Discussion Forum > What you are using if you abandoned Mark's methods
Since I asked I will answer. Of the systems Mark created, I gave DIT and the original AF a try. OF those two I stuck with AF the longest and had success with it. It is a great system and should work for anyone motivated to get their tasks done.
Over the years I developed two systems, I am currently using the Ultra Simple Guide to Time Management which uses a single note pad for everything. I am tinkering with two other very simple ideas and will post about them if I give them a try. As I mentioned in the other thread, I am starting to think that many of the problems people have with TM are not actually time management problems but problems with motivation, lack of clear and compelling goals. If I compare the time I have spent using a TM system to the periods I have worked a goal achievement system, I have actually progressed further on my life goals when consciously using a goals system as opposed to a TM system, but this is a discussion for another day. Looking forward to other responses.
Gerry
Over the years I developed two systems, I am currently using the Ultra Simple Guide to Time Management which uses a single note pad for everything. I am tinkering with two other very simple ideas and will post about them if I give them a try. As I mentioned in the other thread, I am starting to think that many of the problems people have with TM are not actually time management problems but problems with motivation, lack of clear and compelling goals. If I compare the time I have spent using a TM system to the periods I have worked a goal achievement system, I have actually progressed further on my life goals when consciously using a goals system as opposed to a TM system, but this is a discussion for another day. Looking forward to other responses.
Gerry
August 7, 2012 at 0:04 |
Gerry
Gerry
Thanks for starting this thread Seraphim.
I'm going to create a video demoing my DIY set up - a hybrid of Getting Sh*t Done (GSD), Tony Robbins' RPM & Covey/Allen's Weekly Review. However I'm using the following tools:
Junior M-ARC by Staples
Self created daily pages
Self created project pages (cut into large index cards)
As mentioned before, many of Mark's ideas - elements of Dreams, little and often, etc - infuse my daily workflow.
I'm going to create a video demoing my DIY set up - a hybrid of Getting Sh*t Done (GSD), Tony Robbins' RPM & Covey/Allen's Weekly Review. However I'm using the following tools:
Junior M-ARC by Staples
Self created daily pages
Self created project pages (cut into large index cards)
As mentioned before, many of Mark's ideas - elements of Dreams, little and often, etc - infuse my daily workflow.
August 7, 2012 at 3:32 |
avrum
avrum
avrum:
Anthony Robbins' RPM ("Rapid Planning Method" or "Results Driven, Purpose Focused, Massive Action Plan") is something I still use to (ha) rapidly build project lists and come up with creative solutions. It has helped me out of a bind a number of times. At the top left of a piece of paper I write the word "Result" and then ask myself "What do I want?":
Result
A specific, measurable result is added here,
beneath the word "Result", and this result is circled.
To the right of "Result" I write "Purpose" and beneath it briefly write why I want this result.
Finally, to the right of "Purpose" I write the acronym "MAP" and beneath this list all the possible actions that could get me my result. Not, "What do I have to do to get this result?" but, "What could I do?". I try to think laterally about this, noting possible short-cuts to my result along with the required steps. The best actions are then added to a task management system.
Anthony Robbins' RPM ("Rapid Planning Method" or "Results Driven, Purpose Focused, Massive Action Plan") is something I still use to (ha) rapidly build project lists and come up with creative solutions. It has helped me out of a bind a number of times. At the top left of a piece of paper I write the word "Result" and then ask myself "What do I want?":
Result
A specific, measurable result is added here,
beneath the word "Result", and this result is circled.
To the right of "Result" I write "Purpose" and beneath it briefly write why I want this result.
Finally, to the right of "Purpose" I write the acronym "MAP" and beneath this list all the possible actions that could get me my result. Not, "What do I have to do to get this result?" but, "What could I do?". I try to think laterally about this, noting possible short-cuts to my result along with the required steps. The best actions are then added to a task management system.
August 7, 2012 at 11:37 |
Michael B.
Michael B.
TATT – see below.
