A young woman asked me recently during a career panel at my office about my time management tricks. The idea presumably being that I am able manage having a busy job while being a mom and having a spouse who also works. (In case you are wondering, chronic multitasking. Also, it’s definitely not always pretty.)

I told her a few of my go to tips like living by my calendar (my 6 year old asked me to put “Getting a Dog” on my calendar), surrounding myself with an amazing team (at work and at home) and being okay not being in all of the details (I do not care how my dishwasher is loaded so long as my dishes are clean).

This weekend, I was standing in my kitchen thinking about how cooking a big meal is the ultimate time management exercise. I’m very efficient in the kitchen. Here’s my playbook:

(1) Plan the recipes out before starting and lay out your ingredients
(2) Identify what takes the longest time to prep/cook or what goes in the pot first (usually the thing that takes the longest to cook) and then start there. I always chop onions and bell peppers first and tomatoes last.
(3) While those first long lead time items cook, start prepping the next ingredient.
(4) Get the first dish to a point where it needs 8-10 minutes of un-closely supervised cooking. Start prepping the next dish.

I plan. I prepare. I identify my desired end result. I identify the steps. I figure out how much time I need in-between them. Then I attack key dependencies first and work in steady increments towards my end goal keeping timing and next steps in mind at each turn. I also recruit a good sous chef.

My approach to cooking is sort of my approach to getting anything done – whether it’s braising a whole head of cauliflower and dunking it in creamy makhani sauce, closing a cross-border multimillion deal or figuring out how to get a 6 year old dressed, fed and out of the house (the most challenging and rewarding item on this list).