GON Reader Question
Hi Maria,
I always have a huge list of tasks I'm trying to accomplish, both at work, at home, and for the side business I'm running. I have tons of half-finished projects and can never seem to choose what's most important, which means I'm never accomplishing anything and always running behind my deadlines. How can I prioritize my tasks more
effectively?
-- Judy in Los Angeles, CA
Response from Maria Gracia
Hi Judy,
Thank you for your question. Let's talk about assessing the urgency and importance of your tasks using something known as the Eisenhower Matrix. Here's a breakdown:
PRIORITY A. Urgent and Important (Do First): These are tasks that require immediate
attention and have a significant impact on your goals or commitments.
Examples include:
Meeting deadlines for work projects with impending due
dates.
Attending to urgent client inquiries or resolving critical issues.
Handling household emergencies such as a burst pipe or electrical
problems.
Addressing time-sensitive tasks for your side business, such as fulfilling customer orders or resolving payment issues.
PRIORITY B. Important but
Not Urgent (Schedule): These tasks contribute to your long-term goals and should be scheduled for completion to prevent them from becoming urgent. Examples include:
Planning and strategizing for future work projects or business growth initiatives.
Investing time in personal development activities like skill-building or networking.
Performing routine maintenance tasks at home to prevent larger problems from arising, such as regular car maintenance or organizing household
documents.
Working on long-term projects for your side business, such as developing a marketing plan or researching new product ideas.
PRIORITY C. Urgent
but Not Important (Delegate): These tasks may require immediate action but do not directly contribute to your goals or priorities.
Examples include:
Attending
meetings or calls that are not directly related to your key projects or responsibilities.
Responding to non-urgent emails or administrative tasks that can be delegated to others, answered with an automated reply, by directing people to a website, or by outsourcing these tasks.
Handling minor household chores (dusting, vacuuming, grocery shopping, cleaning the bathroom, etc.) that can be delegated to family members or a professional company.
PRIORITY D. Neither Urgent nor
Important (Eliminate): These tasks are low priority and do not contribute significantly to your goals. Examples include:
Spending excessive time on social media or browsing the internet for non-work-related purposes.
Engaging in activities that provide little to no value, such as excessive TV watching or gaming.
Getting involved in unnecessary meetings, social events, or commitments that drain your time and energy without meaningful returns.
By assigning your tasks (Priority A, B, C, or D), you can begin allocating your time and energy to the most important and impactful activities. This approach helps you focus on what truly matters, avoid unnecessary distractions, and achieve greater productivity and success in both your professional and personal life.
Once you're done assigning priorities to each task, I suggest you create a TO DO TODAY list. Transfer "4" tasks from your endless list onto your TO DO TODAY list and work on all four of those tasks until completion. Don't move anything else to your TO DO TODAY list until those 4
are done. Maybe you'll finish them all in an hour; maybe it will take you all day; maybe one or two will have to be pushed to tomorrow. BUT, don't add any more until those 4 are done.
When you're making your TO DO TODAY LIST, add "2" A Priorities, "1" B
Priority, and "1" C Priority on today's list.
In doing so, you will be progressing on each task and project.
If you have specific work hours, specific home hours, and specific side-business hours (which I highly recommend you do), you'll need a TO DO TODAY list for each of these so you can work on each themed task during those themed hours of your day.
One more warning...a "task" is ONE action. Like "call Gina and "buy printer paper." A project involves MANY TASKS. For instance, "buying a new car" which generally involves research, visiting dealerships, scheduling an appointment with the finance person, etc.
When you're adding tasks to your TO DO TODAY list, be sure they are actually "tasks" and not "projects." Yes, you can include a task that's "part" of a project on today's list of things to do so you begin to progress on that project.
I hope this helps!
P.S. Want to manage your time better so you have more time for yourself, your loved ones, and the things you love to do? Click here!