August 7, 2012 at 19:37 |
ubi
ubi
I didn't really abandon Mark's systems since all I've ever done is dabble with them briefly but I've taken on board some of his philosophies like closed lists and little and often.
I can often be between locations during the day so I rely on my mobile a lot for important stuff. I don't like lugging planners, and bits of paper tend to get lost or left behind. So basically I rely on Google Calendar and Google Tasks for my schedule as there are good mobile solutions for both of those.
I don't really bother with writing goals, projects or purpose since most of that stuff is constantly running through my brain anyway. If I capture the task I know which project it belongs to so linking it just means more overhead.
I can often be between locations during the day so I rely on my mobile a lot for important stuff. I don't like lugging planners, and bits of paper tend to get lost or left behind. So basically I rely on Google Calendar and Google Tasks for my schedule as there are good mobile solutions for both of those.
I don't really bother with writing goals, projects or purpose since most of that stuff is constantly running through my brain anyway. If I capture the task I know which project it belongs to so linking it just means more overhead.
August 7, 2012 at 21:58 |
Shak
Shak
I haven't abandoned the systems. I usually bounce around from system to system to avoid getting bored and not doing tasks at all.
Right now I'm fiddling with Simpleology. It feels as if I've been getting the most done with this method. Even more than FV with timeboxes. Time will tell if its a phase or not.
I like that each day makes you focus on a specific focus and hit it (until you hit it). Each day it guides you with a realistic question, what are you going to do today to move closer to your goal? That question alone focuses my list down to the true important tasks.
It has a place to brain dump and it allows you to easily throw away tasks that aren't relevant.
Supposedly there's a book on this. I've never seen it. But anyways, I was surprised to see the amount of work I've completed and the quality as well. Has anyone else tried this before or has heard of the book?
Right now I'm fiddling with Simpleology. It feels as if I've been getting the most done with this method. Even more than FV with timeboxes. Time will tell if its a phase or not.
I like that each day makes you focus on a specific focus and hit it (until you hit it). Each day it guides you with a realistic question, what are you going to do today to move closer to your goal? That question alone focuses my list down to the true important tasks.
It has a place to brain dump and it allows you to easily throw away tasks that aren't relevant.
Supposedly there's a book on this. I've never seen it. But anyways, I was surprised to see the amount of work I've completed and the quality as well. Has anyone else tried this before or has heard of the book?
August 7, 2012 at 23:06 |
GMBW
GMBW
Correction to my earlier post.
"Results Driven, Purpose Focused, Massive Action Plan" should read: "Results Focused, Purpose Driven....
"Results Driven, Purpose Focused, Massive Action Plan" should read: "Results Focused, Purpose Driven....
August 9, 2012 at 6:53 |
Michael B.
Michael B.
Michael B.:
What I can't understand is how S. Covey and T. Robbins can initiate excellent (theoretical) work flow systems but drop the ball (over and over and over again) with implementation tools.
Regardless, this flaw opened an opportunity for me to create my own forms and system via the Levenger Circa system. With some rudimentary Illustrator skills & a Levenger puncher, you're not beholden to any one philosophy or tool.
What I can't understand is how S. Covey and T. Robbins can initiate excellent (theoretical) work flow systems but drop the ball (over and over and over again) with implementation tools.
Regardless, this flaw opened an opportunity for me to create my own forms and system via the Levenger Circa system. With some rudimentary Illustrator skills & a Levenger puncher, you're not beholden to any one philosophy or tool.
August 9, 2012 at 14:12 |
avrum
avrum
Actually, Covey has many implementation tools. His original 7 Habits book shows a sample week page, complete with areas for each role and scheduled / discretionary time. The big rocks / sand / water demonstration is in it. A later book, First Things First goes into more detail about planning your week. The 4 quadrants (urgency vs importance) is also his. Franklin-Covey competes with DayTimer for datebooks. They provide student agendas for the schools here.
August 9, 2012 at 20:18 |
Cricket
Cricket
Toodledo. One big list with saved searches for specific things.
