Get Everything Done

+JMJ+

Since Alan Baljeu had already revealed his system (and it is an excellent, common sensical one: I approve), as promised, here is mine. You may note it is an expansion of my following post, which is a digest of what this system is: http://www.markforster.net/blog/2011/9/13/so-where-has-it-got-to-today.html#item15042261

It is, as I had predicted, less simple than Alan's, but the benefits to me has nothing been short of phenomenal during the weeks I have been using it.


CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SYSTEM
1) The system automatically makes a dashboard/hotlist of the most important things to do the next day depending on your performance today.

2) “Little and often” is maximized because
___a) Rewriting during processing of the list is minimized: it is not unusual for me to work on a task up to 10 times in a day, while in previous systems it was rare for me to act on a task up to five times because I had to delete and rewrite the item in the list everytime.
___b) The notation of active items demand attention once you start working on the tasks: the system REALLY focuses on finishing items.

3) The system is fast and efficient. Also, it is the system most responsive to urgent matters that I have ever used...much more responsive than AF2, Ping Pong AF, or my previous system, CAF, even.

4) It is low stress because
___a) It is very forgiving: it NEVER deletes anything that you were not able to do, and even dismissed items are not deleted unless you want to.
___b) It helps you regain momentum: even if you were not able to do the most important tasks for today, it minimizes the importance of the undone tasks and focuses on improving FROM your performance today.
___c) There is no set rule for processing the list. What I usually do is I start processing the list AF2 style, then once the resistance starts kicking in I switch to AF1 style processing, then once resistance again starts I switch again to AF2, and so on.
___d) Once you have done what you can for an item for this day, it TELLS you to stop working on it again today and, indeed, puts it out of mind until the next day.

5) The System Review done every end of the day may seem like a disadvantage, but it is not: it actually gives me a feeling of being on top of my work.

6) This is the system that most effectively combines the principles of DIT and Autofocus I have ever used. It just seems that once I follow the rules of the system I am automatically following the rules of DIT using AF!


DESCRIPTION OF THE SYSTEM
There are four types of main items in the system: Undefined, Recurrent, Unfinished, and Active items. Each item has peculiar characteristics in the system, of which they are described below:

1) Undefined items, no matter when they were written on the system, can be acted upon anytime, but there can be NO undefined items older than seven days. All items older than seven days are dismissed. Undefined items, in my notation, are preceded with a small dot (∙).

2) Recurrent and Unfinished items can be acted on ONLY if they were lingering since yesterday in the system. If they were only written just today, they cannot yet be acted upon. However, there can be NO recurrent/unfinished items older than yesterday. Recurrent items are preceded with a plus sign (+) while Unfinished items are preceded with an open circle (○).

3) Active items are when any of the three types of items cited above are activated. However, there are NO items that are active for longer than today. An activated item has one or more of the following notations TO ITS RIGHT: a heavy dot (●) denotes the task currently worked on; a cross-out (×) means the task was finished or not done but may have to be done again later today; a white circle (○) means it was left unfinished or is next to be done and will be done later today.


STEPS OF THE SYSTEM
We will need a notebook and pen. We will assume that we started from a clean notebook.

A. First Day
1) Make a list of tasks, all labeled for now as Undefined (preceded to the left with a small dot (∙)). Tasks that you NEED to do today may be labeled as Unfinished (preceded with an open circle (○)). Once all tasks you can think of have been written, draw a line across below the last item to close the list. New items can be added below this line, but will start as Undefined items.

2) Pick an item that stands out, then mark TO THE RIGHT of the item a heavy dot (●) to denote that it is now an Active item currently being worked on (i.e. a Currently Active item).

