Doctors? Dentists? Car mechanics? Haircuts? My guess is that you set appointments to take care of all these regular aspects of life. What about work meetings that you have either initiated or are invited to? They get scheduled.
So, what tasks do you put off? Perhaps a to-do list which can give you perspective on all that you need to accomplish to complete projects and achieve the results you want to realize. Take a look at your calendar and start putting some of these tasks at scheduled times.
Do you often find yourself perpetually putting off tasks that should be done today...then tomorrow...then the next day...then the day after that? And maybe a to-do list just isn’t helping you get things done?
Try timeboxing instead. Timeboxing was coined by James Martin in his book Rapid Application Development to improve project management. It originated as a key component of Agile methodologies, inspired by Parkinson’s Law, which states that work expands to fill the time available for its completion. By timeboxing a task for 30 minutes or a full hour, you are also limiting the amount of time you will work on something on a particular day. The time limit might pressure you to focus and complete the task. Alternatively, you could identify what needs to be done, and if not completed in one time slot, then you could become aware of how much time you will need for one more “appointment”.
Some other benefits are that timeboxing removes the element of choice. Every day, we have many things to decide, and timeboxing eliminates the need to choose between a multitude of tasks on a seemingly never-ending to-do list. It also helps with prioritization.
Faced with a long list, we often zero in on the easy ones or the ones we perceive as urgent. By using this scheduling technique, what is important can rise to the surface. It also allows you to track what you’ve accomplished, for yourself and/or supervisor. You don’t have to rely on your memory or keep a running list of crossed-off tasks. Instead, you can refer to when you need a concrete record of the projects you’ve completed.
Try it and let me know how this helps you. I would really like to know.
"The key is not to prioritize what's on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities." - Stephen R. Covey