I feed into it with recurring tasks, which I find handy. Toodledo, the web and mobile software I use, will repeat by start date if you disable the due-date field. This is great for me. More on this later.
Alan Lakein-style prioritisation, but not the sub-priorities. So he used A/B/C, and A1, A2, A3, etc. I don't go that far. Just High/Medium/Low in Toodledo, and also Negative priority for stuff I can't or don't want to do yet, for example, tasks that I don't want to forget about but depend on some other task.
I use special notation to create on the fly sub-lists without using tags and such. For example, all my errands start with E: .... My follow-ups start with F: .
I use START DATES, not due dates. I got this idea from Michael Linenberger, author of "Master Your Workday Now", which is a very workable system in its own right (and he mentions Marl Forster as being an influence in his book). The advantage of this is if there's some task I want to do, but don't want to start on it for a couple weeks (or can't), then I just put the start date then, and it pops up on Toodledo on that date.
But say it's a task with an actual due date, which is semi-rare. I just write "DUE Sept 3; E: get some propane" (before trip) for example. But, for the sake of argument, if the trailer is being worked on at the mechanics and I won't get it back until the 26th of August, I'd put the start date for the 26th, and write the task as I just indicated. Most tasks don't list a DUE date.
I have Toodledo Pro Plus (I like that I can forward emails to it and the subject line becomes the task name, the email body becomes the task note, and the attachment gets attached to the task), which allows me to sort by 3 instead of 2 criteria. But I only actual use 2 most of the time. I sort by Priority then Alphabetically. If I'm running errands, say, I'll switch the sort to Alphabetical so all my errands are by each other. I also use the iPhone app from Toodledo.
The only optional Toodledo fields I use are Start Date, Repeat, Priority, Trashcan. I disabled the rest.
For a calendar, I use Google Calendar paired with the wicked Calengoo iPhone app. I only use my main calendar for definitely time-delineated appointments. Calengoo and my Google Chrome browser "Checker Plus for Google Calendar" are set to have a badge notifying me of any upcoming events. Calengoo does this for the day and "Checker Plus for Google Calendar does it up to 21 days ahead. So now I'm totally relaxed looking at the badge and seeing I have no appointments 'til Monday without even opening my Calendar.
Speaking of badges, I have my Toodledo iPhone app set to show me all "High Priority" (tasks I'd like to start on ASAP, usually today, as a rule) on its badge as well.
Back to Calendars. I use red for my Calendar, and use a few other colours for different calendars in both Google Calendar and Calgengoo iPhone app which syncs to it. The other calendars I turn on or off as needed. They do NOT trigger the badges to alert me to upcoming meeting. They are mostly for my information. One, for example, is my gym's schedule. Another the library. Another work routine schedule, One "FMI" (for my information) showing me whatever note I've placed for myself to look at that day, such as an expected payment or direct deposit, or whatever. Plus I use Google Calendar's contacts' birthday calendar, weather Calendar, Sunset Calendar, Moon Calendar, etc. These, except for contacts' birthdays, mostly don't take up extra space, just show up as symbols I can see.
There are little subtleties that I'm leaving out, but I'm finding the above is working for me quite nicely. One trick is if you have a task you don't know if you want to keep on your list, assign it a negative priority and a future start date, so it's definitely out of the way. You'll see it later when it shows up, and you can decide if you want to switch the priority to something actionable, delete it, or defer it again, or reword it.
Final word for this post: Buy "The Now Habit" by Neil Fiore, a psychologist who as a young man served as an officer in the 101st [break, break! Someone's walking on the property on a horse right this moment; that's a first; love horses; am outside typing this under the awning] airborne. Over 2 decades ago he wrote this wonderful book that I just read for the first time.
I thought it was about time management. No. Not really.
The time management system in it is not my favourite, actually. It's just a minor point in a wonderful book on understanding and fixing procrastination.
Procrastination results from anxiety (fear), NOT from laziness.
Really, that's a book on overcoming your personal fears and anxieties and adopting the mindset of a producer, from which everything else flows much nicer. He has a huge emphasis on guilt-free play.
