Discussion Forum > Projects - Dealing with tasks that cannot be completed in one sitting
TAB, look into FV forum, recently there have been many threads about projects and about very similar problems. Although you are probably using DIT, not FV, it does not matter, as these suggestions are rather universal. Also just search for "project" in this general forum - you will find many useful hints.
May 26, 2012 at 21:23 |
Daneb
Daneb
TAB:
In addition to Daneb's good advice, set a time limit, say 20 minutes or so, take a short break, and either continue on if it's so important or do a little on another task, take a break, and go back to the pressing task. Many things can be used for alarms- kitchen timer, alarm clock or watch, cell phone, computer app, etc. Look up the Pomodoro technique. Good Luck in "Getting Everything Done".
Djorn
In addition to Daneb's good advice, set a time limit, say 20 minutes or so, take a short break, and either continue on if it's so important or do a little on another task, take a break, and go back to the pressing task. Many things can be used for alarms- kitchen timer, alarm clock or watch, cell phone, computer app, etc. Look up the Pomodoro technique. Good Luck in "Getting Everything Done".
Djorn
May 27, 2012 at 0:10 |
Djorn
Djorn
TAB:
DIT is relatively unique among time management systems in that it forces you to consider whether you have taken on more commitments than you have time to do the work resulting from them. Consider it like a production line in which a box for each day is filled with incoming work and which has to be processed before the end of the conveyor belt. You can move a little bit down the line from your work station to clear a particularly full box, but you can't keep on slipping and slipping.
All of which is to say that the solution to your problem is not to juggle with the time you spend on individual projects, but instead to look at why you have this problem in the first place. Is it because you have too many commitments, or because you are not leaving enough time to complete them, or because you are not organized properly so you are wasting time unnecessarily? Usually one of these predominates, but there may well be elements of all three involved.
DIT is relatively unique among time management systems in that it forces you to consider whether you have taken on more commitments than you have time to do the work resulting from them. Consider it like a production line in which a box for each day is filled with incoming work and which has to be processed before the end of the conveyor belt. You can move a little bit down the line from your work station to clear a particularly full box, but you can't keep on slipping and slipping.
All of which is to say that the solution to your problem is not to juggle with the time you spend on individual projects, but instead to look at why you have this problem in the first place. Is it because you have too many commitments, or because you are not leaving enough time to complete them, or because you are not organized properly so you are wasting time unnecessarily? Usually one of these predominates, but there may well be elements of all three involved.
May 27, 2012 at 16:11 |
Mark Forster
Mark Forster
I recently read your book 'Do it tomorrow' and I think that the principles are great! I have been trying to implement them both at work and in my private life and I have seen a significant improvement in my productivity. As an academic most of my work consists of writing (reports, journal articles etc.) and lots of reading! I was really struggling with identifying when I had finished a 'days work' so I really love the idea of a closed list. One problem though: I have found that I still sometimes don't finish all my tasks for the day. This is not because I have too much work but rather because I have many project-type tasks which I am unable to fully complete in one day. In your book you recommend doing a little every day to work on these tasks and you suggest working on them for as long as you feel able. I have tried to set up my tasks to follow this method. i.e. The same writing/reading task gets added to the list for the next day until it is done. For example my task list might look something like this:
1. Current initiative
2. Check Email inbox
3. Phone X about y
4. Continue writing paper A
5. Process data for project A in excel
6. Read and annotate paper B
7. Email person C
8. Tidy desk
9. Plan tomorrow's tasks
Tasks 1,4, 5 and 6 all have the potential to take up a significant chunk of my day and sometimes it is uncertain how long it will take to make progress on that task. The problem with this is that I often get caught up in one particular task and spend too long on it and then run out of time in the day to work on some of the other project-tasks.
Any suggestions as to how to deal with this?
Thanks in advance.
TAB