Stop Letting Your Calendar Control You: 5 Calendar Management Tips
If you’re like most professionals I work with, your calendar looks like a game of Tetris - blocks of meetings shoved together, back-to-back, with no room to think, take “bio breaks”, or actually get work done.
And yet somehow, the days still end with to-do lists unfinished and your energy zapped.
Let’s fix that.
Because your calendar shouldn’t just be a meeting log. It should be a tool that works for you – not against you. Your calendar should protect your time, reflect your priorities, and give you the space and time to show up as your best self (not just your most overbooked self).
Here are 5 calendar management strategies I actually use and teach to help high-performing women like you take back control:
1. Protect your time like it’s your paycheck
Time is your most valuable asset. Once it’s gone, you don’t get it back.
And yet—how many times have you looked at your calendar and wondered “how did my day get hijacked like this?”
You need to build guardrails. Not because you're unavailable or selfish but because you're clear on what matters.
Schedule focus time. Block your lunch. Make space for those 15-minute email catch-up breaks. You deserve uninterrupted work time and time to reflect, rest, and think creatively.
Pro Tip: Start each week by identifying your top 3 priorities (remember my Revenue Generating Priorities Method?) then block time first for those. Everything else gets scheduled after.
2. Block time for admin work (before someone else takes it)
Here’s something I learned in corporate the hard way: If your calendar looks open, people will assume your time is available.
But here’s the thing… It’s not. That open space between back to back meetings? That was your time to catch up on emails, write that follow up email, or even sneak in a snack.
You’re not free during that open block. You just haven’t scheduled your own priorities yet.
Use calendar blocks to defend the invisible work that keeps everything moving:
Emails
Slack responses
Prepping for that Thursday presentation
Lunch (yes, lunch deserves a recurring block)
Real Talk: I once had a colleague schedule a brainstorming session during a pediatrician appointment. Why? Because my calendar showed a two-hour gap. Lesson learned: always make sure your personal calendar coincides with your work calendar.
3. Set working hours (because you’re allowed to have them)
You do not need to be available 24/7.
In most calendar systems (Outlook, Google), you can set your working hours so colleagues won’t book time with you outside of your preferred schedule. Whether you're logging off at 4:30 to do daycare pickup or you're just not a morning person, own your boundaries.
Bonus: This is also a subtle way to shift culture. If you work across timezones, this will ensure your international colleagues know when you are online vs unavailable.
4. Assume your calendar Is public
Did you know that your work calendar might be visible to your manager, team, or HR?
Be smart about how you label events. “Doctor appointment” is fine. “Emergency therapy session because I’m burned out and crying before work every day” …might be too much detail.
If you're blocking time for personal reasons (and you should!), keep it neutral:
“Personal Appointment”
“Focus Block”
“DNB (Do Not Book)
“Ask before scheduling”
5. You can say NO to meetings
Every meeting on your calendar costs you time and energy (and not every meeting deserves that).
It’s okay to:
Decline a meeting if it doesn’t need you
Ask for the agenda before accepting
Propose an async update instead of a live call
Here are a few scripts to help you do this with professionalism and confidence:
📝 Template 1:
”Hey [Name], I have a conflict at the time we’re meeting this week. Would you be open to sending a recap via email afterward?”📝 Template 2:
”Hey [Name], can you share the agenda for the meeting ahead of time? My goal is to make sure I come prepared to make the best use of our time.”📝 Template 3:
”Hey [Name], I have a competing priority I need to action on at the same time as our meeting. Can we reschedule or connect async via email instead?”
Lastly, please remember that managing your calendar is not selfish. It’s strategic. It’s smart. It’s necessary. You’re doing hard, important work (both at work and at home) and you deserve a schedule that reflects that.
So next time you feel the calendar chaos creeping in, come back to this: time is your most valuable asset. Make sure you are the one in charge of spending it wisely.