You play more, you work better, you fear less, you start and focus on that, not finishing. Wonderful work, Dr. Fiore's.
P.S. A lot of the ideas I use above were gleaned from Linenberger, more than I gave him credit for. But I use no one's system pedantically. This is my own.
P.P.S. I think you should buy his book "Master Your Workday Now" and at least skim it. I, finally, decided I preferred Alan Lakein's old school prioritization better than Linenberger's time horizons, but actually those are good too. I just found I couldn't keep away from the low priority tasks and would use them in lieu of a break after doing medium or high priority tasks. As it happens, this is what Neil Fiore recommends in "The Now Habit" and I said what the hell and made it official. Linenberger's blog is an invaluable resource with articles for how to set up a task system with electronic tools like Toodledo or various apps, or Microsoft Outlook, or paper also. Definitely can be done on paper. I rely on repeating tasks so electronic works for me -- plus it IS fast because I can just send Toodledo a tweet using a special, simple syntax and it gets added to my task list with the proper priority and start date. Turning emails into tasks is similarly easy. Electronic works for me. YMMV.
Oh. Finally P.P.S. Pomodoro Technique or other time-intervals: working in focussed blocks with rest breaks or shifts to less-demanding activities built in, or just DIFFERENT activities. I don't do this all the time, but sometimes I do, and it's good. Mark discusses it here on this site, for sure.
I feed into it with recurring tasks, which I find handy. Toodledo, the web and mobile software I use, will repeat by start date if you disable the due-date field. This is great for me. More on this later.
Alan Lakein-style prioritisation, but not the sub-priorities. So he used A/B/C, and A1, A2, A3, etc. I don't go that far. Just High/Medium/Low in Toodledo, and also Negative priority for stuff I can't or don't want to do yet, for example, tasks that I don't want to forget about but depend on some other task.
I use special notation to create on the fly sub-lists without using tags and such. For example, all my errands start with E: .... My follow-ups start with F: .
I use START DATES, not due dates. I got this idea from Michael Linenberger, author of "Master Your Workday Now", which is a very workable system in its own right (and he mentions Marl Forster as being an influence in his book). The advantage of this is if there's some task I want to do, but don't want to start on it for a couple weeks (or can't), then I just put the start date then, and it pops up on Toodledo on that date.
But say it's a task with an actual due date, which is semi-rare. I just write "DUE Sept 3; E: get some propane" (before trip) for example. But, for the sake of argument, if the trailer is being worked on at the mechanics and I won't get it back until the 26th of August, I'd put the start date for the 26th, and write the task as I just indicated. Most tasks don't list a DUE date.
I have Toodledo Pro Plus (I like that I can forward emails to it and the subject line becomes the task name, the email body becomes the task note, and the attachment gets attached to the task), which allows me to sort by 3 instead of 2 criteria. But I only actual use 2 most of the time. I sort by Priority then Alphabetically. If I'm running errands, say, I'll switch the sort to Alphabetical so all my errands are by each other. I also use the iPhone app from Toodledo.
The only optional Toodledo fields I use are Start Date, Repeat, Priority, Trashcan. I disabled the rest.
For a calendar, I use Google Calendar paired with the wicked Calengoo iPhone app. I only use my main calendar for definitely time-delineated appointments. Calengoo and my Google Chrome browser "Checker Plus for Google Calendar" are set to have a badge notifying me of any upcoming events. Calengoo does this for the day and "Checker Plus for Google Calendar does it up to 21 days ahead. So now I'm totally relaxed looking at the badge and seeing I have no appointments 'til Monday without even opening my Calendar.
Speaking of badges, I have my Toodledo iPhone app set to show me all "High Priority" (tasks I'd like to start on ASAP, usually today, as a rule) on its badge as well.
