The Deliberate Task List: Controlling What I Do
One of the things from Getting Things Done that doesn’t work for me is the long lists of tasks split into contexts. It encourages me to take on too much for a current day. If I put my tasks on my calendar, I would see that there aren’t enough hours, but this requires an accuracy in estimating tasks that even after years of practice I don’t posses. The end result of putting too much on myself is that I get overwhelmed by what I want to do, and shut down; or I overextend myself and go past my energy limits, which in turn leads to long periods of not doing anything. Neither one is productive. Over the past few weeks I have been experiencing what I call “planner blindness”. I’ve been using a modified bullet journal system with time blocking on my iPad for months. It’s flexible…
What To Do When You Don’t Have Enough Time
Have you ever been faced with a huge task list, and the sinking feeling that there was no way on earth to get it all done? This happens to me more often than not. I don't know if it's because I think I can get more done than I can actually do, or because I am too busy or because I am just too lazy to get my butt into gear. But it happens all the time. And here is how I deal with it.
Using a Bullet Journal to Get a Grip on Time
Bullet Journaling is a very simple and straightforward way to capture notes, ideas and events. I love the simplicity of it, but out of the box it doesn't provide a way to do traditional time- and task-based planning. That's probably why it's called a bullet journal and not a bullet planner. That being said, traditional planners don't work all that well for me because I need a way to set my tasks out so that I can visualize the timing of how they will get done. Doing the super-fancy graphical spreads I see on Pinterest is beyond my skill and patience, so I have adjusted my own methods to be simple, yet meet my needs. Today I will show you how I use my bullet journal to get a grip on time.
My Typical Day
One of the things I get asked - a lot - is how I manage to get things done. People want to see my schedule to see what magic I work to be productive. There is no magic - it is simply regular routines that help me keep on track. Today I will share with you my typical day so you can see what those routines are.
Getting Social Media Under Control
How much time do you spend on social media? Is it something you choose to do consciously, or are your prompted to do it by notification? Or has it become a default behavior? Today we look at how to get social media under control.
Some Thoughts On Attention
I recently listened to the TED Radio Hour on Attention. And then I listened again, paying much closer attention. What I heard has given me a lot of food for thought.
Dos And Don’ts of Calendar Use
The calendar is one of the basic tools of any time management and productivity strategy. Yet people don't use them to their full potential. These dos and don'ts of calendar use will help you get the most out of your calendar - or get you started on the right path.
Tell Your Time: Short, Simple, Do-Able Method
I've always wondered why so many books on time management were just overly-long rehashing of warmed-over ideas. Tell Your Time is none of these. A short and straightforward book, it takes some older concepts and combines them to help you figure out how to manage your time. Today's article is about this small and powerful book.
