Nonprofit Mastermind Podcast

Episode Summary: “U is for Urgency: Urgency is not the same as Importance”

Host: Brooke Richie-Babbage
Date: September 1, 2025

Overview

In this episode of the Nonprofit Mastermind Podcast, Brooke Richie-Babbage offers nonprofit founders and leaders a mindset shift around the difference between urgency and importance. Serving as part of the "Design Your Strongest Year Ever" special series, Brooke explains how habitual urgency can derail focus from truly strategic, high-impact actions—and shares a practical micro-action for reclaiming the calendar for deep and important work.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Understanding Urgency vs. Importance

• Urgency is Addictive
  • Brooke emphasizes that the sense of urgency often feels compelling but is fundamentally reactive and self-perpetuating.
  • “If your most urgent work keeps getting bumped until tomorrow, you're likely trapped in an urgency loop.” – Brooke Richie-Babbage [01:00]
• Importance is Strategic
  • Leaders who consistently succeed focus on what is truly important—actions that move the mission forward—rather than always reacting to what feels urgent.
  • “Urgency multiplies on its own, but the important things happen by design.” – Brooke Richie-Babbage [02:00]
• Intentional Design Over Hustle
  • Brooke roots her advice in the principle that intentional scheduling, not just increased effort, truly determines impact and outcomes.

2. The Micro-Action: Breaking the Urgency Loop

Brooke prescribes a two-part micro-action to help nonprofit leaders shift their focus:

• Block 90 Minutes of Uninterrupted “Non-Urgent” Work
  • Schedule a 90-minute block before noon, once or twice a week—administering strict ‘no interruption’ rules (no meetings, no Slack, minimal checking of emails).
    • “I want you to block 90 minutes before noon…no meetings and no Slack, right? No regular engagement with your team or your board. Set some rules for reactivity to protect that time.” [02:30]
  • Adjust email/communication checks to once an hour, to foster true deep work.
• End-of-Day Reflection: ‘Tomorrow’s First Move Note’
  • After each blocked session, end the day with a simple five-minute reflection, distilling one concrete action to seed the top of the next day.
    • “That little loop allows you to take what grew out of the decision-making, non-urgent time…and start your day…with a little bit of a focus on what's important, to continue to carry that protection from the urgent into your next day.” [04:10]
  • Try this for a week to observe changes in focus and productivity.

3. Mental & Strategic Takeaways

• The real work that shapes the future of a nonprofit is accomplished by intentionally protecting and designing time for it—not by reacting all day to external stimuli.
• "The leaders who win quarter after quarter recommit their calendar to what will actually change the outcome, to what is important. And it protects them from...the urgent things that come up.” – Brooke Richie-Babbage [01:40]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the urgency trap:
  “If your most urgent work keeps getting bumped until tomorrow, you're likely trapped in an urgency loop.” – Brooke Richie-Babbage [01:00]

• On the difference between urgency and importance:
  “Urgency multiplies on its own, but the important things happen by design.” – Brooke Richie-Babbage [02:00]

• On calendar discipline:
  “The leaders who win quarter after quarter recommit their calendar to what will actually change the outcome, to what is important. And it protects them from what is urgent...” – Brooke Richie-Babbage [01:40]

• On implementing the micro-action:
  “Try that for a week and see how things change.” – Brooke Richie-Babbage [04:45]

Important Timestamps

• [00:00 – 01:00]: Introduction to the series and episode’s purpose
• [01:00 – 02:15]: Explaining the ‘urgency loop’ and the strategic value of importance
• [02:15 – 03:50]: Step-by-step guide to the 90-minute time block plus ‘Tomorrow’s First Move Note’
• [03:50 – 04:45]: Encouragement to try the practice for a week and closing advice

Resources

• For those wanting to implement this strategy, Brooke offers a free “Reactivity Detox Worksheet” available via the episode’s companion emails at BrookeRichieBabbage.com [Mentioned at 05:00].

Bottom Line:
Brooke Richie-Babbage challenges nonprofit leaders to intentionally design their days to focus on what’s important, not just what feels urgent. By reclaiming dedicated, reactive-free time, leaders can break the “urgency loop” and ensure their actions genuinely move the mission forward.