Back to Calendars. I use red for my Calendar, and use a few other colours for different calendars in both Google Calendar and Calgengoo iPhone app which syncs to it. The other calendars I turn on or off as needed. They do NOT trigger the badges to alert me to upcoming meeting. They are mostly for my information. One, for example, is my gym's schedule. Another the library. Another work routine schedule, One "FMI" (for my information) showing me whatever note I've placed for myself to look at that day, such as an expected payment or direct deposit, or whatever. Plus I use Google Calendar's contacts' birthday calendar, weather Calendar, Sunset Calendar, Moon Calendar, etc. These, except for contacts' birthdays, mostly don't take up extra space, just show up as symbols I can see.
There are little subtleties that I'm leaving out, but I'm finding the above is working for me quite nicely. One trick is if you have a task you don't know if you want to keep on your list, assign it a negative priority and a future start date, so it's definitely out of the way. You'll see it later when it shows up, and you can decide if you want to switch the priority to something actionable, delete it, or defer it again, or reword it.
Final word for this post: Buy "The Now Habit" by Neil Fiore, a psychologist who as a young man served as an officer in the 101st [break, break! Someone's walking on the property on a horse right this moment; that's a first; love horses; am outside typing this under the awning] airborne. Over 2 decades ago he wrote this wonderful book that I just read for the first time.
I thought it was about time management. No. Not really.
The time management system in it is not my favourite, actually. It's just a minor point in a wonderful book on understanding and fixing procrastination.
Procrastination results from anxiety (fear), NOT from laziness.
Really, that's a book on overcoming your personal fears and anxieties and adopting the mindset of a producer, from which everything else flows much nicer. He has a huge emphasis on guilt-free play.
You play more, you work better, you fear less, you start and focus on that, not finishing. Wonderful work, Dr. Fiore's.
P.S. A lot of the ideas I use above were gleaned from Linenberger, more than I gave him credit for. But I use no one's system pedantically. This is my own.
P.P.S. I think you should buy his book "Master Your Workday Now" and at least skim it. I, finally, decided I preferred Alan Lakein's old school prioritization better than Linenberger's time horizons, but actually those are good too. I just found I couldn't keep away from the low priority tasks and would use them in lieu of a break after doing medium or high priority tasks. As it happens, this is what Neil Fiore recommends in "The Now Habit" and I said what the hell and made it official. Linenberger's blog is an invaluable resource with articles for how to set up a task system with electronic tools like Toodledo or various apps, or Microsoft Outlook, or paper also. Definitely can be done on paper. I rely on repeating tasks so electronic works for me -- plus it IS fast because I can just send Toodledo a tweet using a special, simple syntax and it gets added to my task list with the proper priority and start date. Turning emails into tasks is similarly easy. Electronic works for me. YMMV.
Oh. Finally P.P.S. Pomodoro Technique or other time-intervals: working in focussed blocks with rest breaks or shifts to less-demanding activities built in, or just DIFFERENT activities. I don't do this all the time, but sometimes I do, and it's good. Mark discusses it here on this site, for sure.
August 11, 2012 at 1:25 |
Christoph Dollis
Christoph Dollis
My reply in the other forum probably should have gone in this thread. I am using GTD with two contexts (work and home). It is implemented with ThinkingRock on both home and work computers and the data file moving between them (I copy it to an IronKey to transport). In TR I have a few topics configured to highlight specific areas I'm involved in.
Thus I can see everything in one place. I can decide to just do tasks at home if I feel like it. I just view a particular project if I have that hat on. I can go with a certain topic if I feel in that kind of mood. I can see the day, week or month at a glance and see how it fits together. This rapid multi-level view of everything is crucial I think.
Thus I can see everything in one place. I can decide to just do tasks at home if I feel like it. I just view a particular project if I have that hat on. I can go with a certain topic if I feel in that kind of mood. I can see the day, week or month at a glance and see how it fits together. This rapid multi-level view of everything is crucial I think.
August 12, 2012 at 1:14 |
Chris
Chris
I do not use any Mark system now, but I use many of his principles habitually thanks to my experience with these systems.
