“Feeling overwhelmed with your to do list? Don’t know what to do next? Is your brain scrambled? (like an egg)” Sounds like you need to get beyond the to do list stage (grins)
The article below is more of an introduction into the ways of “getting things done”. At some point in our busy modern lives we find that we’re hit with so much information that few can keep track of it in a notebook (at some point).
Of course, writing it down by hand is great for memory. I haven’t seen anything yet that indicates whether typing is quite the same unless you train yourself to do it (such as me perhaps). I’ve been noticing a major difference in the people I help with organization or productivity in terms of book/analog systems and digital systems. The majority use book systems while few use electronic systems (I use an electronic system – more later one day).
Collecting the information is one thing. One long “to do list” doesn’t really help unless you then proceed to b) organize it into projects c) act on it d) review whatever else isn’t done (this just brushes the surface of the logic). That takes discipline and a body that’s in fit condition (both go hand in hand).
Which system is better? Really depends on what you’ve focused on mastering.
In Brief: Are you a pen and paper guy or gal? There’s certainly a certain charm to the touch of pen to paper. Really helps that memory for some. Maybe it’s just that I’m a part of a different generation or more logic oriented that I do electronic…
PAPER:
_____ Your thinking flows easiest when writing things down, pen to paper.
_____ Physically writing things out helps you remember them better.
_____ You tend to remember where on a page you wrote something. (“The phone number is green ink in the upper right-hand corner of the page.”)
In Brief: Maybe you like using both digital and analog? Personally I’ve found that somewhat tough. I do take little notepad jots – however I enter them immediately into the system. Less chance of things getting lost.
DIGITAL:
_____ Your thinking flows easily typing directly into a keyboard or through a stylus.
_____ You have a good memory for dates, numbers, and chronology.
______ You have constant and easy access to your computer list for regular reference and updating.
Pens, paper, computers are nothing more than tools. The real gem is the mind and spirit that wields them. The lynch pin. The foundation. The coup d’etat (okay maybe not the latter).
Originally Posted to Echo of a Candle Flame: http://sunnylam.wordpress.com/
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How Do You Keep Track of Your To-Do List?
I spent a couple of days last week onsite at a client’s headquarters, seeing individual managers for back-to-back, one-on-one time management sessions. Highly accomplished global executives, almost every one of them struggled with finding a good and reliable system for keeping track of everything they needed to do. Meetings were easy: kept on their calendar and managed by their assistants. But the calls, writing projects, meeting preparation, reading, research, and long-term initiatives were far more elusive.
Scattering your tasks and reminders between a variety of post-it’s, notepads, multiple planners and calendars, and your email box is a recipe for time management trouble. Hours are wasted transferring information, second guessing what to do next, and worrying about what might be forgotten.
Having a single, reliable to-do system puts you in command of your days by providing a complete picture of everything you need to do. Prioritization is easier when you have full context. And you are more confident staying focused on the moment, when everything is present and accounted for.
Your to-do list becomes an extension of yourself, so you have to pick the right one for you. What have you chosen for yourself? Do you like paper or electronic? Do you keep a master to-do list, integrate your calls and actions into your daily plans? Do you keep your own to-do list, or get help from your assistant?
Haven’t found the right system yet? Decide whether paper or electronic system is the best fit for you by answering the following questions.
PAPER:
_____ Your thinking flows easiest when writing things down, pen to paper.
_____ Physically writing things out helps you remember them better.
_____ You tend to remember where on a page you wrote something. (“The phone number is green ink in the upper right-hand corner of the page.”)
DIGITAL:
_____ Your thinking flows easily typing directly into a keyboard or through a stylus.
_____ You have a good memory for dates, numbers, and chronology.
______ You have constant and easy access to your computer list for regular reference and updating.
Time Management 10/07/08 9:46 AM
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Sunny Lam
Sunny Lam & Associates (MES)
t: 416 845 0818
e: Get Email
http://www.linkedin.com/in/sunnylam
Project Planning and Action
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