Get Everything Done

AF2 seems to address most of the issues that came up as I have worked with AF1. Mark, you suggest starting off fresh with a new, short list. How, then, do you recommend dealing with my existing AF1 list? I'm not ready to dismiss anything on it (at least not yet). Thank you.

Stan - I'm going to use AF 2 rules on my old AF 1 list. My hunch is that if I follow the rules, particularly dismissal, I will prune my list of non-essential tasks/projects.

Okay, I've started the new list, but could not keep it to only five items--there were 14 must-include items from my old list which I'm using as my starting list plus one new item: "Review Old List," which will be added to the end each time I do it until I complete or dismiss all remaining items on the old list. Thanks.

Thanks Mark, AF2 sounds great - I've been using it for a few hours and it already feels better for me. I'm using the new rules on my old list and it seems like it's freed up the list which had begun to feel a bit stuck and offputting. I'm feeling happier to add things to the end of the list rather than keep them on a 'do it now' type of list.

One of the key things is that the standing out process feels different and I wondered if others are experiencing this? The way I read it it is possible to first do anything urgent from the end of the list then to work back almost directly to the oldest items to save them from dismissal on the basis that they are 'standing out' the most now that they are under threat. You don't have to do at least one item from each page.

Because there's the whole list to choose from, not just a forced choice from one page, what stands out depends on a combination of: the urgency of recently added tasks, the desire not to dismiss the oldest tasks, the appeal of any items encountered on the way back through the list, and the discretionary time available that day.

As mentioned by another contributor I'm not sure yet what this means for the middle of the list - the non-urgent and possibly unappealing but important tasks - but I'm sure we will find out in time.

Thanks again.

Jane,

I think you did clarify something for me with your comments.

Jane, I think you are supposed to *look* at each item, paging backwards, and act on any item that stands out.

I suppose you could just make the assumption that nothing will stand out, and jump straight to those items that are subject to dismissal.

But I've found that, even though I expect there is nothing on a page that will stand out and am tempted to gloss over it and move on, if I do actually step through them one-by-one, something stands out a lot more often than I would have expected.