I have started experiment a while ago - to build my totally customized TM system from bottom-up, using my intuition. I did not limit with any method, rules and tools. I just started with plain paper, writing what to do in next two hours. Later, I had a need to write plan for whole day in the morning. So I add daily plan. Then I had a need to make several project lists. Then this. Then that. My rules were: add what you want, cancel what does not work or what seems too complicated/ineffective, change what you feel like. Use any combination of any tools which seems appropriate at the moment - do not obey rules like "only one application", "only these rules" "only one place" etc. Listen to your intuition and feel free to change what needs to be changed.
What was interesting and amazing for me - that my system stabilized quite quickly, and after several weeks, I am changing it only in some details. It is rather complicated to describe (because it has several applications, from which I use only a part; it has different types of managing for different projects etc.) BUT because I created it using my intuition, it works perfectly for me AND for my understanding it is paradoxically very simple and intuitive.
Big realization for me was for example this: I do not have to limit myself to only one BIG app like omnifocus and use all its features. For some parts of my system - mindmaps are better, for some parts, I use Things, for some paper. But again, I use these apps without complications, only with basic features. My parallel is: we also use spreadsheet when we feel it appropriate, we use complicated word-processing app when we feel it appropriate, we use pdf reader with other types of files etc. but in any case we use only 5% of the features of the app. And the only cost (except bying them, of course) is to switch between them: cmd+tab. That is all...
So now my time management is quite extensive (ranging in more application), but - paradoxically - intuitive and understandable for me and my personality much more than ANY SIMPLE SYSTEM invented by other people which I tried to apply to my personality. I also have several habits/rules to use (little and often, timeboxing, eat the frog...) but as with applications - I do not obey them religiously, only as advices.
I was never so satisfied with my time management "system" (is it?) as I am now...
I have started experiment a while ago - to build my totally customized TM system from bottom-up, using my intuition. I did not limit with any method, rules and tools. I just started with plain paper, writing what to do in next two hours. Later, I had a need to write plan for whole day in the morning. So I add daily plan. Then I had a need to make several project lists. Then this. Then that. My rules were: add what you want, cancel what does not work or what seems too complicated/ineffective, change what you feel like. Use any combination of any tools which seems appropriate at the moment - do not obey rules like "only one application", "only these rules" "only one place" etc. Listen to your intuition and feel free to change what needs to be changed.
What was interesting and amazing for me - that my system stabilized quite quickly, and after several weeks, I am changing it only in some details. It is rather complicated to describe (because it has several applications, from which I use only a part; it has different types of managing for different projects etc.) BUT because I created it using my intuition, it works perfectly for me AND for my understanding it is paradoxically very simple and intuitive.
Big realization for me was for example this: I do not have to limit myself to only one BIG app like omnifocus and use all its features. For some parts of my system - mindmaps are better, for some parts, I use Things, for some paper. But again, I use these apps without complications, only with basic features. My parallel is: we also use spreadsheet when we feel it appropriate, we use complicated word-processing app when we feel it appropriate, we use pdf reader with other types of files etc. but in any case we use only 5% of the features of the app. And the only cost (except bying them, of course) is to switch between them: cmd+tab. That is all...
So now my time management is quite extensive (ranging in more application), but - paradoxically - intuitive and understandable for me and my personality much more than ANY SIMPLE SYSTEM invented by other people which I tried to apply to my personality. I also have several habits/rules to use (little and often, timeboxing, eat the frog...) but as with applications - I do not obey them religiously, only as advices.
I was never so satisfied with my time management "system" (is it?) as I am now...
August 12, 2012 at 15:56 |
Daneb
Daneb
Daneb -
Incredible how similar (in philosophy) our thinking is re: creating your own system.
Incredible how similar (in philosophy) our thinking is re: creating your own system.
August 12, 2012 at 18:50 |
avrum
avrum
Avrum, that`s great! So I am looking forward to your video you mentioned above...
August 13, 2012 at 20:17 |
Daneb
Daneb
Work:
Vanilla FV on an MS Outlook task list.