3) Work on the Currently Active item until you have done what you can for now, upon which you overwrite the heavy dot with a cross-out (×) to denote you have done what you can for now (i.e. a Deferred Active item)

4) Decide now what to do with the Deferred Active Item:
___a) If the item was finished and it does not need to be worked on again, then delete it from the list.
___b) If the item was finished but it may need to be done again <<later today>>, then leave the item as it is (i.e. as a Deferred Active Item).
___c) If the item was finished and it needs to be done again <<tomorrow>>, then delete the item and rewrite it at the bottom of the list, this time with a plus sign (+) preceding the item to denote that it is a Recurrent item. Note that if you have done this then you cannot work on this item again today, but you have to do this tomorrow.
___d) If the item was finished OR unfinished but it needs to be done again at a period <<further from tomorrow>>, then delete it and add it to a calendar.
___e) If the item was left unfinished but it needs to be done again <<later today>>, then add an open circle (○) TO THE RIGHT of the × sign of the item (i.e. it becomes an Unfinished Active item).
___f) If the item was left unfinished but you decided to do it again <<tomorrow>>, then delete the item and rewrite it at the bottom of the list, this time with an open circle (○) preceding the item to denote that it is an Unfinished item. Note that if you have done this then you cannot work on this item again today, but you have to do this tomorrow.

5) Repeat Step 2 and what follows above to pick a new item that stands out.

6) Do a System Review at the end of the day: all remaining Active items must be deleted:
___a) If the Active item does not need to be worked on again, then do not rewrite.
___b) If the Active item was finished and it needs to be done again (usually if the Active item was Deferred, i.e. with a cross-out (×) at the end), then rewrite as a Recurrent item (preceded with a +).
___c) If the Active item was left unfinished (usually if the Active item was Unfinished, i.e. with an open circle (○) at the end), then rewrite as an Unfinished item (preceded with a ○).
___d) If the Active item needs to be worked on a period <<further from the next day>>, then delete it and input it in a calendar.

7) Add items that you NEED to do tomorrow, for example scheduled items from your calendar. Label them as Unfinished items (preceded with ○).

8) Close the list with a drawn horizontal line below the last item.*

*Please note that after the System Review, <<you now have a dashboard/hotlist of the most important tasks to do the next day>> interspersed with Undefined items you have added today.


B. Second and Succeeding Days
1) New items are added below the drawn line, but will start as Undefined items (preceded with a small dot (∙)).

2) Process the list as in Part A above, from Steps 2 to 6. Please note that you have started the System Review at the end of the day but have not yet closed the list.

3) During the System Review, all remaining unactioned (i.e. not Active) Recurrent and Unfinished items <<from yesterday>> are redefined as Undefined items: they are deleted and rewritten at the bottom of the list preceded by a small dot (∙).

4) Add items that you NEED to do tomorrow, for example scheduled items from your calendar. Label them as Unfinished items (preceded with ○).

5) Close the list with a drawn horizontal line below the last item.**

**Please note that after the System Review, <<you now have a dashboard/hotlist of the most important tasks to do the next day>> interspersed with Undefined items you have added today plus <<Undefined tasks previously defined as Unfinished and Recurrent>>. The system basically adjusted the load and make-up of the most important items of your dashboard/hotlist for the next day based on your performance today WITHOUT deleting nor dismissing.


C. Seventh and Succeeding Days.
1) Repeat Part B, Steps 1 to 3.

2) Dismiss all remaining Undefined tasks from seven days ago.

3) System Reviews are also times to review the dismissed items. If some of the dismissed items need to be acted upon the next day, they can be rewritten at the end of the list as Undefined items before closing the list.

4) Add items that you NEED to do tomorrow, for example scheduled items from your calendar. Label them as Unfinished items (preceded with ○).

5) Close the list with a drawn horizontal line below the last item.

----

I am planning to make an illustrative PDF file of how the whole thing works, but it will take me some time as I have never made one before.

God bless.

+JMJ+

@Mark: <<My understanding is that you can do any task anywhere on the list at any time, EXCEPT those marked with a plus or a circle in the open list at the end. These are the tasks which you have elected not to do any further work on today.>>

That's exactly right.

<<I think my problem with this (though I've only read it not done it) is that I know from experience that I can mark up tasks for action as much as I like, but that doesn't mean that I'm actually going to do them.>>

Me too!

<<In other words, dashboards don't really work for me particularly well.>>

Now that's not true, if you look at dashboards differently. I will explain in a while.

