FV and FVP Forum > One Thing vs Multitask
+JMJ+
I would say it depends (1) on your personality (2) the type of project it is.
If just having one project bores you and you could do more with doing multiple projects at a time, then do that. One method may work with some but it will surely not work with others; we are just inherently diverse.
On the other hand, how important and urgent are the projects that we are talking about? If it is very important and/or urgent, then I would suggest organizing your schedule around so that you are SURE to do that project often. You'll have to bite the bullet and slug with it.
If the project is important/urgent but you just are so sick of doing it (maybe it's too hard/boring/time consuming) then you'll have to streamline it; that is, plan the most efficient way of doing the project so that even though you will devote less time and effort with it, it is still getting done. Consider delegating it or doing more than one project at a time.
Finally, if the project is something you like doing and will develop you as a person, then do it with abandon. Finish all that you need to do for the time, then pour your all into the project.
This is what I am doing now, with the POSCER method: http://markforster.squarespace.com/forum/post/2040205
I would say it depends (1) on your personality (2) the type of project it is.
If just having one project bores you and you could do more with doing multiple projects at a time, then do that. One method may work with some but it will surely not work with others; we are just inherently diverse.
On the other hand, how important and urgent are the projects that we are talking about? If it is very important and/or urgent, then I would suggest organizing your schedule around so that you are SURE to do that project often. You'll have to bite the bullet and slug with it.
If the project is important/urgent but you just are so sick of doing it (maybe it's too hard/boring/time consuming) then you'll have to streamline it; that is, plan the most efficient way of doing the project so that even though you will devote less time and effort with it, it is still getting done. Consider delegating it or doing more than one project at a time.
Finally, if the project is something you like doing and will develop you as a person, then do it with abandon. Finish all that you need to do for the time, then pour your all into the project.
This is what I am doing now, with the POSCER method: http://markforster.squarespace.com/forum/post/2040205
January 10, 2013 at 23:53 |
nuntym
nuntym
Too many projects means nothing gets completed, ever. Too few projects means your brain gets too much of one type of work.
I aim for about ten projects, but each one has a different character. A few are active. Some have deadlines, some don't. Some are finicky. Some are draining. Some (studying) are best done in several smaller chunks. That way there's always something that fits my mood. My current dilemma is whether to pause shorthand or knitting masters. They're very similar in terms of attention and precision. No deadline.
I aim for about ten projects, but each one has a different character. A few are active. Some have deadlines, some don't. Some are finicky. Some are draining. Some (studying) are best done in several smaller chunks. That way there's always something that fits my mood. My current dilemma is whether to pause shorthand or knitting masters. They're very similar in terms of attention and precision. No deadline.
January 11, 2013 at 4:13 |
Cricket
Cricket
Re-reading, 10 projects seems a large number, but I consider many things projects that others call routines. Weekly housework is one project, biweekly and monthly combine to another project. Anything that has its own set of milestones and deadlines is a project, but if two with similar requirements have good timing I might combine them. (E.g., If I'm preparing to teach two knitting courses, I'll combine it to one "teaching" project.) Dailies is a project.
I find routines and schedules don't work for me. I'm always afraid I'll over-emphasise something, or I find a way to weasel out of it. I can, however, look at my list of projects and see that "housework" needs more attention and "studying" needs less.
I find routines and schedules don't work for me. I'm always afraid I'll over-emphasise something, or I find a way to weasel out of it. I can, however, look at my list of projects and see that "housework" needs more attention and "studying" needs less.
January 11, 2013 at 18:36 |
Cricket
Cricket
I think the DIT "audit of commitments" can be very useful to apply here.
(1) Go through every item on your list. Identify what commitment is behind it. Perhaps it is a project, perhaps it is a one-off -- but in both cases, there is an implied commitment lurking somewhere behind it. Identify the commitment.
(2) Now you have a list of your commitments. List them in order of priority.
(3) Draw a line somewhere that makes sense to you -- everything above the line are your active commitments. Everything below the line goes on your "Not Do" list. (At work we call it a "ZBB line" but I have no idea what ZBB means! LOL)
(4) Don't do anything on your Not Do list, or derived from your Not Do list.
This has been working so well for me, I have come to agree with those who say that a "Not Do" list is at least as important as a "To Do" list. (For example, in this article: http://www.forbes.com/sites/mikemaddock/2012/12/30/ten-resolutions-the-most-successful-people-make-and-then-keep/ )
If you don't like the phrase "Not Do", you can call it "Someday/Maybe" -- but you still must agree with yourself NOT TO DO anything that is derived from those items, unless you do another audit of your commitments and decide to bring those commitments above the ZBB line.
This approach has helped me to find the right level of focus on the right number of projects / commitments.
(1) Go through every item on your list. Identify what commitment is behind it. Perhaps it is a project, perhaps it is a one-off -- but in both cases, there is an implied commitment lurking somewhere behind it. Identify the commitment.
(2) Now you have a list of your commitments. List them in order of priority.
