Get Everything Done

I'm going to try out FV today on paper, using my existing list. However, I'm nervous about getting stuck with a set of preselect dots after a period of work. If I need to 'break the chain' due to circumstances, I don't want to leave the dots hanging, and I don't want to cross off and reenter the undone tasks at the end. So I will use a pencil in the preselect phase, and reinforce the current task with a penned dot.

Baby steps. . .

Ubi, my preferred tools are pad and (propelling) pencil, so easy enough to erase erroneous dot when necessary.

Neil

From the instructions:

<<If at any stage you find that a task on the list is no longer relevant, then delete it.

If you find that your preselected list is no longer relevant (e.g. if you have had a long break away from the list), then scrap the preselection and reselect from the beginning. A shorter way to do this is to reselect only from the last preselected task which you haven't done yet.>>

So, yes, use pencil.

This thread was supposed to be about what happens when relevance of the preselected chain is lost, not about placing a dot by mistake. Mark already anticipated the question:

<< If you find that your preselected list is no longer relevant (e.g. if you have had a long break away from the list), then scrap the preselection and reselect from the beginning. A shorter way to do this is to reselect only from the last preselected task which you haven't done yet.>>

But I'm still not sure about the mechanics of this scrapping procedure (for a paper-based implementation). That's why I'm using a pencil for the preselect dots, just in case I want to do a reselect.

I'm going with pen to promote manageable, firm decisions. Otherwise I'm likely to dot everything in sight, oblivious to the amount of time available, and form a habit of erasing whenever I return to my desk a few hours later.

Bernie, Each dot becomes the new benchmark. By the fifth dot, you have a very important benchmark. It's unlikely you'll find something you want to do even more.

It seems that a lot of people are confusing "want to do more" with "want to do before". It's the latter that Mark mentions in the FV instructions! The question is "Do I want to do X before Y (for whatever reason)?"

I've got a feeling this could use some clarification in the instructions :).

Actually, Mr. Forster has mentioned it a couple of times here in the forum already. The question is "BEFORE" and the difference is quite meaningful. Besides, just because I want to do Y more than X doesn't mean I can. If Y is "find a way to do FV on an iPad" and X is "pay for an iPad", I certainly want to do Y more, but I can't. I have to do X before...

I'm not sure it needs more clarity, we just need to read it properly! I have a bad habit of scanning stuff I'm anxious to get through (and make a start on!) and it's easy to not fully weigh up everything written!

Cricket,
<<Bernie, Each dot becomes the new benchmark. By the fifth dot, you have a very important benchmark. It's unlikely you'll find something you want to do even more.>>

My two ladders preselected so far have consisted of ten and eleven items. One of my troubles with TM is that most of my days are extremely flexible, and so "what I want to do before x" often turns into "Oh my, I almost forgot about that one ... I REALLY want to do that one really soon ..." and there's very little to stop me doing it before all the rest.

Nevertheless, no complaints at this point. It has been a nice experience, and I've gotten to several high-resistance things while swatting away at the gnats that are just slightly too small too stand out in the prior systems.

I think that by doing it on paper (or without resorting the list electronically) might help with the "Oh my, I almost forgot about that one ..." issue. I'm preselecting from oldest to newest and then processing from newest to oldest by scanning the entire list twice from two different perspectives.

When possessing those preselected tasks, I'm not studying the list as I scan backwards looking for a dot. But my subconscious seems to remember what I saw when I do my next cycle of preselecting.

But none of us have had long enough with FV to really know what makes it tick except for Mark.

MartyH,
<<I think that by doing it on paper (or without resorting the list electronically) might help with the "Oh my, I almost forgot about that one ..." issue.>>

Well I am entirely on paper with no interest in going electronic. There's really been no trouble at all, though. The only reason to mention it was to point out why I'm staying away from pencil.