Balance = Working Smarter

I work for a Fortune 500 company in an area where as you move up, the idea that you should be "putting in the hours" is prevelant.  While I'm not opposed to hard work, I've typically found that I put in less hours than my peers but do as much if not more work.  I think a key to my success so far has been an ability early on to define the critical elements and do them well.  There's lots of information about how to do this but the below article is one that articulates well how I find success.  I especially relate to his comments about ruthlessly scheduling, setting you end time and working backwards, and focusing on the deep stuff.

Eric Barker: Cal Newport's Keys to Managing Time