I don’t know about you, but I have a higher degree of trust for people and groups who have their priorities straight. In a recent organizational retreat I led, the President opened the session with a discussion around the difference between “priorities and noise”. “Noise” is all those tasks that need to get done, but don’t directly contribute to helping the organization get to a stronger place.
Even if your priorities and goals are lined up with Senior Management, there still is too much to do. The question you need to ask is, “Are we collectively spending our time doing the things that contribute directly to the health and well-being of the organization?” If the answer is, “Not sure”, then you’re not.
Consider asking the following question of your team, department, steering committee, Board of Directors, whatever the group: “What are our top three priorities?” Once you figure this out, the rest is just noise.