1. Objective
This SOP defines the daily priority sweep — the 10–15 minute orientation process performed every morning before any reactive work begins. It also defines the four-level task hierarchy used to make confident prioritization decisions throughout the day without constantly needing direction. These two tools together prevent the "spinning" feeling that comes from reactive task management and ensure your executive's most time-sensitive needs are never missed.
Where this SOP starts: The moment your work day begins — before opening any task or responding to any message.
Where this SOP ends: The daily sweep concludes when your three most important completions are set and your morning check-in message is sent. The task hierarchy governs all prioritization decisions throughout the day.Success looks like: Your executive never discovers a missed Level 1 item that was sitting unaddressed. You make clean prioritization decisions without asking for direction on routine tasks. Your workload is visible and communicated. You complete your three most important items daily at a rate of 80%+.
2. Your Role & Boundaries
2a. What you handle independently
- Executing the daily priority sweep every morning, without exception
- Making prioritization decisions using the four-level hierarchy
- Handling Level 1 items immediately without needing authorization
- Setting your three daily most important completions
- Protecting your executive's deep work time from interruption
- Sending the morning check-in message each day
2b. What requires executive approval before acting
- Any Level 1 action with a financial decision your executive hasn't pre-authorized
- Any client communication on your executive's behalf that hasn't been explicitly delegated
- Deprioritizing or pushing to the next day anything your executive mentioned as a priority
2c. What you never do
- You never start your day by diving into reactive task execution without first completing the priority sweep
- You never let a Level 1 item sit unaddressed because you were busy with Level 3 or 4 work
- You never silently drop tasks at capacity — you flag the issue and ask for prioritization help
- You never skip the morning check-in message
3. The EA Task Hierarchy
Every task you receive belongs to one of four levels. Level always determines order.
Level 1: Revenue-Protecting (Handle Immediately)
Tasks where delay costs money or damages a client relationship.
- Responding to an inbound lead
- Sending an overdue invoice or payment follow-up
- Fixing a client-facing error
- Confirming a meeting with a prospect
- Resolving a client complaint
Rule: When a Level 1 task lands on your desk, everything else pauses.
Level 2: Time-Sensitive Operations (Handle Today)
Tasks with real deadlines that affect the flow of the business. They don't need to happen in the next 60 minutes, but they cannot wait until tomorrow.
- Scheduling a meeting your executive has a call about this week
- Sending a follow-up that was promised to a specific person by today
- Preparing materials for an upcoming presentation or meeting
- Completing a deliverable your executive is waiting on
Level 3: Ongoing Systems Work (Handle This Week)
Maintenance tasks that keep the business running smoothly. Important but not urgent.
- Filing, organizing, updating trackers
- Managing recurring communications
- Maintaining SOPs and documentation
- Inbox triage and management
Level 4: Improvement Projects (When Capacity Allows)
High-value work that makes the business better over time — but nothing is currently on fire.
- Building a new SOP or process
- Researching a new tool
- Reorganizing a folder structure
- Drafting a template library
Key Point: A common mistake is spending most of the day on Level 3 and 4 work because it feels productive — then discovering a Level 1 task was sitting unaddressed. Always sweep for Level 1 items first.
4. The Daily Priority Sweep
Perform this sweep every morning. Total time: 10–15 minutes. Do not skip it.
Step 1: Check for Level 1 flags
- Review the executive's inbox (or shared inbox) for any inbound leads, client emergencies, or time-sensitive messages that arrived since your last session
- Check your task list for anything overdue
- Scan for client-facing communications that haven't been addressed
Step 2: Review the calendar for the next 48 hours
- Are there meetings that need prep materials?
- Are there meeting confirmations that should go out today?
- Are there documents that should be ready before a call?
Step 3: Check for anything the executive mentioned yesterday
- Review notes from your prior end-of-day interaction or summary
- Was there anything they said they expected to see handled?
