Getting It All Done, Part 2 (Some “Best Practices”) – TPW461

Let's follow up on last week’s episode and talk a bit more about getting it all done. What do the "experts" have to say about best practices? What are some of the best practices for getting it all done? Last week we started a 2-part series on getting it all done--not doing it all, but deciding what matters most to us and then getting all of that done. Last week I shared some things I do personally to help me get the things done that I need and want to do. This week we’ll be talking about some so-called best practices--some approaches, strategies, and tools recommended by many of those we might call productivity experts. 1. Prioritization A key to getting it all done is being intentional about what we do. Learn to evaluate the tasks you’re doing and, to the extent you can, spend your best time, energy, and attention on the ones that are highest priority for you.  One tool that can help is called The Eisenhower Matrix. This is a matrix with four quadrants. Using these quadrants we can categorize tasks as Urgent & Important, Not Urgent but Important, Urgent but Not Important, and Neither. To make the most progress toward accomplishing your highest-priority objectives, focus your time, energy, and attention primarily on the Important tasks. from Introducing the Eisenhower Matrix (https://www.eisenhower.me/eisenhower-matrix) 2. Time Management As we’ve discussed before, this might better be thought of as energy management or attention management. Learning when we’re best able to focus on work that requires it, we can then allocate our time accordingly. For example, if, like many people, you’re more energetic and focused in the morning, use those hours for tasks that require energy and focus, and save the droopy afternoon hours for administrative tasks.  One tool that can help with this is The Pomodoro Technique: Work intensely for 25 minutes, then take a 5-minute break. Repeat. Every fourth break should be longer (15 minutes).  3. Task Management Most of us have far more things we need or want to do than we have time to do them. Managing those tasks is a primary piece of a productive life--keeping track of what needs to be done, figuring out what’s needed in order to get them done, deciding when we’ll do them, all are important. We recently talked about this in more depth in our series on the GTD Methodology (see episodes 440 - 446 for more). Some of the tools and approaches that can help us manage and accomplish tasks efficiently and effectively include:  To-Do Lists: Start each day by writing down the tasks you need to accomplish. Digital tools like Trello, Todoist, or even simple sticky notes can be used.  Task Batching: Group similar tasks together to tackle them in one go, minimizing the mental load of switching tasks. Whether it’s cleaning all the bathrooms, returning phone calls, prepping all the veggies for the week’s meals, or any other group of tasks that require the same tools and attention, batching them saves time both because you’re not losing time to task-switching and because you have one set-up and clean-up rather than many.   Time Blocking: Allocate specific blocks of time in your day for specific activities or tasks.