Gents Weekly: Your Time, Your Rules—The Time Management Issue
Issue #15: The manliest newsletter on the internet • April 20, 2026
Welcome to issue #15 of The Gents Weekly, a newsletter for the modern man.
Every Monday, you’ll receive a weekly roundup of inspiring ideas + products to help you become a better man.
Brought to you by the men of Gents Journey — Dean Bokhari, Stephen Seidel, and Matt McManus.
ANNOUNCING
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📝 THE MESSAGE
A timely piece from the gents.
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Your Life, Your Rules—The Time Management Issue
“When everything is a priority, nothing is a priority.”
I’ve been a full-fledged productivity nerd for nearly two decades. Over the years, I’ve tried every task-management app out there. I’ve read all the productivity books. And I’ve tested every “system” available for getting things done.
There’s a lot of great advice out there for managing your time and becoming more productive.
But none of the approaches I’ve come across over the years were the right fit - at least not for me.
So about ten years ago, I ended up creating a productivity framework of my own…
It’s called the 1-2-5 Method™ – and it’s a simple and astonishingly effective way to get your most important things done on a daily basis.
Here’s how to use it.
Start each day by writing down your most important things to work on or accomplish, using the following structure:
1 Big Thing (1BT) – First, identify and write down the ONE most important thing you need to work on or accomplish today. This is usually something that requires 60+ minutes of your time. There can only be ONE most important thing.
Examples:Deep work on Acme Project
Write the first draft of a report
Prepare for a major presentation
2 Medium Things (2MT) – Next, write down two medium-priority things to do. These should each take you 60 min. or less.
Examples:
Spend an hour researching my new business idea.
Virtual doctor’s appointment.
Do 30 min. of yard work.
5 Little Things (5LT) – Finally, jot down five small tasks that take you 30 min. or less.
Examples:Call Brandon.
Meditate for 10 minutes.
Pickup meds at CVS Pharmacy.
By the time you’re done creating your 1-2-5 list, it should look something like this:
Now, all you’ve got to do is get to work.
Keep your list nearby throughout the day so you can see it and check things off as you get them done.
Lastly, be sure to always tackle your 1-2-5 priorities sequentially, starting with your 1 BIG Thing of the day first. Until that’s done, nothing else matters.
— Dean Bokhari
Co-founder, Gents Journey
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📰 THE MOMENT
Sh*t that’s happening now, ICYMI
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This Week’s AI Prompt: Time Management
Everyone says they don’t have time.
No time to work out. No time to call a friend. No time to work on that thing they keep saying they’ll get to. No time to just sit and think.
But here’s the truth: you have the same 24 hours as everyone else. The problem isn’t time. It’s how you’re spending it.
Most guys have no idea where their time actually goes. They think they’re productive, but they’re just busy. They think they’re prioritizing what matters, but their calendar tells a different story.
This prompt helps you audit where your time is actually going—and redesign your week so you’re spending it on what actually matters.
THE PROMPT:
Copy everything below and paste it into ChatGPT or Claude:
I want to figure out where my time is actually going and how to take it back.
Help me:
1. Audit my last week honestly
- What did I actually spend my time on? (Work, scrolling, TV, meetings, family, workouts, etc.)
- How much time did I waste vs. invest?
- What did I say was a priority that I didn't make time for?
- If someone tracked my week, what would they say I care about most?
2. Identify my time thieves
- What's draining my time without giving me anything back? (Social media, pointless meetings, saying yes to things I don't want to do, etc.)
- Where am I confusing "busy" with "productive"?
- What obligations am I keeping out of guilt that I should drop?
3. Define what I actually want to make time for
- If I had 3 extra hours this week, what would I do with them?
- What's something I keep saying I'll "get to eventually" that I actually care about?
- What would make me feel like I'm winning the week instead of just surviving it?
4. Design my ideal week
- What does a week I'm proud of actually look like?
- How much time do I want to spend on: work, family, fitness, friendships, rest, personal projects?
- What needs to be scheduled vs. what can be flexible?
5. Create a 7-day time reclaim plan
- What's ONE thing I'm going to stop doing to free up time?
- What's ONE thing I'm going to start protecting time for?
- How do I say no to things that don't serve me without feeling guilty?
