Focus on This

Full Focus
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Start loving Mondays! Join Marissa & Joel each week for practical strategies, weekly rhythms, and honest insights to help you slow down, show up, and live intentionally. Based on the proven Full Focus methods used in the Full Focus Planner™, each episode offers habits, mindset shifts, and real support so you can quiet the noise, follow through, and build a life that feels good to live. Ready to focus on what really matters?

  1. 3d ago ·  Video

    How to Figure Out What to Do Today

    There’s more than one way to think about time when it comes to productivity. The Greeks had two words for it. Chronos is clock time: the minutes and hours ticking by. Kairos is more about timing: the window of opportunity when action matters most. If you focus only on squeezing more into the minutes and hours, you’ll miss what the moment is calling for. In this episode, Joel and Marissa wrap up their series on the Priority Filter with its third and final question: What matters now? They unpack the four elements that make something relevant today (including why urgency deserves a say but shouldn’t run the day). If your Daily Big 3 keeps colliding with a chaotic calendar, this one’s for you. Key Takeaways Hope Is Not an Effective Strategy. When you start the day with a long list of tasks and a full calendar, you’re treating hope like a planning strategy: making as much progress as you possibly can and hoping it all works out. It rarely does. Real planning means taking stock of your constraints and intentionally prioritizing (or renegotiating) accordingly.Seize the Window. Every moment (and every season) comes with its own advantages, whether that’s face time on an in-office day, a quiet week while your team is on PTO, momentum after a big win, or lovely weather begging you to come outside. Windows of opportunity are always temporary—don’t miss them.Know the Ground You’re Gaining. Positive stakes are just as important as negative ones. Ask what progress you’re trying to create. Let your Quarterly Big 3 inform your Weekly Big 3, and your Weekly Big 3 inform your Daily Big 3. Think about where you want to go, not just what you want to avoid.Give Urgency a Say. Consequences are real, and sometimes a fire deserves your attention. So consider what’s at stake. But remember that the fallout is often more bearable than you realize and not always worth readjusting your plan for. The key is to give urgency a say without letting it run the day.Ask One Question Daily. Every day has unique demands and opportunities. Bring the whole Priority Filter together with one question: What is mine to do that delivers results and matters now?This episode was produced by Sarah Vorhees Wendel of VW Sound

    How to Figure Out What to Do Today

  2. Nov 2 ·  Video

    What's Actually Worth Your Time?

    Not all work is created equal. Some of what fills your days is gold: high-value work that directly drives results. The rest falls along a spectrum, from full-on “fake work” to lower-leverage work that feels productive but simply isn’t as valuable. Today, Joel and Marissa get into how to pan for gold as they turn to the second consideration of the Priority Filter: ROI. They unpack what it looks like to weigh ROI at work and at home, and why a results-oriented mindset can help you cut back the activities that have overgrown your days. You can get the same (or better!) results in less time, but only if you know which results matter and how to achieve them most effectively. With that lens, prioritizing becomes a lot simpler. Key Takeaways You’re Paid for Outcomes. The doings that fill your days—meetings, emails, reports, and feedback—are activities. Your organization isn’t paying you for those finished tasks, no matter how hard you worked. You’re paid to create results: outcomes like customer satisfaction, conversion, and trust.Clarify Which Results You Own. Unless you’re in sales or marketing, the results you own might not be obvious. That means your first step is to figure out what a win looks like for your role. This might involve evaluating your job description, talking with your boss, or doing some deeper digging with the help of AI.Know What’s Most Important. You might have some obviously unimportant work in your role. But many things on your list likely add real value. The key: they don’t add equal value. Your job is to rank your work and spend your valuable time and skill on what’s most important.Low Leverage Can Feel Productive. Lower-leverage work can feel as responsible and productive as higher-leverage work. You’re solving problems—just ones that matter less. Give maintenance work its minimum viable dose; automate what you can. Investing less in low-leverage work frees you to invest more in high-leverage work.Find Your Personal ROI. The same principle applies at home. Most of us don’t slow down long enough to ask what we’re optimizing for right now—whether that’s health, connection, or peace. Get clear on the result you want, then choose what delivers it. Building a life you love living requires intention. Resources Take the Assessment: fullfocus.co/wsBS Jobs by David GraeberFake Work by Brent Peterson and Gaylan NielsonEverything Is Obvious by Duncan WattsThis episode was produced by Sarah Vorhees Wendel of VW Sound

    What's Actually Worth Your Time?

