Which Tasks Matter Most

The first thing that I do is try to work on what is most pressing. Right now I have a project that I don’t have much information for, so I have to read other website and try to get information that way.

Then later I can answer phone calls, do errands and maintain my blog in the afternoon.

I also do not allow myself to get on Twitter for the day until my personal blog post is done. I answer nothing personal after 9 a.m. and that seems to help me a bit. My phone is always on, so I do text message, but no personal phone calls during work hours unless it is an emergency.

I have gotten much more structured and it is really helping me. Now all I need is a laptop so I can stop being in this house all the time!

They (tasks) all matter. I usually start with:

Core Tasks above all -Family & Health( I’ll admit it, health sometimes falls between the cracks. But I guess this is not unusual.)Tasks for clients first (Can you argue against that?)Tasks for CEO or C-Suite (They sign the paycheck)Next depends on resources (time, energy & materials)

I say you should ficus on more content and what makes you money.

“Black Seo Guy “Signing Off”

I constantly find myself with a fairly large task list. For me the organisation of tasks is quite fluid. The tasks associated with the company I’m with always take priority but then I’m always careful of giving people promises. At times when work becomes busier it is necessary to delay my personal tasks (writing articles, blog posts, etc). Essentially a mix of different tasks keeps my brain active. If I find myself with free time then I will make my own work. In my world there is no such thing as “nothing to do”.

Anytime I have a pileup of tasks like that, I just look at which ones are beneficial to only me, and which ones others are depending on and go for the latter first, then work my way down the list.

This is something I struggle with everyday. I manage over 20 peoples something or other and that doesn’t include all my industry friends who call me for advice/guidance (uh-hmm conversations–brain picking).

I am always certain I am doing SOMETHING wrong.

Not for this to sound too weird, but it’s great to know that someone like you admits that this isn’t easy. I think we all spend a lot of time comparing our insides to other peoples outsides.

I always think everyone has it easier than me and that I am doing it “wrong”.

Thanks for the post and reminding me about the “To Do” list :) One thing I can say is that my “forgetters” not broken!

Peace—jNo

I run into this quite often. Even once I triage them and weed out the “nice to do” and “should do” the “must do” list is still pretty big. Because I HATE wasting time stuck in deciding what is “most important” among “important” things, I just pick the one I feel like working on the most. I use the autofocus system, which is really good at reducing the “deciding” time. Look at the list, pick something that I a. have the resources for, and b. feel like doing, and then I do it. Until I’m either a. done, or b, bored, and then I pick something else. E-mails, and all the “should do but not critical” stuff gets done at lunch time, or if I hit a creative block.

From the successful people I study (Bob Proctor and his mentor, Earl Nightengale), they discuss listing the top 6 things you must do each day and placing them in order of their importance. Then focus on #1 and don’t change your activity until you’re done. Move onto #2 but don’t pay any attention to #1 or #3 and so on…

I take a bit different approach on this, and for many of my clients what you are outlining is their key problem – people love to make long to-do lists, and set up so many tasks that they do not feel they are making progress, regardless of who it’s for, customers, prospects, simple keeping up to date tasks, etc.

Instead of looking at this from a daily perspective, I set monthly goals for my business that I review every 30 days; I limit these to 3 overall goals, because any more are not really doable, and these form the basis of my strategy,…and keeping myself healthy, happy, and fit, and my family, is always on this list and never changes.

My daily activities are based on how they serve my overall strategies, and if those strategies are working or simply good ideas that don’t execute well, or aren’t received. So when I look at blog posts, email, all the tasks I have to do, it flows from the strategy, not from the task…to me doing to do lists on a daily basis is often like tactics without strategy.

Finally, I set specific time limits on these, and try to keep my writing for times when I can give complete focus; also anyone who pays me gets top priority, but I also have folks helping me who give instant response, because there are many fire alarms sent out on a daily basis, while in reality they are illusions, and my folks help on that.

Summing up, move from strategies serving your business and watch getting too spread out, your work for everyone will suffer; for daily tactics set time limits and walk away (I know certain days this is not possible, just roll with it), and finally, prioritize and try to limit what you do on a daily basis, less is more and less is better…whew, my time limit here is up ;-)

Chris, thank you and to your supporters here for bringing forward such a huge weight that sits on most peoples’ shoulders. I really enjoyed reading your blog post and the ensuing comments.

For me, it is all about work/life balance. I work for a Time Management training company (@PriorityMgt) (check my profile for more information) and the one thing I really love about my career, is the difference our company makes to peoples’ lives: task management is a big part of this, as is ensuring your priorities in life are catered for (whether it is personal, sport, career, religion, family, etc).

For me, the 80/20 rule also works (20% of your tasks will reveal 80% of your results).

Thanks again for sharing.