<<I'm not quite sure what the point of the . in front of undefined items is. Wouldn't leaving them without any mark have exactly the same effect and distinguish them more clearly from the dashboard items?>>

Yes it would, but it would breed confusion in my own implementation since my notebook is a bit small (3"x 5") and sometimes the task item spills into the next line, so I do need a way of knowing where an item begins.

<<I also don't quite see why there needs to be different marks for recurring and unfinished items. They seem to be treated in exactly the same way, so wouldn't it be simpler to have the same mark for both?>>

EXACTLY!

This is the paradigm that I have recently: that recurrent and unfinished tasks are too similar to be treated differently, yet they STILL must be distinguished between each other because they consume the same resource: the time remaining left for this day. In other words, three kinds of tasks always vie for your attention each time you choose what to do next: (1) tasks that have to be done to maintain something (Recurrent), (2) tasks started already (Unfinished), and (3) tasks that have yet to be started (Undefined). Thus, the dashboard made by this system is a "hard look" of what's going to happen today: a day full of difficult choices.

Therefore, in this paradigm, it is almost expected that there will be times that the things you marked for doing today will not all be done.

Yet, paradoxically, as I keep on using this system, <<I keep on finishing what I am supposed to do!>> Why? Because it forces me to focus on what's important: on doing what I CAN do with my limited resources little and often, then when those things are finished I can then focus on other things.

<<I'm also not clear how dealing with urgent tasks works. There doesn't seem to be any sign to distinguish them, so are they just treated as Undefined tasks? You claimed that the system is very responsive to urgent tasks, but it seems odd not to add them to the daahboard. Or have I missed something?>>

Urgent tasks, in my definition, are tasks that you have to go do now, dropping everything else. Which is what this system excels in: leave the task you are doing, just write what tasks you need to do in the very end as Undefined tasks, mark them as Currently Active so you can focus on them, then when done just mark them as Unfinished/Deferred Active items if needed or delete them, then you can go back to the task you just left (which is STILL marked as a Currently Active task because you just left it earlier!).

If you are talking about highly important or time sensitive items that MUST be done the next day, that's what this step is for in Parts A, B, and C: <<Add items that you NEED to do tomorrow, for example scheduled items from your calendar. Label them as Unfinished items (preceded with ○).>> Since these items are right next to the closing line, they are the first items to be considered in the dashboard when the list is processed AF2 style.

<<. current item you are working on
(Once the task has been worked on enough for the time being, the . is extended to - unless the task is deleted as finished)
- activated task (combined with ● and ○, i.e. -● or -○)
○ unfinished or re-entered task (cannot be actioned if on the last page)
● must do and urgent tasks>>

That is actually quite near the initial form of my system. However, I moved to using marks TO THE RIGHT of the item because the marks clearly show how many times I worked on the item today. The principle here is momentum: to promote working on the same item again and again until it is finished by highlighting to my eyes that I am gaining momentum by the number of marks.

@Bernine and Mark:
<< << For example, a list of "tasks actioned yesterday" invites me to keep those tasks moving today, but a list of "things I really ought to keep moving on today" has an entirely different effect, even though it might be the very same list. >>

<<In that case nuntym might be better advised to leave the activated tasks in place at the end of the day (as "things done yesterday"),and only re-write them if they are not actioned the following day. >>

Hmm, interesting, let me consider that. Thanks.

God bless.

+JMJ+

@Mark F.:<<Thanks for the thoughts and further explanation. I'd like to try out the system to see if the dynamics of it work for me. But unfortunately I can't test two systems at once! >>

Mark, that is the best endorsement (at least with respect to theory) from you I could hope for. Even though you couldn't test it, at least you put the time in reading about the system and giving your insights. Thank you.

To be honest, I thought I scared away everyone with how I described the principles of the system!

<<(The fact that the comments don't give any method of indenting rather spoils my example, but I hope you see what I mean) >>

Nah, don't worry, I understood what you meant, and it's a brilliant idea, but I think I'll reverse it, because it will work better with the other items. Kinda like this:

_Clear Voicemail
+ Tidy Office
_Find out the name of that guy I keep running into but am too
embarrassed to admit to him that I don't know who he is
○ Buy bread
○ etc.
+ etc.


