That's why at some point, most of us will find shortcuts to maximize our efficiency to get ahead. After all, if we all need to get to the same destination, you don’t want to be the one taking the long road. Unfortunately, sometimes we’ll adopt systems and strategies that don’t actually propel us forward the way we think they do.
10 comments:
This was a good article, a little surprising but good. I did expect the use of apps for organizing your work would be a bad thing. I believe there have been other articles on this blog that talk about how wonderful apps are for getting organized. The part about not making the most important or largest task the first on your to-do list is really great advice. I know from experience if I make the biggest assignment the first thing I have to I will put it off which in turn causes me to put off doing the rest of my list. The multi-tasking one I get the most out of though. When I am trying to accomplish ten things at once they all take longer to accomplish and none get done at a quality I am proud of. Take things one at a time and focus your attention on it, it will get done faster and better.
Productivity is something that each individual has a different definition for. There are no right or wrong definitions. However, there are some that are more effect than others. What works for me is being able to obtain information I needed to accomplish my task. The best way I have found to do this is to use the reminders application that works with iCloud. This syncs all my information and allows me to see it on both my phone and computer. The nicest part is that it presents the tasks in a checklist form. This really works for me.
I'm definitely guilty of #3, delaying decision making on small tasks. I think the two minute rule that the article suggests is rather genius. All the time, I put off making a decision in order to revisit it at the "proper time". Generally I find the "proper time" to be when I'm making a whole flurry of decisions and figuring out the whole flow of a project.
That being said, perhaps I would be more effective by making decisions as they come, rather than dumping them into a pile to sort out later.
This article makes some great points, and is better than most “Get organized!” articles I see floating around. I definitely agree with the multitasking thing, I personally hate to do several things at once and never believe people who tell me that they can multitask efficiently. The first thing on the list is something that I was guilty of last year, and now that I’ve fixed that habit, I really appreciate the difference.
Ever since reading “Getting Things Done”, I’ve made an effort to use my to-do list as efficiently as possible. While I didn’t set up a whole task processing system (maybe some day…), I always write down EVERYTHING that I need to do the second I come up with it or get the task assigned, and it’s definitely helped me a lot. I do the same thing with my homework assignments and my calendar, and it feels great to know that my to-do list, my homework calendar and my “busy” calendar collectively hold all the information I need to get things done.
One of the things I have struggled with in the past is the "Putting the most important task at the top of your to do list." Often, I find that I end up scaring myself off of completing a task simply because I know it is the most important task I need to complete at that given time. Over the past few years, I realized that organizing my to do lists in order of important is not effective. Now, I simply organize my to do list based on class, production, etc. The other four points in this article are also valid, and I have grown to agree with David Allen's theories more and more ever since I read "Getting Things Done" in Production Resource Management. The last point in this article, however, seems a bit contradictory to me. David Allen is all about being able to get all of the things in your life done effectively, no matter how much you have on your plate. While I do think sometimes people need to learn how to say "no," I think they should be saying "yes" at least 95% of the time. With the skills that David Allen and this article teach, saying yes should not be an issue.
Wow. This article really changed how I look at organizing my life. While I was reading this article, I realized that I do a couple of the things that the article suggests, such as not memorizing my to-do list. I would suggest doing that based off of personal experience. I feel less stressed out when I am not bogged down by ALL THE THINGS I HAVE TO DO TODAY. Going through the list a couple times a day is enough I need to keep on track and focused on the task in front of me. As for note-taking software, I could never get into using it consistently, I now I feel like I have a reason not to. Plus, computers hate me anyway. I'll stick with my physical planner and a the reminders app on my phone. Keep it simple.
I think this article is supposed to come across as surprising, but I've actually heard basically all of these suggestions before. I'm always surprised that multitasking is still such an issue because its something that their has been extensive studies about showing the negatives, yet our generation with our devices seems to always get pulled back into its grip. The idea to not put the most important thing at the top reminds me of the swiss cheese method of task management from last year. I often use this personally in my work also so that I'm not as drawn into procrastinating starting the project.
Sitting at my computer at 4:46 Sunday afternoon, writing my comments, this article specifically caught my eye.
I think all 5 of these tips are useful, but 4 and 5 seem to be particularly important to us in the entertainment industry.
I know that I like to always say yes when somebody asks me to do something. Especially things that don’t take much time at all, or things that are far in the future. But I’ve learned that “nothing gets done in less than 30 minutes” is applicable to more than just building a show. All the little yes’s really add up.
I think the article makes a good case for staying focused on the bottom line and only committing to things that you can and should commit to.
Multitasking is also something that we all do. It’s definitely a necessity, but I think that with planning and scheduling and delegation we can probably minimize how much we take on at once.
I thought this article was really helpful. It was interesting to me how many of the no-nos on this list were management strategies that had been given to me before. Things like using app to manage your schedule and delaying making decisions are raved about in other time management articles, so it was nice to get another perspective. I actually just switched back to using a notebooks and a planner as opposed to apps to organize myself, and I do feel more on top of my work and less like a procrastinator.
1. Love the idea of keeping my to-do list out of my head to make room for the actual intuition that’s supposed to go on in there, but definitely not practical.
2. Great thought to keep the most time-consuming/difficult task at the bottom of your to-do list (I often do my hardest tasks last), but I’m not sure I totally agree with the perfectionist reasoning. My biggest issue here is that if the biggest thing is at the top of my list, I spend all of my time on that and do not make room for the little things. If I get the little things out of the way first, then I will have a limited amount of time left for the big project- forcing me to do it in a smaller amount of time.
3. The argument against task-management software, which seems to include hand-written notes, appears to be a little scattered. I’m not sure it makes much sense that if you write something down, the “stuff will go back into your head.” Of course it will. I think we said in the beginning of the article that this is one of our problems. So if it’s going to be in my head anyway, why shouldn’t I write it down as well? I won’t forget it that way, at least.
4. I absolutely agree that decisions need to be made very quickly. Often times, as stated in the article, a person can revisit the choice that needs to be made and attach different meaning to it than was originally involved. I chose to come to Carnegie Mellon on a whim, so there’s an interesting example. I showed up, I loved it, I didn’t second guess it. Early Decision, the day before the deadline. Boom. Done. Best decision I’ve ever made.
5. (There are two #4s in this article…) I find the difference between “I can’t” and “I don’t” to be very, very interesting here. There’s a very fine line between the two words, but obviously a huge shift in meaning. It is definitely easier on me, I think, to be telling people I don’t have time to do something rather than that I can’t do something. In that way, I don’t place any sort of restriction on myself, but instead exercise my ability to turn down the things that might push me over.
6. I definitely understand the “set shifting” comment here, though sometimes I find that it can be a bad thing. If I am working on one subject or thinking about one kind of thing, it can be very difficult for me to shift my focus to the next task. For example, if I’m in the mood to write my PTM comments, I probably won’t be interested in tackling the anatomy of the human body directly afterward. Fact of life. Usually fine, sometimes destructive.
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