  3. Oct 26 ·  Video

    The Self-Awareness Advantage

    “Know thyself.” It’s ancient advice that still applies in the modern workplace. In this episode, Joel and Marissa continue unpacking The Priority Filter by considering how self-awareness serves you on the clock and why it’s a key consideration as you determine what you do today. They dig into personality, proficiency, and passion, and what each lens offers as you redesign your work to maximize your contribution. If you’ve ever wondered why your days feel so full of friction, there’s a good chance there’s misalignment between the work you do and who you are. It’s time to close the gap. Key Takeaways You’re Wired for Some Work. Your personality informs the work you’re suited to do—whether you’re detail-oriented or visionary, cautious or risk-tolerant, novelty-seeking or consistency-loving. These patterns help you notice the work that fits who you are.You’re Paid for Proficiency. There are some things you’re truly good at. They’re the skills people actually pay you for, shaped by your aptitudes and past experiences. If your proficiencies are underutilized in your current role, that’s an opportunity.Passion Can Fuel Momentum. When you’re energized by your work, it can drive your success. The danger is losing yourself in work that sparks your interest without leveraging your skill. If you’re passionate but not proficient, you have to let it go.Treat Assessments as Signposts. There are so many assessments you can try: WorkStyle, StrengthsFinder, Working Genius, Kolbe, Enneagram, and more. Even if they’re not completely accurate, they’re often directionally right. Take what fits and leave the rest.Ask for Outside Eyes. As you explore what seems true about you, involve other people—a spouse, friend, boss, or close colleague. Ask where they see your strengths and where you get stuck. Other people often notice patterns you miss.Be You All the Way. Working with the grain of who you are maximizes your effectiveness. You don’t have to be good at everything. Spend more time where you add value, and problem-solve for the gaps. Resources Take the Assessment: fullfocus.co/wsThis episode was produced by Sarah Vorhees Wendel of VW Sound

    The Self-Awareness Advantage

  4. Oct 19

    The Difference Between Busy and Productive

    You can work really hard on the wrong stuff. In fact, most people do. Unfortunately, work can look and feel productive without being productive. Most wasted effort happens because tasks pass two of the Priority Filter’s tests but fail the third. When that happens, you’re stuck in an overlap trap. In this episode, Joel and Marissa name the three overlap traps: Right Work, Wrong Time (YOU and ROI without NOW), the Comfort Zone (YOU and NOW without ROI), and the Delegation Trap (ROI and NOW without YOU). They share examples from work and home, explain why each trap pulls you in, and offer a way out. Key Takeaways Mind Your Timing. A task can fit your wiring and drive results yet still not be what this season calls for. Often, you’re avoiding something the moment requires because it’s stressful, difficult, or boring. Reassess the needs of right now, then schedule the other work for later.Motion Does Not Mean Results. The Comfort Zone holds work that’s yours and relevant but low leverage: the manager still doing individual contributor work, the perfect internal slide deck, the analysis with no endpoint. Delete or reduce this work, setting clear boundaries when you can’t eliminate it entirely.Don’t Do What Isn’t Yours. The Delegation Trap holds high-leverage, timely work that belongs to someone else. It usually sticks with you because it’s familiar, because you don’t trust others to meet your standard, or because you think there’s no one to hand it to (think again).You Have Delegation Options. When you think you can’t delegate, ask, “What would have to be true for this work to be done without me?” AI, bartering, horizontal delegation, renegotiation, and better processes can all take work off your plate.Be Militantly on Your Own Side. None of these traps looks like failure, so other people won’t spot them for you. Protecting your list and your calendar is your job, and the work at the center of the filter is where you make your highest contribution. Resources Take the Assessment: fullfocus.co/wsThis episode was produced by Sarah Vorhees Wendel of VW Sound