(3) Draw a line somewhere that makes sense to you -- everything above the line are your active commitments. Everything below the line goes on your "Not Do" list. (At work we call it a "ZBB line" but I have no idea what ZBB means! LOL)
(4) Don't do anything on your Not Do list, or derived from your Not Do list.
This has been working so well for me, I have come to agree with those who say that a "Not Do" list is at least as important as a "To Do" list. (For example, in this article: http://www.forbes.com/sites/mikemaddock/2012/12/30/ten-resolutions-the-most-successful-people-make-and-then-keep/ )
If you don't like the phrase "Not Do", you can call it "Someday/Maybe" -- but you still must agree with yourself NOT TO DO anything that is derived from those items, unless you do another audit of your commitments and decide to bring those commitments above the ZBB line.
This approach has helped me to find the right level of focus on the right number of projects / commitments.
January 12, 2013 at 1:58 |
Seraphim
Seraphim
Thank you for all the suggestions!
I have found something wonderful that has happened.
I just used FV Alternate Version. As Mark says, what you are resisting is probably what will help you grow.
So, I could not do all of the projects on my list in one day. I did what I could comfortably do in one day.
And so I deleted all other projects from my FV list, only keeping what I can comfortably do in one day. And when I will feel that my days ends too early, then I'll add more.
I guess the "audit of commitments" is built into FV as well :)
I have found something wonderful that has happened.
I just used FV Alternate Version. As Mark says, what you are resisting is probably what will help you grow.
So, I could not do all of the projects on my list in one day. I did what I could comfortably do in one day.
And so I deleted all other projects from my FV list, only keeping what I can comfortably do in one day. And when I will feel that my days ends too early, then I'll add more.
I guess the "audit of commitments" is built into FV as well :)
January 12, 2013 at 6:41 |
Cool K.C.
Cool K.C.
Seraphim:
<< At work we call it a "ZBB line" but I have no idea what ZBB means! LOL >>
I googled it and found ZBB stands for Zero Based Budgeting. Though I'm not much the wiser!
<< At work we call it a "ZBB line" but I have no idea what ZBB means! LOL >>
I googled it and found ZBB stands for Zero Based Budgeting. Though I'm not much the wiser!
January 12, 2013 at 9:29 |
Mark Forster
Mark Forster
And don't forget something I've written about several times. A commitment is as much about what you are not going to do as about what you are going to do. For example, if you make a commitment to getting a new business up and running, part of making that commitment is to define where the time to carry out that commitment is going to come from.
January 12, 2013 at 9:37 |
Mark Forster
Mark Forster
Yesterday, I have spent 2 hours on project A, rested for 1 hour, then 2 hours on the same project A (total 4 hours), then 2 hours of project B, rested for 1 hour.
I was then too exhausted to do any more work, which I normally am able to do.
And today, I feel a huge resistance to do anything that relates to my projects.
Should I continue with this, to see whether I will "get used to it", or because I like variety during my day, I might be more productive using FV, and stopping the work on each task when I feel like it?
I was then too exhausted to do any more work, which I normally am able to do.
And today, I feel a huge resistance to do anything that relates to my projects.
Should I continue with this, to see whether I will "get used to it", or because I like variety during my day, I might be more productive using FV, and stopping the work on each task when I feel like it?
January 15, 2013 at 9:03 |
Cool K.C.
Cool K.C.
Zero-Based Budgeting (ZBB) is defined in contrast to the normal budgeting process which assumes this year's budget will be like last year's and then decide what to add, remove, or replace. ZBB assumes nothing about what is budgeted for, and expenses are added to the budget only according to their being justified, and fitting the available revenue. Thus ZBB is always about adding items, never subtracting.
January 15, 2013 at 20:43 |
Alan Baljeu
Alan Baljeu
I did know what Zero Based Budgeting is, but I wasn't expecting to find it in the context that Seraphim described. I think it's probably a misuse of the term.
January 16, 2013 at 12:54 |
Mark Forster
Mark Forster
Hmm, maybe the term is sensible after all. Each item on the list must be justified, or it doesn't get to stay on the list. Items above the ZBB line are "funded" with your time & resources -- items below the line are "defunded".
January 29, 2013 at 4:12 |
Seraphim
Seraphim
I have had a lot of successful people telling me that you have to work on one project at a time, project here being define as anything that I want to happen that involves more than one task and that has a specific result wanted.
They say that, if you do a task from A, then another from B, then another from C, you will delay the achievement of all of those projects.
But if you focused on one at a time, you will have A finished, then B finished, then C and see the results much faster than switching from project to project.
At the same time, if I spend more than 1 hour at a time of a project, resistance grows a lot. So, instead of having a smooth day where I breeze through my FV list, I dread the time I would spend focusing mostly on one project, and feel exhausted. Sometimes I think that "I will get used to this feeling, so it would not be exhausting anymore."
So, what are your ideas on this?
Is it better to put all the projects that are important and should be achieved at some point in my FV list, and then go through them like that?
Or just put 1 project as people recommend?
Or simply put the least number of projects that would keep my resistance bearable? For example 4 or 5 to do something about per day + the daily recurrent tasks?
And most importantly: WHY?
Thank you!