Discussion Forum > New AF1 power-up -- AF-PBY
A further tip, which I have been using successfully for several weeks, is to never action the last item on the list. This will work with any system and has the effect of encouraging you to work on something else on the page first, and discouraging you from working on the same task over and over.
September 22, 2012 at 16:14 |
Wooba
Wooba
Thank you Wooba. I didn't comment on your first post, but it motivated me to give AF1 another go and it is very successful. I usually can't stick to any system or any list. This time is working.
September 22, 2012 at 17:27 |
ela
ela
ela: Good to hear. I hope you get benefit from it for a long time.
September 27, 2012 at 16:28 |
Wooba
Wooba
This morning, for the first time ever with any system, and using the "Page Before Yesterday" tweak, I found that I didn't have an active page before yesterday. My list was down to 2 pages. It is now up to three pages. This proves (to me, at least) that AF-PBY is a significant power-up for AF1.
September 27, 2012 at 16:31 |
Wooba
Wooba
Wooba, I agree with you totally. I'm almost down to two pages myself. i started on September 12 and my pages are full of tasks being crossed out. It's a very powerful modification of AF1 and the best system for me ever.
September 27, 2012 at 17:17 |
ela
ela
Very interesting modification, Wooba. I'm so intrigued to see how it works I'm going to try it myself.
One question: if you don't finish the PBY, do you start a new PBY the next day or continue until you've finished the old one? My impression from what you say is that you would start a new one, but I wanted to check.
The answer is important to me because I like long pages (46 lines at present). It'll be interesting to see how it works with that length of page.
One question: if you don't finish the PBY, do you start a new PBY the next day or continue until you've finished the old one? My impression from what you say is that you would start a new one, but I wanted to check.
The answer is important to me because I like long pages (46 lines at present). It'll be interesting to see how it works with that length of page.
September 28, 2012 at 11:18 |
Mark Forster
Mark Forster
I have been reading this forum since almost 6 years, tried GTD at the very beginning, tried all MF Systems and spend so many time reading technical stuff about organization that I could really make one or two books about it !!!.
I must confess I always had problems with my own organization. I also admit that a good system is crucial in success. Some kind can directly lead to a deep wash out or a great success. Yes yes I did it, both ;-) indeed !!!!
What I must say tonight is that AF1 is for me the best system I ever tried. Better than Omnifocus, better than GTD, better than FV or any other MF systems. Just because in my way of working it makes a very magic equilibrium between intuition and rationality.
Thank you so much Mark because with this simple systems you helped me to succeed and make some great success in my job !.
But there was some little lack about the systems : urgencies certainly, and as said Wooba the growing list which little by little made the list totally un manageable. This is where dismissing rules were to be applied what I did not really understand since a few years.
These lacks made me quit the system. But NOW I will give it another try. If I am sure the system will clean the list I don't know yet how I will deal with urgencies doing them first. I guess just doing them and do all what I must and be able to do in less than 2 mn (that a GTD rule I like with the weekly review)
I must confess I always had problems with my own organization. I also admit that a good system is crucial in success. Some kind can directly lead to a deep wash out or a great success. Yes yes I did it, both ;-) indeed !!!!
What I must say tonight is that AF1 is for me the best system I ever tried. Better than Omnifocus, better than GTD, better than FV or any other MF systems. Just because in my way of working it makes a very magic equilibrium between intuition and rationality.
Thank you so much Mark because with this simple systems you helped me to succeed and make some great success in my job !.
But there was some little lack about the systems : urgencies certainly, and as said Wooba the growing list which little by little made the list totally un manageable. This is where dismissing rules were to be applied what I did not really understand since a few years.
These lacks made me quit the system. But NOW I will give it another try. If I am sure the system will clean the list I don't know yet how I will deal with urgencies doing them first. I guess just doing them and do all what I must and be able to do in less than 2 mn (that a GTD rule I like with the weekly review)
September 28, 2012 at 21:06 |
Jupiter
Jupiter
Mark,
I am so pleased you are trying this out. I hope it works well for you.
And yes, you start a new PBY each day. At the start of each new day, you designate the page before yesterday as the target. I put a circle in the top corner to designate the page. If I complete the PBY, I put a line right throught the page and the circle. If I don't complete the PBY, I put a cross in the circle.
I am so pleased you are trying this out. I hope it works well for you.
And yes, you start a new PBY each day. At the start of each new day, you designate the page before yesterday as the target. I put a circle in the top corner to designate the page. If I complete the PBY, I put a line right throught the page and the circle. If I don't complete the PBY, I put a cross in the circle.
September 29, 2012 at 22:19 |
Wooba
Wooba
Thanks for the clarification, Wooba. Today is my first day with a PBY. So let's see how it goes!