    The Difference Between Busy and Productive

  5. Oct 12

    How to Decide What to Do Today

    The average professional carries dozens of items on their to-do list, and not all of them are worth doing: you’re only doing them because someone asked, it caught your attention, you noticed it needed doing, or you’ve always done it. When our to-do lists are too long, we think working better and faster is the solution. But in truth, we need a shorter list. How can we get there? In this episode, Joel and Marissa walk through the Priority Filter, a simple Venn diagram of three overlapping circles: YOU (Is it uniquely yours to do?), ROI (Is it high leverage?), and NOW (Does it matter now?). They unpack each test, showing how the filter scales from your Daily Big Three to your annual goals and revealing where each WorkStyle is likely to get stuck. Then, they boil the whole model down to one question you can use every time you need to prioritize. Key Takeaways YOU: Your Wiring Matters. Just because you can doesn’t mean you should. Ask whether a task fits your wiring and truly belongs to you. Capability, habit, and a visible need are not good enough reasons to take it on.ROI: You’re Paid for Results. ROI asks whether the return on results is worth your investment of time, attention, and energy. Consider the results you’re paid to deliver. Which activities drive those results?NOW: Relevance Beats Urgency. What does this moment call for? Look at the full context: which deadlines are truly fixed, what snowballs if delayed, what gets you in trouble, what advances your goals, and what helps you perform at your best.WorkStyles Have Different Sticking Points. Givers need the YOU filter—clarifying what's really theirs to do. Achievers and Optimizers need to reassess ROI—whether that checkmark or slight improvement is really moving the needle. And Jugglers and Improvisers need to weigh the full context of now—asking what the moment calls for, rather than reacting to urgency or novelty.Memorize This Question. Write it in your planner and keep it top of mind: What’s mine to do that drives results and matters now? Return to it when you choose your Daily Big Three, during your Weekly Preview, when you set goals, and any time you’re stuck on what to do next. Resources Take the Assessment: fullfocus.co/wsThis episode was produced by Sarah Vorhees Wendel of VW Sound

    How to Decide What to Do Today

  6. Oct 5

    The Improviser: The Half-Life of a Good Idea

    The Improviser follows curiosity wherever it leads (usually leaving a trail of half-finished projects behind them). They’re creative problem-solvers who see connections nobody else sees, forge new paths when the standard approach isn’t working, and can produce extraordinary work when the stakes are high. The downside? Novelty, curiosity, and Shiny Object Syndrome can lead to procrastination, turning important commitments into avoidable, unnecessary emergencies. In this episode, Joel and Marissa unpack what makes the Improviser tick, why their curiosity is such an asset, and where it’s most likely to get them into trouble. Then they sit down with three Improvisers to hear how they’ve learned to add just enough structure to make the most of the way they’re wired. Key Takeaways Interest Is Your On Switch. If you’re an Improviser, curiosity can make you unstoppable. When something captures your attention, you’ll research deeper, make unexpected connections, and find solutions other people miss. When it doesn’t? Getting started can feel like pushing a car uphill. That’s why you probably have more than a few projects sitting at 60%, 70%, or 80% complete.Your Double-Edged Sword: Curiosity. Curiosity is what makes your work exceptional. You can follow an idea farther than most people, forge new paths, and solve problems that leave everyone else scratching their heads. But curiosity can also make you exhausted. You chase the new idea until the old commitment becomes an emergency, resist work that feels tedious, and disappear down rabbit holes while everything else fades from view.The Cost Compounds Over Time. When novelty and urgency keep running the show, everything starts getting delivered at the last minute. Eventually, other people stop trusting that you’ll follow through—and you may start doubting yourself, too. Worse, all those fires crowd out the exploratory work where you provide the most value. Build Structure That Creates Real Stakes. Fake deadlines probably won’t fool you. Instead, create external accountability. Commit to a deadline someone else is depending on. Build rhythms around other people. Use enough structure to keep your attention pointed in the right direction without suffocating the flexibility you need. The goal is to create conditions where your improvisation can shine.Let Your Priorities Direct Your Curiosity. Your interests will always provide new paths to explore. Priorities tell you which trails are worth following. Ask what’s uniquely yours to do, what will produce the highest return, and what matters right now. That filter lets you conserve your energy for the ideas that matter most—so your newest ideas don’t sideline your best ones. Special Thanks: To Jana P., Naomi C., and Tamia . for the generosity of their time and insight as episode interviewees. Resources Take the Assessment: fullfocus.co/wsThis episode was produced by Sarah Vorhees Wendel of VW Sound

