Why Checklists?
A lot of people talk about checklists and quite a few use them too. But for those who don’t or those who boast of excellent memory power, the question that arises is “What’s the need?”. Well, the reason is a pretty simple one. Just the onus of remembering tasks takes up a lot of valuable real estate even if we can remember. Making checklists is just like using navigation maps. No load on your brain, fewer chances of missing out on turns (read tasks) and it also gives you an overview of the route map through the work ahead of you.
When to make a Checklist?
Well, checklists range from early goals and events, monthly assignments, weekly meetings and even day to day chores. To keep a record of all of the above, I usually use a planner. It is made for the year, has monthly calendars, weekly outline spaces and a place to fill in my daily checklists. It’s okay even if you don’t make yearly, monthly or weekly plans… it might get a little intimidating.
Several experts have argued to write this daily task list the evening before because it helps you mentally prepare yourself and figure out how to accomplish them. I usually write my check-lists just as my day starts because it is at this time that I know what it most urgent and what my day is going to look like. I can schedule things around other tasks such as attending classes, going out for a movie or simply out for lunch with friends. I know when and how much time I will have in hand and thus scheduling things becomes easier.
How many tasks to include?
The number of tasks to include depends on the number of tasks you can think of doing or wish to do in a day. I usually recommend including only 2/3rd to 3/4th of the tasks on your list. List down all the tasks and categorise them as important v/s urgent. The tasks falling into the “Important and Urgent” category must be included in your list. The tasks that are neither important not urgent don’t need to be included in your to-do list and can be embarked upon after you complete your daily list. As to the other two categories – “Important but Not Urgent” and “Not important but Urgent” – use your discretion. It’s your checklist after all.
How to Prioritise Tasks?
The method that I use to prioritise tasks, is what I call, The Quadrant method. Categorise the tasks that you have included in your to-do list into quadrants again. This time your basis would be difficult vs time-consuming (as shown in the image) try to include minimum tasks in the top left quadrant. Start with one of them and then alternative move on to the top right and bottom left quadrant tasks. Use the bottom right quadrant tasks as mental breaks. For example, I’d first do averages and percentages, my procrastination blog next, I’d move on to rearranging my cupboard and finally use reading about chakras as a break. I also suggest writing the time next to each task to get an idea of how long it will take. To stay on track despite delays, I suggest allocating 1.25x -1.5x the assumed time to the task.
Deciding a Quitting Time.
It’s very important to decide a time when you’re going to call it a day. It not only helps you strike a great work-life balance but also helps you go to bed with your brain a little less worked out. Your quitting time can vary from day to day and at times may also be exceeded a bit due to unseen circumstances or merely because your work took longer than expected. I, being an undergraduate student who’s shuttling between classes and assignments, try to wrap up my work by 8:00 PM, but there have been times when I’ve stayed up till midnight getting work done. If the remaining tasks aren’t very pressing, I leave them to be included in the checklist for the next day.
Study expert, Cal Newport, used 5 pm quitting time through most of his student career and he ended up getting his PhD from MIT. They say “it’s never too late to start” but if you’re productive enough, it’s never too early to finish either ;).
Eat your “Ugly Frog” first.
Your likes and dislikes play a vital role in prioritising work and deciding which task out of your checklist should be done first. The most distasteful task, your “ugliest frog”, should be tackled first. Doing this will take your mind off it once and for all, else you’ll be constantly worrying about it which will get in the way of your other tasks. If you’re an early riser, you can try beginning your day by completing your disliked task in an early-morning Pomodoro even before you head to work or school.
Although all of this may seem very intimidating, tedious and time-consuming first, you’ll get the hang of it with repetitive practice. The categorisation of tasks may require you to write them down in the quadrants and categories in the beginning but soon enough, you’ll be doing that part mentally. And who knows? After a couple of months, you may even be making to-do lists in your sleep.
External Links:
- I learnt most of my productivity tricks from one of the very famous MOOCs “Learning How to Learn” by Barbara Oakley on Coursera. The rest were developed along the way 🙂
- My planner was bought from The Ink Bucket. Not only is it very attractive but has also helped me and my organising streak a lot.
- Lastly, you can find other productivity tips and more of my write-ups on my Instagram page: Skepseis
P. S. I don’t get paid for endorsing either Coursera or The Ink Bucket. I only recommend them based on my user experience.
Skepseis 