Every personal productivity guru preaches the importance of goal-setting. But of you’re like me, your problem isn’t a lack of goals. It’s a lack of time.

I often feel like I have too many goals, all clamoring for my time. Setting all those goals becomes counterproductive. Rather than wasting my time drawing up yet more goals, I should be getting things done.

Too often, productivity becomes an excuse to fiddle with the tools of productivity rather than simply being productive. It’s like the hoarder whose desk is a mess because it’s covered with books on how to organize one’s life!

Don’t focus on what you have to get done; instead focus on optimizing how you allocate your time.

You only have so many hours in a day. If you clearly define how you want to spend those precious hours, you can focus your efforts on whatever really matters for you.

Like investing for retirement, goals matter, but allocation is how you get there.