Get Everything Done

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1008&v=3zSzkzszIrw&feature=emb_logo

This is a music teaching video. The presenter says that interleaved practicing where you alternate tasks is better for long-term memory than blocked practice where you practice one task at a time. Also that it is best to practice the hardest tasks first. Any application to time management?

I don’t know about time management but it works great for music practice, thanks.

There is actually quite a bit of research on this subject, if you google "interleaved learning" you'll find it, and its advantages, and how it differs from multitasking.

That is a an excellent video. I've listened to the audiobook of Make It Stick that she references. It is a great book. I also am a pianist, and have been working to implement the interleaved a little more in piano practice.

I instantly noticed the application of interleaved = little and often for task management. The video does recommend timing your interleaved sessions to 5 minutes or so to begin with, with an actual timer. Mark has written about that too.

It's great how different people arrive at the same principles with such different experiences and use different terminology. I think these varied perspectives really add richness to understanding the principles.

I am a church music director, and I often use a timer. I might have 16 pieces of music to prepare for a church service. I rotate working on each piece with a timer, spending 5 minutes on each. I might increase the time interval. After an hour or two, or after starting work on all the pieces, I might forget about the timer. By that time I am energized and fully engaged in the music. In a way, the timer is a crutch that I use until I feel like practicing, which I don't necessarily feel when I start.
I do the same for preparing to conduct a choir rehearsal, rotating each choir piece.

Regarding working on the hardest part first, I do wonder whether that applies to an earlier stage or a later stage. If you start working on the hardest piece, you might exhaust your time, and never get to the rest. On the other hand, if you just rotate your tasks, you might end up not spending enough time on the hardest piece, which usually requires more time. It seems to me that it is best after a piece is learned, to then work on the hardest section of the piece.
To compensate for this, I sometimes will start with the hardest piece, and give it more time as I rotate the pieces, so I will devote enough time to everything.
Also, if you work on the hardest task first, one can exhaust one's strength too early or strain oneself. So sometimes I will start with the easiest and progressively work up to the hardest. One can start with the hardest first, but at a slower speed or other way to simplify it.