Thomas

Sometimes the only way is to do what you can control. Though, you are so dead on about the solo tasks. There is an immense amount of isolation that does exist but attacking what you can do is better than doing nothing as nothing leads to further isolation. In the end, it all comes together as stuff is getting done.

A serious answer?

To me business theory, all the practices, all the whatever.. though I love do kinda love the stuff, there’s a certain level at which I think it’s kinda all wrong. I think really.. it’s all about psychology. Maybe you have to be an intuitive, I don’t know, but to me it’s like put on the blind fold, like Luke Skywalker.. and go deep.

There is within all of us, many us. Within us there are many wills. We have kind of conscious attitude.. where we identify our selves with whichever will is winning the battle to be the dominant will.. and this in turn shapes our value system.. the way those wills are kind of.. in a self evolving-ish, and somewhat subliminally self programmed kind of way.. organized.

But below this.. deeper still.. well there’s the issue of the life we didn’t live.. of all those wills.. of all that we could be, of all that we are but have forgotten. And then, deeper still, we could say the same sorta thing about our culture, our civilization.. which in many ways forms a kind of foundation for much or.. our consciousness.. and how them wills are organized within us.

Then.. at the ultimate depth.. is the ultimate.. it’s.. beyond the field of time.. it’s the eternal.. truth.. its what religious folks used to call God.. or I guess some of them, the few who actually know something about it, still call God.. but anyway.. just like if you were to think of values independent of experience.. or.. the context of life.. if you just dream kind of far.

These 3 things are tightly interwoven in the fabric of us.. The trouble, from my perspective, is that business.. and in particular.. the whole set of issues of there being all these demands placed on our time and attention.. all help keep us on the surface level.. and missing the rest of the story.. and if we live only from this surface level.. we can loose our souls.. we can loose the true path of our lives.. the path of meaning.. the kind of vocational thing of what it is we should be doing on this planet.

So I think the most important thing.. is this deeper stuff.. how it becomes in us. There’s all this talk.. we often think it’s kinda kinds day dreaming.. about this potential as humans that we have.. how we only use x percent. But the truth is that in all those unlived lives within us, that are unlived because of the choices we make.. because of the value system we hold in how we relate both to the world and our selves.. we have chosen to leave our potential behind..

So.. my feeling is that well.. that its complicated.. and there’s different sorta life stages.. and crisis’s that can crash into our lives.. and shift things around but… for me.. if you want to win in business.. to put it a certain way.. a part of the question is what of that potential have you cultivated… and it’s not just as simple as where you are versus the markets as you see them.

What are the markets as you see them? I think you have to on some level say they are great mysteries. Sure, we have the best measurement / analytical tools in the history of humanity but.. those tools are good at quantifying some stuff, and not able to quantify other stuff so well.. never mind the question of just what are you to quantify.

So.. in terms of the long range question of you’re own becoming.. as it relates to your own potential, the unlived lives.. and the issue of what will help you be more competative.. how you answer that… well I think that’s a pretty deep question.

So.. for me.. I should just try and get to a point soon here somewhere.. but for me it’s like I have this really deep sense of what I’m supposed to do. This sense.. is something that goes far beyond my own consciousness.. it’s something that began coming to me as a small child.. much of it I’ve forgotten at this point…

So my project is in part to dialog with all these issues, to confront them, go deeper.. and I do this with my art and thought and what not. To be this is the supreme task. The most challenging thing you can try and do with your life. But.. it’s also the task that.. well if you were to look at it from a business perspective.. has the potential the yield something amazing.

When we talk about skating to where the hocky puck is going as a pose to where it is, what is it that makes the puck go here or there? I think.. well.. its those 3 layers I was talking about.. operating on a systemic kind of level.. it’s evolution. So, if you dialog with these things.. it’s like you can kinda transcend the hocky puck issue.

To put it another way.. this is the hero’s journey.. this is the way all truly great things happen. And.. great things.. are kinda more important then money, at least to me.. I mean there’s the question of what is your personal sense of what success is.. but also.. you can very often make more money this way.. and it certain is a good way of “not sweating the small stuff.

Today, as I respond to your blog post, I haven’t gotten out of bed yet, it’s not quite 3 pm.. what I’m going to do is go down to my computer.. see what’s going on with a particular music making month social media campaign.. that I think is the best thing any of the music production software developers / companies.. has yet done in social media.. and I’m going to get back to work on one of the two music project I’m working on.. and I’m going to spend the day going between those 2 things and dreaming.

The main goal is to think deeper about how I think about social, to get better with my tools, to get better at the music making stuff, and.. as my art is about a confrontation with said 3 things.. to see what that confrontation yields..

Somewhere along the line I’ll probably answer a few emails.. and with any luck.. work on cleaning up the house a bit.. but that may wait for another day..

I don’t know.. I hope this adds something to how you / we / whoever.. thinks about this stuff.

cheers

My day is organized the day before it. And if something goes wrong in between, its just a matter of “oops, I missed that one”.