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@Scott Hutchins: <<So, urgent items that come up during the day will be added below the line and not included in the dashboard. One would know that they should be included in TODAY, however, because of the open circle to the left. Got it. >>

Urgent items, by definition, should be done immediately, so once you write it below the last line, you can work on it right away because it is an Undefined item (with a small dot/blank to the right), and thus you can always Activate it by writing, to its right, a heavy dot (if you want to do it right away) or an open circle (if you want to do it immediately after something else).

*sigh* I cannot blame you Scott, the rules are kinda hard to describe using words, that is why I am planning to do a PDF slideshow of a typical day using the system. I just need some time to set it up.

God bless.

+JMJ+

@Jen: <<Section B: 2) Process the list as in Part A above, from Steps 2 to 6. Please note that you have started the System Review at the end of the day but have not yet closed the list.>>

Sorry for the late reply... If you noticed, Part A Step 6 was just up to rewriting the un-Activated Recurrent and Unfinished Items, not the closing of the day (which is Step 8).

<<Where do I find in your rules that I can put an open circle to an urgent item. New items get a small dot (.) and not a circle...hm?>>

What I meant was that you can put an open circle <<to the right>> of the item, not the left, to denote it is an Deferred Activated Item. An illustration of the notations are at the end of this post.

*sigh* I hope everything will be clearer once I have done the PDF. The tentative release date for the PDF is this coming Sunday, October 9th.

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@Mark F:<<In nunym's system, the re-entry of some tasks relies on a daily review. If there are a lot of tasks that need re-writing this could take some time. Although re-writing individual tasks in standard AF may take longer in total, it is interspersed throughout the day as a matter of a few seconds each time. Also in the daily review the organic link between completing one's work on the task and re-writing it is lost, as is its role as a marker of progress. >>

Not really Mark. First off, there are TWO instances in which you can re-write the Items. One is during the daily review, and the other is when <<you decide you are not going to work on the item you are working on anymore today.>> In other words, re-writing an item REINFORCES the completion of one's work for today.

Therefore, the number of items to rewrite is actually not that much during the daily review, and the reviews themselves have never gone over the ten-minute mark for me.

I posted an illustration of the notations and how rewriting can be done even before the Daily Review at the end of this post.

Oh, Mark, thanks for the suggestion of the indentation, it's working really well and I dropped off the small dot for Undefined items.

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@Scott Hutchins: <<Put an open circle to the left of every item. If it is an urgent/must do, put a dot inside the circle (looks like a bullseye). When the task is done, fill in the circle. Visually, this makes things stand out for me - and it is quick and simple. Open circles are complete, colored in ones are not. Urgent ones pop out with just a dot added.>>

Although I have not followed your suggestion exactly, you gave me an idea on how to improve the tagging to the left of the items. Thank you.

<<Also, for the other aspects of nuntym's system:
- put + to the left of the circle to signify a recurring/maintenance item
- put - to the right to show that when an item becomes active (I draw a vertical line down the left side of the page to create a narrow column for these marks. With that in place, the - crosses the line making it stand out without being cluttered. >>

Have you abandoned making marks <<to the right>> of each Activated Item as I have put in the instructions? Your suggestions seem to make everything cluttered, if you are going to add more symbols <<to the left>> of each item...which was what I wanted to avoid when I thought of adding symbols <<to the right>> of each item.

This is what I mean:

---------------(cut-off line)--------------
∙ Undefined Unfinished Activated item XXXXX○ (NOTE: worked on 5 times today)
∙ Undefined Unactivated item
∙ Undefined Deferred Activated item X (NOTE: worked on once today)
∙ Undefined Unactivated item
---------------(cut-off line)--------------
∙ Undefined Unactivated item
○ Unfinished Unactivated item
+ Recurrent Unactivated item
∙ Undefined Currently Activated item XXXX●
○ Unfinished Activated item XXX○
+ Recurrent Unfinished Activated item XXX○
---------------(cut-off line)--------------
+ Recurrent Item for tomorrow
○ Unfinished Item for tomorrow
∙ Undefined Deferred item XX


God bless!