Here's how I spent last week: [Be brutally honest about where your time went]
Here's what I wish I had time for: [List what you're not making time for]
Don't let me make excuses. Show me where I'm wasting time and help me take it back.
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT
The AI is going to show you exactly where your time is going—and it’s probably not where you think.
By the end, you’ll have:
A clear picture of where your time actually went last week
A list of time thieves you need to eliminate
A redesigned week that prioritizes what actually matters
A 7-day plan to reclaim your time
WHY THIS MATTERS
Time is the only resource you can’t get back. You can make more money. You can fix relationships. You can get in shape.
But time? Once it’s gone, it’s gone.
Most guys spend their lives reacting to other people’s priorities instead of protecting their own. They say yes when they should say no. They scroll when they should create. They survive the week instead of designing it.
This prompt helps you stop letting time happen to you and start taking it back.
Run this prompt. Audit your time. Reclaim your week.
Drop one thing you’re going to stop doing this week to free up time for what matters. Let’s hold each other accountable.
— Matt McManus
Co-founder, Gents Journey
Your Time Is Yours—Act Like It
👊 THE MOVES
Media for men.
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Watch | The Pomodoro Technique - Our Favorite Productivity Tool
Be sure to subscribe to our Gents Journey YouTube channel
(Watch the video above first.)
Work in Sprints, Not Marathons
Most men don’t have a time problem — they have a focus problem.
Your inbox pings. The phone buzzes. A coworker stops by “real quick.”
And somewhere along the way, the morning disappears, and nothing meaningful gets done.
The Pomodoro Technique is one of the simplest systems for reclaiming your focus. Twenty-five minutes of locked-in, distraction-free work.
Then a five-minute break. Repeat. No distracted projects. No multitasking.
Just one thing at a time, done with intention.
Multitasking isn’t a superpower; it’s a liability.
You’re not doing two things at once — you’re doing two things badly. Research shows it drops your effective IQ by as much as 15 points.
The Pomodoro method forces you to commit and then show up. For one task.
Honestly, it’s not really a productivity hack, but how to respect your own time.
Set the Boundary
For many of us, spring break with the kids just ended.
Think about getting ready to leave and trying to prepare and cram it all in.
You cleared your inbox, handled lingering tasks, set expectations, and got more done in two days than you had in the previous two weeks.
Why?
Because the deadline was real and the stakes were real. Get it done, or pay the price later.
Here’s a question from our Journey Deck: What’s one book that has profoundly influenced your life?
One of mine is The 4-Hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss.
It’s not a book about working less, but working with extreme, uninterrupted intention.
Ferriss argues that most people do their best work right before a vacation because they finally treat their time like it has a hard edge.
What if you set a hard edge (or boundary) every week?
Try This: Set an out-of-office reply, not when traveling, but as a standing practice.
Stop letting other people’s urgency become your emergency.
You might even consider having a remote or AI assistant answer emails for you, and categorize them for later. If it’s really important, they’ll call you.
Bowing to every request isn’t being helpful. It’s being reactive.
Reactive men don’t build; they respond, and we know that’s not you.
Your Own Private 30 Minutes
Open your calendar right now and block 30 minutes a day.
Label it whatever you want. What matters is that it belongs to you — and that you actually keep it.
Don’t let meetings overlap, don’t wake up late, and don’t quit on yourself.
Performance isn’t about working more hours, but bringing your full self to every hour.
You cannot do that when you’re half-distracted and fully at the mercy of everyone else’s timeline.
Your one key takeaway: A boundary isn’t a wall, it’s a foundation.
The man who protects his time protects his potential.
Do this right now: Block that 30 minutes. Your name. Your time.
Show up for yourself the way you’d show up for anyone who counted on you.
— Stephen Seidel
Co-founder, Gents Journey
🔗 MEANINGFUL MENTIONS + MAGIC LINKS
Fun stuff you’ll dig about our theme of the week.
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💻 REAL MEN HAVE A COACH IN THEIR CORNER
Stop playing small, step into the man you know you are.
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We’re looking for ten men who want coaching and guidance to level up in life + work. If that’s you, fill out this form, and we’ll be in touch.
Until next week,
—The Gents
Inspired? Share this newsletter with another Gent you think it could help.