Allowed myself to get jetlagged and messed up my sleep patterns a couple of weeks ago and I find I'm just not getting through the list. Snarl.
Home:
Vanilla FV in a pocket Moleskine. Which I appear to have lost. Rats!
Vanilla FV on an MS Outlook task list.
Allowed myself to get jetlagged and messed up my sleep patterns a couple of weeks ago and I find I'm just not getting through the list. Snarl.
Home:
Vanilla FV in a pocket Moleskine. Which I appear to have lost. Rats!
August 14, 2012 at 17:15 |
Will
Will
Wrong thread Will! Try the POLL thread. This one is for those who "abandoned Mark's methods".
August 14, 2012 at 17:27 |
Alan Baljeu
Alan Baljeu
I don't know if I abandoned Mark's methods, I just use some mixture of DIT values with few simple rules from my head.
I am interested in Seraphim's method DIT/FV hybrid - can you write few sentences about this Seraphim.
I am interested in Seraphim's method DIT/FV hybrid - can you write few sentences about this Seraphim.
August 14, 2012 at 20:52 |
Navigare
Navigare
Bother: sorry, everyone.
August 15, 2012 at 9:07 |
Will
Will
@Navigare - See here: http://www.markforster.net/fv-forum/post/1854855#post1882690
and here: http://www.markforster.net/fv-forum/post/1900291#post1907490
and here: http://www.markforster.net/fv-forum/post/1900291#post1907490
August 15, 2012 at 17:17 |
Seraphim
Seraphim
Abandoned is too strong. I still like the long list from AF, and "don't jump" from DIT, and limit commitments from GED, and a lot of the rest of his advice. However, some weeks I need a bit more structure.
I'm playing with Planner Pad
https://plannerpads.com/concept.asp
Not the full system, just the idea of commitments/things to do, appointments, and when I plan to do those things. It's similar to my pre-Mark system.
I'm also reading Agile Results
http://gettingresults.com/wiki/Main_Page
It's dry, but I like the overall system and it has good advice. By dry, I mean there are no case studies (or, as a storyteller would put it, no stories). It shares Planner Pads' weekly planning, but also goes up a few levels (monthly and yearly). It has lots of good advice about weeding out tasks with no value, focusing on results rather than individual steps, evaluating frequently and changing method as needed. Also, each week is a clean slate. Last week ended with an evaluation and chance to learn. This week begins with using what I learned and a new set of goals. Also, only 3 goals per time-frame (day, week, month, year). That's a tough one for me, but it seems to help. "What three things will I focus on?" Goals can be bigger than tasks, such as "housework for week".
One thing I don't like about many systems is doing the hardest thing first. Most of the time, if you give me something I don't want to do, I'll procrastinate and do nothing. If something needs to be done by the end of the day and I say it's more important than anything else on my list, I'll do nothing until I need to do that job. Fortunately, my planning is good enough that "last minute" includes interruptions and printer break-downs. Mark recommends doing the tough stuff first, but many of his systems allow us do other things while getting ready.
I'm playing with Planner Pad
https://plannerpads.com/concept.asp
Not the full system, just the idea of commitments/things to do, appointments, and when I plan to do those things. It's similar to my pre-Mark system.
I'm also reading Agile Results
http://gettingresults.com/wiki/Main_Page
It's dry, but I like the overall system and it has good advice. By dry, I mean there are no case studies (or, as a storyteller would put it, no stories). It shares Planner Pads' weekly planning, but also goes up a few levels (monthly and yearly). It has lots of good advice about weeding out tasks with no value, focusing on results rather than individual steps, evaluating frequently and changing method as needed. Also, each week is a clean slate. Last week ended with an evaluation and chance to learn. This week begins with using what I learned and a new set of goals. Also, only 3 goals per time-frame (day, week, month, year). That's a tough one for me, but it seems to help. "What three things will I focus on?" Goals can be bigger than tasks, such as "housework for week".
