The first thing I do when I sit down on the train is to look at my list of to do items for the day. My method of managing this list includes duplicating the previous day’s action items to the current day so I always have a record of past activities. With a fresh list in hand I look to prune it, removing items and repositioning others so I can structure my forthcoming day in a way that I can get the most done. Productivity is top of mind because experience tells me if I don’t take an active role of controlling my day, my day will control me. How many of us sit down to do work and are almost immediately bombarded with messages. Email inquiries, meeting requests, Slack notifications, the list goes on. This is nothing new nor unique to my situation, it is a common experience many of us share each and every day. This is one of the reasons the “Productivity Economy” is—and has been—so popular for so long. Countless books, videos, podcasts, Twitter, and Instagram feeds are all to happy to tell you—or sell you—on the idea that less is more. Trim the fat. Cut out the waste. Say no. These are tried and true methods by which we can, and do, look to take back our time. Reclaim control of our day. In order to do any of this we must do two simple things:
- Make a list
- Prioritize that list
First things first
In order do effectively prioritize our activities we must first get everything that is in our head out in front of us. Contrary to what many software applications would love to sell you, the tools you use to document your list doesn’t matter. I’ve tried them all and the best user experience always comes down the simplest one that works for you. I use a text editing application called Notational Velocity that syncs with an mobile app called SimpleNote I have on my iPhone. It gives me the flexibility to format the list—or any other notes I need to take—in the way I need it at the time I need it. While I lament that a digital solution is void of the satisfaction of running the graphite of ones sharp pencil through a handwritten note, it is the price to pay to have access to the list from any digital device.
Get into groups
My list of tasks are organized into five distinct groups that I picked up from the 99U book Manage Your Day-to-Day by Jocelyn K. Glei:
- Critical. The items that go into this category should be short and actionable for the day. Include no more than three-to-five and ruthlessly prioritize so you are confident you can work through this group. Feel like a task may to too big for one category? Break it up into smaller pieces and get it done.
- Important. Action items in this section are the ones that first fall out of the Critical area. They are—as the label describes—important to you and you want them to stay top of mind. They just may not be as urgent as those items in the critical category.
- Nice to have. Lists are inherently tools we use to not forget things. This category serves that purpose well. It is important to you and includes items that you want to accomplish but are not able to at the moment. Let’s not forget about them. Better yet, let’s revisit them on a frequent basis and decide if now is the right time to elevate them to the next level. This should not be a dumping ground for things to do but a thoughtful group of activities that are intended to help you achieve your goals.
- Eliminate. Sometimes it feels that our todo list is a never ending stream of tasks and requests. If we stop and ask ourselves “Why is this important and how will it help me achieve my goals” then we will find ourselves in a position to decide what is unnecessary. While our ambitions may be limitless our time is not. Peter Drucker says this best: “There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which could not be done at all.”
- Delegate. Wonderful category. Anything that you can delegate, go delegate. Give it to someone else—particularly if you think they may do a better job at it than you. Look at activity from a high level and understand that what is important is getting the task done well and in a timely manner.
An editor’s eye
One of the most important skills to hone as someone who makes things is to develop the skill to edit. It allows the creator to see the whole picture and shape the work without getting lost in the detail. Writer Tracy Kidder and editor Richard Todd talk about this in their book Good Prose: The Art of Nonfiction where they state “(Editors) need to see its structure in totality before they become involved in minutiae.” Editorship is a craft all its own but we can all practice key tenants to become more efficient at what we do and make work more meaningful to us. Famed film editor Walter Murch talks about this in his book on the subject In the Blink of an Eye: A Perspective on Film Editing where he states “Editing is not so much as putting together as discovering a path.” We are all on a path and the pitfalls of distraction will keep us from where we want to go. Make your list of priorities your guidebook to show you the way.