Most leaders spend 23+ hours in meetings every week.
Behind closed doors, that’s costing Fortune 500 firms $60 million per year.
But the hidden drain is much bigger—on your time, energy, and career.

One stat that shocked me: After every meeting interruption, it takes 23 minutes to get back to deep work.

This isn’t just about lost hours—it’s about missing out on visibility, growth, and delivering your best work.

If you’re drowning in meetings, you’re not alone. Here’s what’s really at stake:

If you’re drowning in meetings, you’re not alone. Here’s what’s really at stake:
1. Strategic work gets pushed to late nights
↳ Leading to invisible burnout—chronic exhaustion others often miss
2. Your best thinking happens in rushed fragments
↳ The result? Lower-quality contributions when it matters most
3. Executive presence takes a hit
↳ You may seem distracted or unprepared, simply because you’re stretched too thin

How high-performers reclaim their calendars:
✅ Set a personal “meeting ROI” filter
↳ Before saying yes, ask: Will this move my strategy or visibility forward?

✅ Block focused 90-minute deep work sessions
↳ Research shows that’s the minimum for real progress on complex work

✅ Create a “meeting alternatives” doc
↳ List what could be done in email, Slack, or with pre-recorded updates

✅ Use the “decline with value” approach
↳ “Can’t attend, but here’s my input…” or “Could I join for the 15 minutes on X?”

One of my clients was triple-booked all day, every day. She used my Meeting Makeover framework, which includes the decision tree below, to open up 4-8 hours of deep work time every week and got promoted to GM shortly afterward.

Bottom line: You don’t need more hours in the day.

You need the courage to protect the right hours.