I’ve always been a fan of To-Do lists to keep track on tasks I need/want to get done and have tried lots of versions (including manual paper lists, iPhone apps and To-Do software for my computer). My current favourite is Todoist which is available in lots of formats and is superb.
If the only thing you took from this article was starting a daily process of…
- Create a to-do list
- Re-order it so that the most important task is at the top, then the 2nd most important etc
- Work on the top item until it is completed
- Move on to the next item, and so on.
… then I would 100% guarantee that you’d achieve more than anyone who just starts their day and just does tasks when they feel like it!
However, whilst I add tasks to Todoist every single day, my problem is that once I start a task I feel no great rush to get a task done. I’ve effectively got all day to do it if I wish and then I’ll just move to the next task whenever that one is done. I’m sure you can see that having this frame of mind is not ideal for getting absolutely loads done each day!
Thankfully, this is where time blocking comes in!
With time blocking I give myself a limited amount of time to do a task – the time slot is actually blocked out in my diary for that amount of time – and the next task is blocked out straight after it. Here’s a photo of my time blocking for last week – unfortunately I was completing my year end accounts so there’s lots of accounts time blocks – but you’ll get the idea of how I block my time. (Just click the image to see a larger version).
Now for me to succeed in my day I need to get each task done in it’s allotted time block and it’s amazing how much more focused I am. I just have to get one task completed in it’s time block… because another is following up right behind it.
It sounds very simple, and it is, but it’s amazing the difference it has made to my day and how much I can achieve in the time I have available!
As you’d expect, the writing of this blog post is time blocked (in my 11.30am to 12.30pm time slot) and it has to be completed by 12.30pm because at that time I need to write a newsletter for one of my restaurant clients. I bet you this post is finished by 12.30!
For my time blocking I use a lovely A4 day planner called The Passion Planner (from http://www.passionplanner.com/ ) but you could use any diary that has the hours for each day marked in it, or even make or print your own. Passion Planner has free downloadable versions if you’d like to print your own – just look for the Download link in their top menu.
Whether you have the full day to get your productive tasks done, or just a few hours in the evening, I’m convinced that time blocking will help you to achieve far more. It certainly has for me!
If you’ve tried time blocking or have any thoughts on it, just leave a comment below. And if you give it a try now and find that you too get lots more done, then I’d love to hear of your successes!
Best regards,
ps I’m just publishing this post and it’s 12.20pm. I’ve now got ten minutes spare for a coffee! 🙂