TRAILER - Activity vs. Progress: The Busyness Trap Every Leader Needs to Escape Artwork

P³ with Preston Poore

P³ with Preston Poore aims to equip and empower emerging leaders, particularly Millennials, by sharing insights on leadership and faith in the workplace. Leveraging Preston Poore's extensive experience, training expertise, and books "Discipled Leader" and "21 Days to Sound Decision Making," the podcast will feature engaging discussions with leaders, exploring what excellence looks like and sharing their personal stories.

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P³ with Preston Poore

TRAILER - Activity vs. Progress: The Busyness Trap Every Leader Needs to Escape

July 16, 2026 • Preston Poore • Season 2 • Episode 6

0:00 | 2:13

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Episode 6 is here!!!!

A full to-do list feels like progress. A packed calendar feels like leadership. But what if all that activity is just keeping you from the things that actually move the needle?

This week, Jordan Raynor joins me to talk about the busyness trap, why the hardest thing for any leader to admit is that they've been running fast in the wrong direction.

If you've ever ended the day exhausted but couldn't name a single thing that actually moved forward, this one's for you.

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About Preston Poore

Preston Poore is a former Coca-Cola executive who practices what he preaches. He uses his wealth of hard-earned experience in the corporate arena to help emerging leaders and millennials reach their potential—all while staying true to his values, purpose, and goals.

Preston is a Certified Maxwell Leadership Team Keynote Speaker, Facilitator, Trainer, and Executive Coach. Through his books, How Is Greater Than What, Discipled Leader (2022 Selah Awards Nonfiction Book of the Year) and 21 Days to Sound Decision Making, his blog, and podcast, he seeks to help people become redemptive influences in their workplaces and live more fulfilling lives.

Learn more about Preston Poore & Associates: https://prestonpoore.com

Work with Preston or invite him to speak: https://prestonpoore.com/leadership-development-services/

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SPEAKER_00 0:00

Busyness, fake productivity is way, way, way easier than real productivity. Activity feels like leadership because it's visible, but progress is invisible until it compounds. And the leader who's making progress is the one who's getting outcomes and not just frantic with activity. Nothing is a priority if everything is a priority. Most leaders I know have 30 priorities, which means they actually had zero. The manager's meeting. My boss, Catherine, surveys the room. Bring me your three-year plans. Complete on my desk, two weeks. We were supposed to nod and comply, but I couldn't. So I raised my hand and I said, Catherine, we have so many priorities. The team is under real pressure to deliver on time. Can you delay the planning and let them stay focused on the work that matters? Well, I think it was those last three words that turned her face red. She turned to my peers, everyone who had told me at some point privately that they were drowning. Does anyone else share these same concerns? Heads down, every single one. And one by one, they said that they could deliver. Nobody backed me up. Then she turned to me and she said, There you have it. No one else has a concern, neither should you. Go fill out one of your priority grids, and you'll go figure it out. Well, I sat there, embarrassed, stunned, and flustered. And I realized something had to change. Not her, me. If you've ever been the busiest person in the building and the least effective leader on the floor, this one's for you. I spent 30 years in corporate leadership making every mistake in the book. Some of them twice. I'm Preston Poor, and if you're a leader who's ever felt in over your head but too proud to say it, you're in the right place. This is PQ. Welcome.