How To Get Today’s Top Tasks Done

04 Feb How To Get Today’s Top Tasks Done

I’ve stumbled upon an awesome technique to get me through the day on those days that I have just too much to do and can’t figure out where to start or what to do first.  I write each task, to-do, and action step on an individual post it.  Then I arrange them in order of:

• Do what’s most time sensitive first
• Do what’s most important next
• Do what has to come before something else before I can do the other thing

It does take a few minutes to write out the post-its, but it’s a very useful exercise.  By doing this I am:

• Getting clear on today’s priorities
• Narrowing my focus on the most important things
• Letting go of those things on my list that really aren’t important.

Useful Hints:

• I’m loving these new 2×2 post-its
• Post so you can see from your desk
• Use a marker so you can read it from your desk
• Color code if it makes you happy
• If you have a lot of the same task to do, (phone calls, invites, notes to send) break it out in smaller groups (a few at a time – with each batch getting it’s own post-it) so it’s not so overwhelming.

The Best Part:

• Taking down each post-it feels so good
• You have a visual picture to get you through the day
• At the end of the day when there is only a few post-its left you feel so good

And as much as I love my technology, sometimes low-tech is the best way to fly.  Try it and let me know how it works for you.