How to win at Calendar Tetris

8 moves to start stacking your week like a pro

Jul 24, 2025

Like it or not, you’re playing Calendar Tetris, and if you’re not careful, the game will play you.

Some of us move with intention. Others just react, hoping the blocks don’t stack too high.

Last Friday, I won a small but significant game of Calendar Tetris. I moved my 3-hour training hike from Sunday to Friday morning.

I wanted to avoid the weekend ultrarunner crowds on the trail.

But what struck me wasn't the logistics of shifting the block, it was the quiet realisation that I didn't need to check a team calendar, ask for permission, or cause a cascade of other pieces to fall.

The real luxury wasn't the hike itself; it was the autonomy.

When your calendar plays on Hard mode

Calendar Tetris mastery is about placing your commitments so they fit together perfectly, leaving you room to move pieces when opportunities arise.

Yet so many people are trapped in a reactive game where their calendar is set to Level 10 speed.

Blocks are dropped on you by others, leaving a board full of gaps, mismatched pieces, and the constant, low-level anxiety that you're one block away from "Game Over."

You can't take advantage of opportunities, respond to urgent priorities, or simply choose to do your best work when your energy is highest.

Now, you might be thinking:

“That’s easy for you to say, Leanne. You work for yourself.”

True. I have more autonomy than most.

But I’ve also helped corporate teams apply this thinking by shifting just 10–20% of their calendar into async tools or protected time blocks.

Calendar freedom isn't about working less.

It's about designing a system where your calendar serves your priorities, not the other way around.

How you can master Calendar Tetris (from an above-average player)

Disclaimer: I'm not the master of Calendar Tetris, but I'm pretty good! Things still slip through. I think that's because while we think we can control our calendar, it's an illusion and as we know, life has other plans.

However, these shifts can help you play with more intent.

Shift 1: Plan your next four moves

In Tetris, you don't just look at the current piece; you see the next few in the queue. Do the same with your calendar.

When I book a client strategy session, I don't just place that one block. I immediately work backward and place the other required blocks first: the prep call a week before, the time to write the materials, and the email to send participants.

By placing the dependent pieces first, you guarantee no last-minute surprises.

Shift 2: Delete the dead blocks

Recurring meetings are often the messiest, most useless blocks on the board.

They clog up your week, and many have devolved into simple info-shares or a way for leaders to check that you still have a pulse.

Question the value of every recurring meeting. Can its purpose be achieved another way?

If a meeting provides no value, influence a change or be brave enough not to go.

Shift 3: Realise your value isn’t in the blocks

It's 2025, yet we still think our value is tied to the time a block takes up.

We believe a 60-minute meeting is inherently more valuable than a 30-minute one, or that moving a project forward requires a live call. This is a trap.

The biggest calendar wins come from replacing expensive, real-time meetings with asynchronous alternatives. Most meetings are just information-sharing disguised as decision-making.

These are some things I do that clear multiple lines at once:

Instead of scheduling a feedback call, I record a 5-minute video walking through my comments directly on their document. It's more useful for the client/collaborator and gives them time to review, and also faster for me.
Instead of a status update meeting, we use collaborative documents with comments and suggestions. By the time we do meet, we're ready for high-level decisions.
Instead of phone tag, I send voice notes via WhatsApp for coaching conversations and relationship building. It doesn't replace meetings entirely, but it handles the routine check-ins that don't need real-time back-and-forth.

My test is simple: "What specific decision does this meeting enable?"

If there's no clear answer, it becomes an email, a video, or a message.

Shift 4: Stack similar colours together

This is about batching your tasks by energy.

I have "centre-stage" days and "backstage" days.

If I know I’m wearing makeup for an on-camera event, I’ll stack any other video recordings or client calls on that same day. I’ll schedule 2-3 podcast interviews back-to-back because I’m already in that zone.

This is far more efficient than switching contexts all week. High-energy creative work in the morning; low-energy admin in the afternoon.

When your calendar matches your natural energy patterns, everything becomes easier.

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Shift 5: Leave gaps

Build in buffer because life will happen.

I keep Mondays free from meetings for deep work and Friday afternoons open as a buffer. These aren't empty slots; they are the intentional gaps you leave on your board to give you room to manoeuvre.

Not only that, I try noto to have more than 4 hours of “stuff” scheduled in every day (unless I’m out delivering a full day, of course).

When a client needs to reschedule or an opportunity emerges, these buffer zones absorb the impact without breaking your week. Stop cramming every single space.

Shift 6: Play on a single board

You only have one life, so you only need one calendar.

My training for Nepal goes in there. My dog-walking time goes in there. I block out time for when Chris, returns from night shift so I can be present.

Book your holidays first. Book in the things that cannot move: key project milestones (like sending videos one week prior, run sheets two weeks prior), revenue-generating activities (the commitments that directly serve clients and pay the bills).

Think of this as your Gantt chart backbone. When you know what cannot move, everything else becomes fluid.

I even have the AFL, NRL, and Netball finals in my calendar, because those things are important to me. When your whole life is on one board, you make commitments with full clarity and never have to weasel your way out of a double booking.

Shift 7: Know your ‘seasons’

Your strategy should change with your life's seasons.

I’m a different person in winter than I am in summer. In summer here in Australia, I’m up around 4 am exercising.

In winter, I engage "sloth mode"- I wake up later and exercise mid-morning/even around lunch-time because that’s what my body needs.

Acknowledge your energy shifts and adjust your game plan accordingly.

Shift 8: The double block

The smartest move in Calendar Tetris isn't always removing a block, sometimes it's stacking two together. I call this the Double Block: one time slot, two wins, for example:

A walking meeting instead of a sitting one.
An industry podcast during the grocery run.

This is energising value stacking where I pair a low-focus physical task with a mental one.

My Calendar Tetris blind spots

I live and die by my calendar. If it’s not in there, it doesn’t happen.

But sometimes, that works against me. Important-but-not-urgent things slip -especially life admin like getting to the post office.

I’ve also caught myself over-scheduling “ideal Leanne” days… and then crashing because I forgot to factor in recovery, and then getting a massage becomes an emergency, not a maintenance thing…

So no, I don’t play a perfect game. But I’ve learned to play a more forgiving one.

Your move now

Don’t try to rebuild your whole board overnight.

Just choose one move this week:

Protect one deep work block. Monday morning, Friday afternoon. Pick your rhythm, and lock it in. Total luxe/pro move!
Audit one recurring meeting. Ask: Could a shared doc or video replace this? Try it and see.
Map your non-negotiables. Look at the next 30 days. What can’t move? Lock those in.

You don’t win Calendar Tetris by clearing every piece.

You win by knowing which pieces actually matter, and making space for them.

→ So: What's the one piece you’d move first?

Let me know in the Comments.