Step 4: Set your three most important completions
- Not a list of 20 things — three things that, if done well, make today a successful day
- At least one should be a direct contribution to your executive's highest-priority work
Step 5: Send the morning check-in message
- Brief (3–5 lines)
- Flags anything time-sensitive they need to know
- States your top priorities for the day
- Asks a maximum of one question if needed
- See [SOP-CEA-COMM-02] for the morning check-in message protocol
5. Escalation Judgment: Handle vs. Escalate
The default rule is: solve first, report second. If a task is within your scope, your authority, and doesn't carry serious risk of error — handle it and let your executive know what you did.
Escalate when:
- The decision has financial implications your executive hasn't authorized
- The communication is with someone your executive has flagged as sensitive
- You're genuinely unsure how your executive would want something handled, and guessing wrong has real consequences
- There's a client emergency that needs your executive's direct voice and authority
How to escalate:
Always come with a proposed action. Say: "Here's the situation. My recommendation is X. Would you like me to proceed, or handle it differently?"
Watch Out: Over-escalating is as problematic as under-escalating. An EA who asks for direction on every minor decision creates more work, not less. If unsure on a minor task, make a reasonable decision, handle it, and note what you did.
6. Protecting Deep Work Time
Deep work — focused, cognitively demanding work done without interruption — is where your executive's highest-value output happens. It is also the most fragile. Your role is to protect it.
- Guard protected calendar blocks. Nothing gets scheduled in a focused work block without explicit executive approval.
- Batch your interruptions. Don't flag small items as they arise. Batch them into one update at a time that works for your executive. Most "urgent" items can wait 90 minutes.
- Handle first, then report. Before reaching out with a question, ask: "Is this something I can resolve on my own?" If yes — resolve it.
- Use end-of-day summaries. Many executives prefer one summary at day's end over multiple small interruptions throughout the day.
7. Communicating Capacity Issues
When your workload exceeds what you can reasonably complete, flag it proactively.
Never: Silently try to do everything and either drop something or deliver poor work.
Always: Flag the capacity issue and ask for prioritization help.
What to say:
"I want to make sure I'm focusing on the right things today. I have [Task A], [Task B], and [Task C] on my plate. Given your priorities, should I move [Task B] to tomorrow, or push something else?"
This prevents dropped balls and shows your executive that you're thinking at the right level — managing capacity, not just executing tasks.
Best practice: Keep a shared task list your executive can see. Not because they'll manage it — but because transparency builds trust. When they can see what you're working on, they're far less likely to wonder if things are being handled.
8. End-of-Day Close
Every day ends with a brief close-out process:
- Check three-item completion. Did you complete your three most important items? If not, note which and why — use this to calibrate tomorrow's planning.
- Clear any open Level 1 items. Nothing stays unresolved or unreported at end of day.
- Flag upcoming Level 2 items. Make note of what needs to be handled first tomorrow.
- Send end-of-day summary (if your executive expects one): What was completed, what's pending, what needs their decision.
- Add any calendar items your executive mentioned verbally during the day that haven't been recorded.
9. Escalation Protocol
Escalate immediately when:
- A Level 1 item is beyond your authority and time is critical
- You've made a decision and the result was wrong — don't wait, notify your executive
Escalation message format:
Flagging this so you're not blindsided:
[1–2 sentence situation summary]
My recommendation: [proposed action]
Shall I proceed, or would you like to handle this directly?
10. Tools & Access
| Tool | Purpose | Minimum Setup |
|---|---|---|
| [Task manager] | Daily task list and three-item commitment tracking | Required Day 1 |
| [Calendar platform] | 48-hour calendar review | Required Day 1 |
| [Email / inbox platform] | Level 1 flag sweep | Required Day 1 |
| [Shared notes or doc] | End-of-day summary template | By Day 3 |
11. Changelog
| Date | Notes |
|---|---|
| April 2026 | Initial release |