    The Improviser: The Half-Life of a Good Idea

  7. Sep 28

    The Optimizer: The Fine Print of High Standards

    The Optimizer is quick to notice the gaps between what is and what could be, but they’re slower to recognize when finished work is good enough. They make sure the work gets done right, the first time. That’s a recipe for excellence, but also for exhaustion—often tied up with some unintentional self-shaming. In this episode, Joel and Marissa dive into what makes the Optimizer tick, why they’re a crucial part of our teams, and where they’re most likely to get stuck. Then they sit down with two Optimizers to talk about how it plays out at work and at home, and how they’re learning to work with the way they’re wired. Key Takeaways Optimizers Know About “Should.” If you’re an Optimizer, you know there’s a way the work should get done, and you’re committed to rising to the challenge. You spot the flaws before anyone else does and you’re always looking for ways to improve both your work and your life. You’re committed to continuous improvement—and your results reflect that.Your Double-Edged Sword: High Standards. Your high standards make you exceptional. Your work is done impressively well, you need almost no oversight, and you improve processes nobody else thought were broken. Those standards are also what leave you exhausted, refining long past the point of necessity and interpreting every flaw in the work as indicating a flaw in you.The Cost Compounds Over Time. Your standards never lower, so the relief of finishing never comes. You can’t prove yourself to yourself, so you can’t win the game you set up. Meanwhile, the people around you start feeling the strain of expectations they can’t meet, and the work loses the joy that made you care about doing it well.Ration Your Excellence. Right now, you’re probably applying one standard to work of wildly unequal value. Instead, decide which few tasks deserve such high refinement. For the rest, when it’s 95% done, it’s done. This week’s challenge: pick one low-leverage task, notice the gaps, and send it anyway.Let Your Priorities Do the Deciding. Clarify what’s uniquely yours, what drives results, and what matters now. That discernment allows you to identify where you should channel your excellence, and where you can cut yourself (and your team) some slack. Special Thanks: To Tina K. and Zoe L. for the generosity of their time and insight as episode interviewees. Resources Take the Assessment: fullfocus.co/wsThis episode was produced by Sarah Vorhees Wendel of VW Sound

    The Optimizer: The Fine Print of High Standards

  8. Sep 21

    The Juggler: The Gravity of Keeping Everything Airborne

    The Juggler is the person you hand something to and never think about again—but they’re also the person carrying a load nobody around them can fully see. The relentless capability of this WorkStyle powers the Juggler’s ability to hold more than most people can track and pivot on the turn of a dime, but it’s also powered by an isolating belief that “It’s all on me.” In this episode, Joel and Marissa dive into what makes the Juggler tick, why they’re a crucial part of our teams, and where they’re most likely to get stuck. Then they sit down with three Jugglers to talk about how it plays out at work and at home, and how they’re learning to work with the way they’re wired. Key Takeaways Jugglers Scan the Horizon. Being a Juggler means you’re always at the ready for whatever's coming next. You’re used to life coming at you fast, and you’ve always trusted yourself (and really, no one else) to handle it. Now, you’re not the only one counting on you—lots of other people are, too. That’s a lot to juggle.Your Double-Edged Sword: Capability. Your capability makes you exceptional. You carry more at once than most people could track, you adapt quickly and without drama, and you’re the most resourceful person in the room when something doesn’t go according to plan. That’s also what leaves you exhausted, stuck with a mental load that never lightens or turns off.The Cost Compounds Over Time. You’ve built a life where everything relies on you. The result? Your own rest and desires get perpetually deferred. You white-knuckle instead of asking for help, leaving you stretched thin and profoundly alone. Over time, life becomes a series of trials to survive rather than an experience to enjoy.Invest in Receiving Help. Handing something off costs you time, communication, and trust—which is exactly why you keep doing it yourself. Ask for help anyway, and let someone else take a turn at thinking ahead. This week’s challenge: pick one thing you’re carrying and spend the time it takes to hand it off well.Decide What to Set Down. Not everything is created equal, not everything has to happen now, and not everything has to be done by you. Know what’s uniquely yours, what drives results, and what matters now. That helps you decide what to set down. Special Thanks: To Claudia V., Monica V., and Crissy M. for the generosity of their time and insight as episode interviewees. Resources Take the Assessment: fullfocus.co/wsThis episode was produced by Sarah Vorhees Wendel of VW Sound

    The Juggler: The Gravity of Keeping Everything Airborne
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Start loving Mondays! Join Marissa & Joel each week for practical strategies, weekly rhythms, and honest insights to help you slow down, show up, and live intentionally. Based on the proven Full Focus methods used in the Full Focus Planner™, each episode offers habits, mindset shifts, and real support so you can quiet the noise, follow through, and build a life that feels good to live. Ready to focus on what really matters?

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  • Creator
    Full Focus
  • Years Active
    2019 - 2026
  • Episodes
    338
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2025
  • Show Website
    Focus on This

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