How to Ensure You Re-enter a Task

If you’ve ever found that sometimes you forget to re-enter a recurring or uncompleted task at the end of a long list, then here’s the solution.

It all lies in the order in which you do these three actions:

1) Select the next task

2) Dot it

3) Do it

4) Re-enter it

But if you do them in that order, then you are running a risk of forgetting action 4) re-entering the task.

It’s far better to do them in this order:

1) Select the next task

2) Re-enter it

3) Dot it

4) Do it

If you are using a pre-dotted system like FVP, then just re-enter the task before you start working on it.

If you do it like this, you will never forget to re-enter a task again.

Comments

[Alan Baljeu]

I can't say this has really been a problem for me, not that I never forget. The solution doesn't suit me anyway in my chosen digital medium. I don't scratch off done tasks, I send them to the end. If I did that before doing the work, I would lose my spot in the list because it's no longer there!

[Margaret1]

As you say, it's easy to forget to re-enter a task. I do re-entering in this order:

1) Select task.
2) Dot it
3) Re-enter it
4) Do it

When I was re-entering as the last step, I felt I had to remind myself that I wasn't there to add a new task, only to do a re-entry. For some reason, doing it in the order above means my focus is on going back to the task I've just selected, not having reached the end of the list.

[Mark Forster]

Margaret1:

The only problem I could see happening with the order you do it in is that dotting a task is usually done just before doing it. So you may sometimes find yourself doing it, rather than re-entering it. Especially if you've been used to doing it in the order 1) Select the next task 2) Dot it 3) Do it 4) Re-enter it.

But if it works fine for you stick to it.

[Margaret1]

Thanks Mark - yes, it works for me. Dotting the task helps me find it again easily when I've done the re-entering. In fact, I actually do a double dot - that stands out even more. Another thing I've started doing is to use a bright highlighter pen for items I've worked on, rather than crossing them out. The unhighlighted tasks are easier to find, and if I want to check back through what I've worked on, it's easier to read than when it's crossed out.