The Three Buckets of Work
Remove optional obligations to protect work you must or want to do
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Time to result
- ~weeks to results
- Steps
- 5
- Confidence
- 91%
Sort work and life commitments into three buckets: things you have to do, things you genuinely want to do, and things you merely feel you should do. The third bucket often contains networking events, visibility plays, panels, and other activities pursued because they seem professionally expected. Review that bucket with particular skepticism, then eliminate items whose likely benefit does not justify their time and responsibility cost. The result is not a responsibility-free life: must-do obligations remain, and wanted activities gain room. Galloway presents this as a privilege enabled by career and economic security, so the useful mechanism is staged rather than universal. Build enough autonomy first, then progressively replace status-oriented shoulds with commitments that are necessary or intrinsically valuable.
Origin
Scott Galloway described the model while explaining why he now works about 30 hours a week and structures his media company around a talented team.
Core principles
- 01Not every worthwhile-looking obligation deserves your time
- 02Must-do commitments and genuine wants have different sources of value
- 03Economic independence increases the freedom to remove should-do work
How to run it
- 1
Inventory commitments
Capture recurring work, social, family, and visibility commitments before judging them.
Pro tip Include small obligations that fragment attention, not just major projects.
- 2
Assign each bucket
Mark each commitment as something you must do, want to do, or think you should do.
Pro tip Use the source of the obligation, not how respectable it sounds.
Watch out Do not relabel genuine responsibilities as optional just because they are unpleasant.
- 3
Interrogate the shoulds
Identify the promised benefit behind every should and decide whether that benefit is concrete enough to justify the cost.
Pro tip Ask whether you would still attend if nobody could see that you attended.
- 4
Remove selectively
Decline, delegate, or stop should-do activities whose value is weak, while retaining those still needed to build career capital.
Watch out Galloway applies the full version from a position of privilege; early-career elimination can remove useful opportunities.
- 5
Protect the recovered time
Deliberately redirect the freed capacity toward necessary commitments and activities you genuinely value.
Pro tip Review the buckets whenever your autonomy or responsibilities change.
In the wild
Galloway contrasts career-building appearances such as networking functions and conference panels with travel and subjects he now genuinely wants to pursue. After building economic security, he removes the should bucket rather than continuing every exposure opportunity.
→ His schedule concentrates on responsibilities and personally meaningful work instead of default professional visibility.
Common mistakes
Eliminating shoulds too early
Some should-do activities create the network and career capital that later produce autonomy. Remove them only after evaluating your current stage.
Confusing wants with impulses
The model protects meaningful wants, not every momentary preference that competes with real obligations.
Is it for you?
Best for
It is best for established professionals with enough autonomy to decline optional commitments.
Not ideal for
It is not ideal for early-career people who still need deliberate exposure, learning, and network-building opportunities.
From the transcript
“there's three buckets in life there's things you have to do”
“there's things you want to do”
“I have eliminated the sh Bucket from my life and I only do things I have to do or that I want to do”
From the episode
Episode 411: Professor Scott Galloway: The Modern Connection Crisis + Wealth Building Strategies
Professor Scott Galloway