To-Do’s
We all have too many things
to do. They can’t be done in one day. In fact, there will probably never be a
time when we can say, “I’ve done everything I need to do”.
Studies have shown that
writing down all the to-do’s, projects, goals, etc. lets the brain off the hook
and releases mind-energy for getting the most important things done.
Day 1: Take a large sheet of
paper (or start a workbook for “Project Self-Management”) and write down
everything you can think of that you need to get done. If something else pops
into your head as the day progresses, write it down.
Day 2: Look at the list you
created on Day 1. Break larger projects into small steps. For instance, instead
of "Plan vacation," the entries could be "Call travel
agent," "Pick up brochures," "Buy tickets," "Call
Mandy to water the plants," etc.
The quickest route to a task
you'll actively avoid working on: Make it a ‘gigantic ambiguity’. Put a
nonspecific item such as "Clean out the office" on your to-do list,
and that will be the last thing you'll ever do with it -- guaranteed. Actually,
"Clean out the office" isn't a to-do at all; it's a project. Author
of “Getting Things Done”, David Allen, says projects are not tasks; projects
are collections of tasks.
Day 3: Try writing a to-do
list on a computer program such as Ever-Note. That way you can sync your list
across all your devices (desktops, laptops, tablets, etc.), and you can easily
edit it.
When it's time to add
something to your to-do list, think it through using the following guidelines.
Only
Put Items on the List That You're Definitely Doing
Sometimes you think of tasks
you're just not ready to do yet. Maybe learning a new language - while it's an
eventual goal - just doesn't fit into your life right now. Maybe upgrading the
website is low priority because your business is shifting gears in a major way,
and any site overhaul will look very different - or maybe won't be needed - in
six months.
Instead of allowing tasks
you're not quite committed to hang around on your to-do list until you're tired
of looking at them (and sick of the reminder that you're not quite there yet),
move them off to a separate list, a holding area for Someday/Maybe/Might-Be-Nice
items. I have a large flipchart-size poster for these on my closet door. Only solid
actions you're committed to completing should find a (temporary!) home on your
to-do list.
Day 4: There's no better
feeling than checking something off your to-do list. Done! Finished! Mission
accomplished! Yet it's so easy to let a whole day or week go by without
knocking one task off your list. Not so today! Pick an important task and do
it. Just Do It! Now, how does that feel? Feel like knocking off another task?
Go for it!
Day 5:
Microtasks can be used as a
method of completing projects in time spans of 5 minutes or less. You can
handle almost anything for 5 minutes!
Coming up with those tiny
tasks requires thinking up front, when you're putting the task on your list. breaking
down your tasks into a series of single actions creates more than one task for
items that look like regular to-do's but turn out to be small projects. For
example, replacing a broken glass table top involves measuring the table,
calling and ordering a replacement, and possibly going to pick it up, which
brings us to the next guideline.
When you have a multi-action
task - such as replacing the glass table top - keep only its next sequential
action on your to-do list. When the task is complete, refer to your project
list (again, separate from to-do's) and add its next action to your to-do list.
At any given moment, your to-do list should contain only the next logical
action for all your working projects. That's it - just one bite-sized step in
each undertaking.
Imagine that you're at your
desk, you have a spare 10 minutes before a meeting, and you pull out the to-do
list. You could get an item done from the doable list. You could email a friend
about a dentist referral, or check the university website for fall class offerings.
No one wants to have an
endless to-do list. It's overwhelming. Instead, keep your to-do list under 10
items. Does that sound like too short a list? Your to-do list should be short,
to-the-point commitments that involve no more deciding as to whether you're
actually serious about doing them.
Every day, two to five tasks
get checked off, and two to five tasks get added. Remember, your to-do list is
a working document, not some showy testament to organization that quietly
gathers dust because you're off doing real work that's not written down
anywhere.
Now go home and enjoy your
weekend!
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