Prioritization Lessons I’ve Learned as an EA (And Why They Matter More Than Ever)

I’ve been an Executive Assistant long enough to know this: our days rarely go the way we plan. Something urgent shows up, something critical shifts, someone needs “five” minutes.

Reading the McChrystal Group piece on prioritization reminded me just how much of our role lives inside that constant recalibration. Not in the spotlight. Not with a C-suite title. But in the space where decisions get sorted and time gets protected.

And honestly, nobody understands that balance the way EAs do.

We See the Whole Board

We’re in a unique position. We see both the micro-tasks and the bigger goals. When we choose what gets attention first, we aren’t just organizing calendars. We’re making sure the right fires get put out and the right opportunities get protected.

A lot of prioritization simply looks like asking better questions:

• Does this support the bigger goal?
  
  
  

• Is this urgent, or just loud?
  
  
  

• Who really needs to be involved here?

Half the job is context. The other half is judgment.

Tools Help, But Discipline Matters More

Most of us use multiple systems to track commitments: calendars, project boards, shared docs, personal notes. The magic isn’t in the tools. It’s in the discipline to keep them updated, reviewed, and aligned.

Prioritization isn’t a one-time list, it’s a living process.

Saying “No” (Gracefully) Is a Skill

We all know that feeling when someone tries to bypass priorities with urgency.
Learning to say:

“No, but here’s what we can do,”

is stewardship.

When we protect space for deep work, preparation, and recovery, leaders do better work and teams function better. That doesn’t make us powerful. It makes us responsible.

Clear Communication Makes Everything Easier

One of the biggest gifts we give the people around us is clarity. Turning scattered data into something structured reduces stress for everyone.

Short briefs.
Simple summaries.
Direct next steps.

Those things look small on paper, but they’re enormous in practice.

We Don’t Just Manage Time. We Protect People.

We protect:

• rest

• family time

• mental space

• thinking room

Because leadership without those things burns out. And when leadership burns out, everyone feels it.

We’re Quiet Teachers, Whether We Realize It or Not

EAs rarely get credit for shaping prioritization cultures. But we absolutely do.

By modeling calm instead of panic.
By encouraging planning instead of reactivity.
By helping leaders pause long enough to think.

Not loudly.
Not publicly.
But every day, behind the scenes.

A Final Thought

If prioritization feels exhausting some days, that’s because it is. We are balancing competing needs from the people we care about, while trying to maintain our own sanity.

But we also have something rare: vantage point and trust.

And when we use both with intention, everybody wins.