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I've been trying the second one out today, and it's so far (1.20 p.m.) been working brilliantly. It'll be interesting to see whether it stays that way!
Which is the second method you're using? Is it this:
"...Do any task between the task you have just done and the task now selected by the randomizer. No need to do any pre-selection, just do anything that stands out."
Yes, that's right.
I've found however that it's necessary to restrict the non-random tasks to only those which need to be done now. "Standing out" doesn't seem to work for me in this method.
1) Make a list, separated by dates
2) Starting at the first task from yesterday draw a random number (I use 1-20) and mark those with a tick
3) Decide which of those ticked tasks are you willing to commit to right now. That is your FV list.
4) Randomly select a task on your FV list, work it until you complete or you have to stop (for whatever reason). Randomly select the next FV task and do the same
5) When you have only a few tasks remaining on your FV list (1 or 2) go back to 2) starting off from your last tick.
I've been doing this with an Excel list (easy to tick and untick) and loving this for three reasons 1) It has a balance between random and deliberate choice 2) I like to switch tasks, jhere I can do that but commit to completing them and 3) Randomly sleecting from the big list as such has me go through the list quicker than I did with 'AF systems, but oredeliberately than I did with the pure random system.
What do you think?
<< I've found however that it's necessary to restrict the non-random tasks to only those which need to be done now. "Standing out" doesn't seem to work for me in this method. >>
I think I was a bit premature in saying that. I'm now finding that it is working very well without any restriction on the type of task.
Thanks for the update. I'm going to give this method a go.
I'm two days in but this is how I've been using it:
1: draw a random number in the usual way using the randomizer method
2: count down the page including crossed out items in the usual way. However, while counting, I'm also doing an AF scan. (I count down in my head. I.e. "17...16...15...14". I do this because otherwise I tend to forget the number that I drew).
3. If an item stands out during the count then i work on it. Afterwards I draw a new number and repeat the process. If no item stands out during the count then I do the item when I reach "1" I.e. The item that would have usually been selected by the random method.
4. Use sliding in the usual manner when needed.
It's good fun!
That's an interesting variation, which I hadn't thought of. Let us know how you get on.
I have been using a variation of Random-FV for almost two weeks, and I have to say it blows CAF4 out of the water! Resistance just melts for me when I use this method.
It is a variation though and not the original one posted by Paul Macneil (thanks btw, Reverend!), because I am not using a paper notebook but the smartphone app I was using for CAF4, Speedy Checklist (http://speedychecklist.net/ ), which I like because of its simplicity.
1. Upon starting the day, I close the list with a "horizontal line" item with the current date. I then count the number of items that are before this "line". This will be then the maximum number for my random number generator for the rest of the day.
2. I generate a random number two times. Using the second number, I then I count (from the closing line) up if the first number was odd, or down if the first number was even, looping to the end or beginning if needed.
3. I look at the item that was selected. If I do not like to do it or somehow I cannot do it (for example wrong time of the day to do it) then I will mark it with a heavy dot, then "slide" up to the next item (NOTE: the sliding is always up, whether the first number generated earlier was odd or even). I repeat this until I find a task I would like to do and I can do for that time of the day, upon which I check it. I then select the "Sort Checked" command, which transports the item I checked to the bottom of the list.
4. I go to the top of the list and scan down, selecting a task that answers the question: "What do I want to do before I do the last item I selected?" I then check that item (if any) and again select the "Sort Checked" command, which again transports the item I checked to the bottom of the list but <above> the items that are already checked below its position. I then go back to the top of the list and repeat the process until I cannot find any more tasks to check.
5. By the end of the process in step 4 I should have a series of checked tasks at the bottom of my list, with the most urgent items above and the randomly selected task at the bottom. I then do these tasks in order, unchecking them if they are recurrent or unfinished, or deleting if done and non-recurrent. I repeat steps 2 to 5 until the end of the day.
6. The next day, I close again the previous day as described in step 1. During this day, the items marked by asterisks must be selected (randomly or by FV) and done or they will be dismissed at the end of the day. The reasoning for this is that the items in my list must not be clogged with tasks that can be done only in certain days; those items must be in my calendar. To avoid confusion, I would mark the items I do not like to do it or somehow I cannot do it with asterisks for this day, and then alternate with the heavy dot the next days.