Lent 2021

It’s been the tradition on this blog for the last few years to run a Lenten Challenge to see who can stick to the same time management method for the whole of Lent. 

I’m thinking of changing it slightly this Lent to who can maintain the method described in the previous post for the whole of Lent. And the prize (which is only the glory of having won) will go to the person who best describes their experience. The entries will be judged by an impartial panel consisting so far of me.

Reactions to this in the comments please.

LENT IS ONLY FOUR WEEKS OFF. THE FIRST DAY OF LENT (ASH WEDNESDAY) IS ON 17 FEBRUARY.

Disclaimer: This is not intended to imply any religious affiliation or purpose whatsoever.

Comments

[vegheadjones]

Love everything about this post. I've been trying to use the question to build a 5/3 no list with timebursts. I am not sure I am asking the question correctly, but I am getting important things done.

I am also rereading the Secrets of Productive People, particularly the sections on questioning, such an interesting approach.

[Alan Baljeu]

The method of the previous post. Do you mean strictly asking the New Q with strict no list whatsoever? That's a step beyond what I would do. I have been using the question to some advantage in various ways but I’m not able to run it continuously with a list nor off-list. I find running through a list I will frequently slip into simple stand-out scanning. I just can’t stick the question at all times.

[Don R]

“A New Question” has been having an enormous impact on me in the last week and I feel it is only the beginning. For the longest time, I have been using list systems and trying to figure out how to actually DO what’s on the lists. This methods addresses the needed component of motivation! I haven’t even been using lists but the things I’ve worked on have drastically improved a few areas of life already. It has really changed how I think about doing things, which is really saying something after decades of trying to figure out how to actually get things done.

As for whether or not to use a list, I think the answer could be found by asking the question: would putting something on a list avoid a negative outcome? I think it can be used to make sure certain things don’t get missed. A lot of times, things can get done right away. (That’s all I’ve been doing so far.) Maybe it’s useful for brainstorming ideas for improvements.

[Alan Baljeu]

Am I resisting not using a list? Yes.

I haven't yet asked any question about adding an item to a list, but I do on occasion delete items for which I determine "not doing" is a completely acceptable course of inaction.

[Mark Forster]

Alan Baljeu:

Yes, what I mean is the method described in the previous post, which is not to use a list at all, nor to answer the question.

In other words: Ask question - act - ask question -act.

Reminders are fine. as in all my "no list" systems.

I shall be writing more about my own experiences with the question over the next month before the Challenge starts.

[Colin]

Hi Mark, I don't feel able to let go of the list to take part in the challenge as described. My work involves being asked to do lots of things, and they are not always do-able within the timeframe of my short term memory, so I would be too concerned about eg losing track of actions I've undertaken in meetings or tasks included in the latter part of my objectives for this quarter.
Not sure what you mean by "Reminders are fine, as in all my "no list" systems," unless you mean scheduling tasks into a calendar.
I would be happy to take a challenge of using the question [which I am currently extending as What am I resisting (the consequences of) not doing?] with eg the new AF2 variant.

[IanS]

Mark

Like Colin, I too have long been unsure how reminders work with no list systems. I don’t get how referring to a list of reminders makes it a no list system, and I’ve always shied away from no list systems for this reason. Could you please say a little about how reminders interface with no list systems.

Thanks.

[Aaron Hsu]

If I understand this correctly, then things like dynamic lists and reminders, as Mark says, should be fine. The key interesting element in this challenge for me is the "Ask question - act -repeat" loop. That's a fascinating loop for me.

For me, I think I'm up for it. I'd be willing to take something like this on. I'm extremely attracted by the potential of "low overhead" minimal systems, and this is a very neat one.

However, one thing I *do* do is a lot of journaling, including tracking what I do throughout the day, as part of the "awareness" practices Mark has described elsewhere. Technically, if I write down what I'm working on right now in a journal somewhere, that's sort of like the 1 entry no list system. As long as I can continue writing down my day and having a record of what I've worked on to review in the evening, without violating the challenge, then I'm excited and even eager to take on the challenge.

I see the journaling aspect not so much as running a list as simply very active recording practices, so I don't think this will interfere.

[Mark Forster]

All:

I'll be writing a blog post in the next day or so about the difference between a "list" and a "reminder" and how it applies to this system.

[Mark Forster]

Aaron Hsu:

I've recently myself re-started the practice of writing three pages of journal a day. That's about 1,000 words, give or take. From what you say my journal is less about recording than yours and more about exploring. Through it I will almost always come up with some new angle to explore or initiative to try, but not in the form of a list!

So, yes, I would see a journal like yours as complimentary to the process.

See this post from 2006:

http://markforster.squarespace.com/blog/2006/10/17/road-test-journaling-revisited.html (The comments are worth reading too).

Still true!

[Seraphim]

That was a great post on journaling.

I had a breakthrough with journaling when I started doing it with a recorder while going on walks, or sometimes when driving on the long desert highways here in Arizona. When I go outside and away from the computer and interminable phone meetings, my mind is much clearer and more relaxed, and my intuition is sharper. I get a lot more ideas, see a lot more connections, and remember the really important things more easily. When I find ideas popping into my head, I just start the recorder and capture it.

I usually don't ever listen to them again, but it's nice to know I *can* if I want to. Just the process of recording seems to prompt me to articulate my ideas more clearly. It has all the effects that Mark describes.

I have also tried using http://otter.ai -- if you drop your audio files there, it will transcribe them, and does a pretty good job. It's a paid service but it's worth it if you want to do your journaling this way, and don't mind exposing your innermost thoughts to a 3rd party service - saves a lot of typing.

[Aaron Hsu]

Mark:

Thanks for sharing the link! I have a few different forms of journaling that I use. Every night I fill out a paragraph of free form journaling in a five-year diary. I also track my daily time expenditures, weather, mood, and meals. I have my list of commitments/areas of focus on a Gantt chart that I use to fill out the time that I spend on each commitment during the day in summary form at the end of the day, so I have a visualization of time spent throughout a month. i also do free form journaling spontaneously to answer or work through specific questions that I have.

[Seraphim]

Mark -

<< I'll be writing a blog post in the next day or so about the difference between a "list" and a "reminder" and how it applies to this system. >>

Did you already write about this? I can't seem to find it anywhere, and would love to know your latest thoughts on this.

[Mark Forster]

Seraphim:

<< Did you already write about this? The difference between a "list" and a "reminder">>

Thanks for reminding me. It wasn't on my list.