September 30, 2012 at 9:17 |
Mark Forster
Mark Forster
Mark,
I'm wondering how you are getting on with AF-PBY? I am still using it successfully, and hope that if you are still using it after 3 weeks, it must have some merit.
Wooba
I'm wondering how you are getting on with AF-PBY? I am still using it successfully, and hope that if you are still using it after 3 weeks, it must have some merit.
Wooba
October 20, 2012 at 12:33 |
Wooba
Wooba
Wooba:
Sorry, I should have reported before now. I didn't find it worked for me - difficult to say why - so I stopped using it after a few days.
Sorry, I should have reported before now. I didn't find it worked for me - difficult to say why - so I stopped using it after a few days.
October 23, 2012 at 12:33 |
Mark Forster
Mark Forster
Sorry it didn't work for you, but thank you very much for trying it out. It is still working for me -- in fact it is working better than ever. I think that over the months my list and my list making (ie, what I write on the list) have improved in quality as a result of getting round the entire list every day, and crossing off a page every day. I think you do that already, so AF-PBY wouldn't make much difference to you, but for those of us who have trouble getting round the list every day, or me, anyway, it makes a huge difference.
October 24, 2012 at 11:19 |
Wooba
Wooba
I let it down too for working on another system call pomodoro
October 28, 2012 at 21:32 |
Jupiter
Jupiter
Wooba,
Thank you for AF-PBY. And of course, thank you Mark Forster for your great systems.
I have been using it for one month with great success. I use it to manage my professional and private list. It offers AF1 simplicity and, especially with my professional list (I write one or two pages of actions per day), it gaves the positive feeling of having done what was to be done because all items are (almost) crossed on the PBY.
Thank you for AF-PBY. And of course, thank you Mark Forster for your great systems.
I have been using it for one month with great success. I use it to manage my professional and private list. It offers AF1 simplicity and, especially with my professional list (I write one or two pages of actions per day), it gaves the positive feeling of having done what was to be done because all items are (almost) crossed on the PBY.
December 8, 2012 at 20:16 |
Sylvain
Sylvain
But I have been using a variation for about four months that has consistently kept the list fresh, short and relevant. This new variation is an evolution built upon the "begin work at the start of Yesterday" tweak. It drastically improves momentum through the list.
The idea is to mark one page to be completed today, and I have found that the best page for this is the page immediately before the first task added yesterday. I have tried it with the oldest page, the page that Today starts on, and the page Yesterday starts on, but it doesn't work with those.
So, if you want to try this, follow AF1 rules except...
1. At the start of a new day, put the date next to the first task added today (I put the date in the left margin).
2. Begin work at the start of Yesterday (where you put the first task yesterday morning), and work the whole page that Yesterday starts on. Then carry on using normal AF1 rules to cycle the list. Starting at Yesterday ensures that the most urgent and ongoing stuff is touched every day and you don't get bogged down in the backlog.
3. Aim to complete the page before the page on which Yesterday starts. This is the powerful bit. It pulls you round the list so that the entire list is touched at least once a day, and helps to encourage little and often processing of tasks. It should help to keep things fresh and prevent the list from getting too long.
Tips:
At the beginning of the day, mark the page before yesterday (PBY) with a circle in the corner. If it is completed, put a line through circle and page. If it is not completed, put a cross in the circle. If the page before yesterday is the same page again, draw another circle. If the page before yesterday is already completed, choose another page, preferably adjacent.
If you complete the PBY, optionally use this as the signal to finish work for the day.
There is no compulsion to finish the PBY, but I find that making it compulsory is far more effective for working the list.
Occasionally I don't actually manage to complete the PBY, but I get a lot done in the attempt.
It is easy to just do the easy stuff and keep putting off the more important but scary stuff. This tweak helps to overcome this because you are constantly cycling and hopefully clearing at least one page per day.
It took me a few days to get into the frame of mind to work the list in this way, but now I automatically expect to finish the PBY each day.
If you fit a lot of tasks on a page, it may not work (I haven't tried it with big pages). I use a notebook with 26 lines per page and it works well because most days I will easily fill the page, so there is always a fresh page before Yesterday. On days that I don't, I will use the page before the page before Yesterday.
PS. I use school exercise books with 80 pages per book and 26 lines per page (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Oxford-Lined-School-Exercise-Books/dp/B004UGB92S). I am now on my tenth book since starting AF1 in January 2009, so estimate I have written around 20,000 tasks (but given that I have also spent some significant time trying digital alternatives to paper, it may be many more).
I humbly offer this as a small development to Mark's excellent AF1, and hope it will be helpful to someone.