Trying to coordinate 2 organizations (FoodCycles more, Sunny Lam & Associates Consulting less at the moment) takes a lot of work. There’s a ton of things to keep track of. Having this level of commitment requires a high level of task management.
There are 3 things that I use to keep on top of things: the back of recycled business cards, Omnifocus and constant review. Yes, the last one is a murderous juggling act I can assure you.
THE BACK OF THE CARD
What Does This Do For You?
Focus and Remind You of Your Daily/Big Priorities
In a previous post on recycled business cards I told you how you could turn it into a really small PDA. The other great use is a solid priority task list right beside the computer.
What I do in the morning or at night on a regular basis is figure out what the most important tasks or projects are in the next little while. If it’s not important anymore (or finished) I cross it off and transfer it into Omnifocus.
This is my nod to the human love of being able to touch something real.
OMNIFOCUS: THE SWISS ARMY KNIFE
The Quick Entry Box that Omnifocus Uses
What Does This Do For You?
Clear Your Mind, Forget Nothing, Feel Confident
Unfortunately to handle the thousands of action items that are on the plate I’ve got to use an electronic system. I’ve tried a lot of productivity management software (this includes Things, using MindJet MindManager mind maps, Evernote documents, etc.). There is definitely one that stands out among them: that’s Omnifocus (available only on the Mac).
With it I can easily enter thoughts and actions that come up in my brain during a workout, on the subway or during other computer projects the moment they happen. I jot it into the Quick Entry Box, assign it to a project (i.e. FoodCycles membership), context (i.e. how or who is doing it) and due date to review it and hit enter.
How does this help? It means that while I’m working or doing something else I don’t feel like I have to work on the new and important task that comes to mind. I can leave it to later and I won’t worry about forgetting. It also means I empty my mind of distractions.
CONSTANT REVIEW
What Does This Do For You?
Stay Confident in Your System, Stay Disciplined by Practicing Constantly
For any system to work you have to stick with it. You have to be comfortable with it. You have to trust it.
You’re not going to finish every task that comes into your brain. Trust me, it’s insane to think you can. What you need to do is to make sure that the tools I mentioned before are working, that you are checking the important tasks on a regular basis and that you are finding ways to improve the system.
The goal is to have an empty mind that has space to handle anything that comes its way. To do that you have to keep it empty regularly. In the philosophy of the Tao, everything comes from nothing because only in nothing does space exist for something.
Or even easier: a clogged pipe in your toilet is a bad idea. Keep the system working right. Be smart about what goes through the drains.
If you need more ideas on tools to stay sharp get in touch with us by email, Facebook or Twitter. We’d be happy to give whatever useful advice we can offer.
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