Get Everything Done

I have occasionally had a situation arise in which I will have one or two "dismissed" or "closed" pages smack in the middle of my active pages. It's a minor quibble, but I don't particularly like having to page past "dead" pages as I work through my list.

Has anyone else dealt with this? What did you do? Today I got annoyed enough with it that I simply moved the items on the pages before the dismissed ones forward on the list and called their original pages "closed".

This happened to me too Sarah, I used a paperclip to clip them together. This was possible because I only use the right side of the paper though.

Rip them out.

Rip them out?!? That's sacrilegious. I need them for my "You've come a long way baby" boost.

Yes, that has happened to me too, but my experience with that is a little different. It's a huge motivator for me to rephrase or dismiss the tasks before the closed pages. These are tasks I haven't worked on, and there is a underlying reasons for them, obviously. I may have built up resistance to them, or simply that a rephrasing will kick start the task at the end of the list.

I agree with JD, it is a motivator to work on the older pages. When I used an Atoma-Circa notebook the situation was different, as I could move the closed pages away.

Jacqueline,

Some recently completed tasks:

- Do laundry
- Wash dishes
- Shop groceries
- Doctor's appointment
- Get new glasses
- Clean up bike
- Walk neighbor's dog
- etc.

Now I don't know about you, but if I found that somehow encouraging that I'm really moving forward in my life ... I'd quizz my wife about why she has not shot me yet! ;-)

I would think a better place to record life changing experience would be in a journal ... no?

I dunno, I agree with Jacqueline, I like being able to page back and see what I've done (and yes, things like laundry and dishes are on my list too, but there are also things like a multimedia presentation of which I am very proud, and new curtains for my daughter's room, etc.). I doubt I'll keep an AF book after all pages in it are closed, but for the time being, I like my hardbound book.

Heheh Mike, where are your GOALS?!?

I also don't rip them out, because I usually have a phone number/address/web site on the page. And I wouldn't want my notes moved to another section (if I had moveable pages) because I recall things by date of doing.

I agree with JD & Damien, every time I flip through the book, the pages before that finished page sit back there and mock me. Huge motivator. I also have a binder clip holding together my chunk of completed pages at the front of the book.

Mark, you are, of course and as always, correct. I have to 'fess up that it was only one item and it was something that I had mentally "scheduled" to do today anyway. Perhaps that can be considered acting on it. ;^)

Mike, I wouldn't criticize your small tasks. In that little list, you've worked on your physical environment; paid attention to your physical health; done a favour for someone/contributed to your community. That's how progress is made, isn't it - Inch by inch?

"I long to accomplish a great and noble task, but it is my chief duty to accomplish small tasks as if they were great and noble." - Helen Keller

I don't like the added bulk of binder clips. So I clip off the upper right corner of dismissed / completed pages. This makes it very easy to flip forward to the next active page.

I write tasks only on the right-hand side of my book, and use the left-hand side for notes and scribbles and business cards and such. If you are using both front and back, then clipping the corner wouldn't work too well.

I suppose this adds another required tool -- scissors. Which can be a real pain if your kids keep making off with yours... :-)

Mark, the pleasure of dealing with the task would have been great had I been in a place where I could deal with it (the task was changing the sheets on the beds, which can't really be done when I'm not at home)... and the annoyance factor of flipping past it was driving me crazy. (My husband would say that this is a VERY short trip).

Hi Jacqueline,

>>> Heheh Mike, where are your GOALS?!? <<<

Goals never go on my AF list. "Actions" do ... at most "projects" do ... but never goals. ;-)

>>> I also don't rip them out, because I usually have a phone number/address/web site on the page. And I wouldn't want my notes moved to another section (if I had moveable pages) because I recall things by date of doing. <<<

Ah, I put that kind of stuff in my pocket journal. My AF list is just a "list", nothing more.

>>> I agree with JD & Damien, every time I flip through the book, the pages before that finished page sit back there and mock me. Huge motivator. I also have a binder clip holding together my chunk of completed pages at the front of the book. <<<

I don't get so involved with my book ;-) I do get a bit frustrated with pages that hang on too long. But that is as it should be, as Mark mentioned recently.

