Private Appointments

Most calendaring systems have the ability to make appointments private, but they are rarely used to maximum advantage. Private appointments make excellent places for reminders of things to do on particular days, especially if, like me, you have an idiosyncratic method of naming tasks that you don't wish to share with the world.

They’re also good for blocking out time to work on particular projects which may not be on your official to do list. For example, you might want to work on an idea you have to make some improvements that that you’re not ready to talk about. You need a block of time to work on it, and a private appointment works. You can use private appointments for working on your weekly boss updates, your monthly self-learning, reading time and other self development tasks.

Of course, booking 37 hours a week in private appointments may raise questions, so there is an upper limit to the extent you can use them. If your boss asks what you’re working on, you must tell him, and if he chooses to realign your priorities, well, that’s his prerogative.