose over pace.
In a world that rewards reactivity and glorifies busyness, clarity is a radical act. But consider this: What do you want your leadership legacy to be? Do you want to be remembered as someone who was always responsive—or someone who was truly impactful? The executive who answered every message instantly, or the one who set a powerful vision and made it real?
Steve Jobs captured this idea beautifully in his Stanford commencement address—a quote I keep pinned to my desk for the days when the noise gets loud:
“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice.”
That quote speaks to more than career choices—it speaks to how we lead. The noise comes in many forms: relentless tasks, performance optics, outdated metrics of success, other people’s agendas. But your signal—your inner voice, your values, your bold vision—is where your leadership truly begins.
Every time you say yes to the signal and no to the noise, you move closer to the leader you were meant to be: clear, focused, and deeply impactful.
In the end, your legacy won’t be defined by how much you did—but by what you chose to focus on. So choose wisely. Tune out the noise. Follow the signal. Build a life and a body of work that actually matters.
If this message resonates and you’re ready to sharpen your leadership clarity, I invite you to explore Mastering Leadership XED. Our executive education programs are designed to help high-performing leaders cut through the noise, reclaim their time, and lead with precision, purpose, and measurable impact.