Jacqueline,

>>> Mike, I wouldn't criticize your small tasks. In that little list, you've worked on your physical environment; paid attention to your physical health; done a favour for someone/contributed to your community. That's how progress is made, isn't it - Inch by inch? <<<

Yes, and that is what I put on my list ... "actions" that support "projects" that move me toward "goals".

>>> "I long to accomplish a great and noble task, but it is my chief duty to accomplish small tasks as if they were great and noble." - Helen Keller <<<

Well put.

Mike, I meant GOALS - as in the Mt. Everest kind of goal I've grown to know and love. Unless you were grocery shopping for your Mt. Everest trip... And yeah, you can't DO a goal, you do tasks. That's basic Goals 101.

A pocket journal is one more thing to carry around or refer to. I don't like to bother with the overhead of stuff like that, a daytimer, or a tickler file.

If I start sleeping with my book, hopefully I'll know I'm so far gone that I'm beyond addicted. In which case, you have my blessing to host an AF intervention. Until then, I'll give you my book when you take it from my cold, dead hands.

Hi Jacqueline,

>>> Mike, I meant GOALS - as in the Mt. Everest kind of goal I've grown to know and love. <<<

LOL ;-)

>>> Unless you were grocery shopping for your Mt. Everest trip... And yeah, you can't DO a goal, you do tasks. That's basic Goals 101. <<<

This may be one of those terminology confusions we have so often. "Climb Mt. Everest" would never be on my AF list. "Buy new ice axe" would, however, or even "Do conditioning exercises" ... which is an ongoing project reminder.

>>> A pocket journal is one more thing to carry around or refer to. I don't like to bother with the overhead of stuff like that, a daytimer, or a tickler file. <<<

Gotcha. I find that I take a few notes as the day goes along and that I want my AF list to stay "clean". I'd never get through scanning it if I had to read all of my notes about various things. They would be roadblocks, distracting me from doing things. I'm distracted enough, thank you very much ;-)

My system is just managable as a "pocket system". My wife is always razzing me about the junk in my pockets, but that is what wives are for! ;-) I've just opened a new book, and that has made things bulkier than I like. But that has become an even stronger incentive to close pages so I can quit hauling the filled book around. Fortunately, since I trash old pages, it is really very thin. But the wire spiral still takes up space.

>>> If I start sleeping with my book, hopefully I'll know I'm so far gone that I'm beyond addicted. In which case, you have my blessing to host an AF intervention. Until then, I'll give you my book when you take it from my cold, dead hands. <<<

ROTF ;-) I know how you feel. I feel a bit naked if I find my pocket empty for some reason. Two books and a pen ... <clunk, rattle, flop> ;-)

Re the original question: I've just moved everything to 6x4" plain index cards. And it's working fine so far:

- I can get around 26 'lines' of tasks on a card, which is low, but manageable.
- I can carry 'home' and 'work' stacks, so that I have the 'home' stack accessible from work, but it's not distracting when I'm cranking through the 'work' tasks
- I can keep dismissed cards in a batch somewhere safe and not drag them around with me all the time
- When a card is finally *done*, it gets binned, and my task load is quite literally lighter
- My stack is a physical reminder of how much is on my plate, and if I'm over-committed
- It's easy to spawn separate lists if need be, like a shopping list, or a sub-project list
- For more urgent tasks, I can if necessary tweak the order of the pages, so I make sure it comes up on the next page.
- Last but not least, my nice Moleskine notebook is being used for what I intended it for: notes and journalling, not endless task lists, which always seemed a bit of a waste. And the card stack tucks neatly into the pocket at the back (or slightly less neatly if I'm over-worked!)

Ok, so it's a bit wasteful using card instead of paper, but it has a nice feel, and is actually quite a lot cheaper than most notebooks, other than the cheapest options. The trees will forgive me I'm sure!

"Having dismissed the page, you should then have worked out why you needed to dismiss it at all. Was it because it would have been better to schedule a reminder to do that particular task, rather than put it on the list? Was it because you need to have a separate list for when you are away from home? Or was it because you have a high resistance to the task(s) on that page? - in which case how can you reduce the resistance you feel to it/them?"

I do think that this was a case where I would have been better to schedule a reminder for a time when I was going to be home rather than just leaving it on the list.

As always, I appreciate your input & wisdom!