One thing I don't like about many systems is doing the hardest thing first. Most of the time, if you give me something I don't want to do, I'll procrastinate and do nothing. If something needs to be done by the end of the day and I say it's more important than anything else on my list, I'll do nothing until I need to do that job. Fortunately, my planning is good enough that "last minute" includes interruptions and printer break-downs. Mark recommends doing the tough stuff first, but many of his systems allow us do other things while getting ready.
August 19, 2012 at 21:48 |
Cricket
Cricket
I still have my huge list from AF (several version) and FV and DWM2. I use that list to populate my list for the week, and I go to it whenever nothing on this week's list stands out. Sometimes I only move a concept to the weekly list. "Make phonecalls." "Do all guild advertising." Then I read the huge list where everything's been collected. (I'm lazy. I often write things on the long list rather than open the project file.) Scanning the list to find things relevant to the current project also reminds me of other things, so they continue to percolate. I take great joy in tearing out a pages.
The insistence of "work on something on every page" doesn't work for me. I need the freedom to do what needs doing. I'll sometimes do an AF pass, but it's not the normal way I work.
The insistence of "work on something on every page" doesn't work for me. I need the freedom to do what needs doing. I'll sometimes do an AF pass, but it's not the normal way I work.
August 19, 2012 at 21:57 |
Cricket
Cricket
I re-read AF4 (and variations Revised and 3T). (I miss the page linking to all of them.) Special treatment of recurring tasks has been part of all the systems that work for me. It used to be a list for each week, but I'd skip the same things each week with no objective reminder of how many times I skipped them.
Now I use one page for tasks of each frequency. As I finish each task, I write it at the bottom of the list for that frequency. If dusting is older than cleaning the fish tank, I can still clean the fish tank (I care more about fish dying than dust-bunnies growing) without breaking the flow. Just clean the tank, rewrite it at the bottom of the weekly list, and look for something else to do (which might be anything). I only need to review the top part of the weekly list -- until 7 days ago -- to know if I'm up to date on it. Tasks I put off a lot stay there at the top, taunting me. The only lack is it doesn't show "skipped every other week". (Replace "week" with "day", "month", "season" and "year", but it's most useful at weekly and monthly.)
I also use charts, again one per frequency. I can easily see which tasks I often delay. Yes, each recurring chart is on both the list and the chart. The list feels warmer and less mechanical when I'm picking tasks. The chart is my record. If I notice a pattern when updating the chart, I use common sense. Often, I go to the weekly list and put a big star by the task.
Now I use one page for tasks of each frequency. As I finish each task, I write it at the bottom of the list for that frequency. If dusting is older than cleaning the fish tank, I can still clean the fish tank (I care more about fish dying than dust-bunnies growing) without breaking the flow. Just clean the tank, rewrite it at the bottom of the weekly list, and look for something else to do (which might be anything). I only need to review the top part of the weekly list -- until 7 days ago -- to know if I'm up to date on it. Tasks I put off a lot stay there at the top, taunting me. The only lack is it doesn't show "skipped every other week". (Replace "week" with "day", "month", "season" and "year", but it's most useful at weekly and monthly.)
I also use charts, again one per frequency. I can easily see which tasks I often delay. Yes, each recurring chart is on both the list and the chart. The list feels warmer and less mechanical when I'm picking tasks. The chart is my record. If I notice a pattern when updating the chart, I use common sense. Often, I go to the weekly list and put a big star by the task.
August 19, 2012 at 23:34 |
Cricket
Cricket
Thank you Seraphim!
August 20, 2012 at 6:00 |
Navigare
Navigare
This page links to all of the older systems:
http://www.markforster.net/blog/2010/12/16/review-of-the-systems.html
http://www.markforster.net/blog/2010/12/16/review-of-the-systems.html
August 20, 2012 at 18:04 |
Deven
Deven
Thanks!
August 20, 2012 at 19:43 |
Cricket
Cricket
<< I am curious what you are using if you abandoned Mark's methods. >>
http://www.markforster.net/fv-forum/post/1912283
I thought I'd start a new thread where we can discuss this.