Nor is reading (or writing) blog posts. Or comments.
To-Do Lists Are Not the Answer to Getting Things Done
21–30 of 79 posts
Re: To-Do Lists Are Not the Answer to Getting Things Done
#22The same old thing peope talk about thousands of time. This is just a marketing article to promote the $59 seminar: https://www.bewaymoreproductive.com
Re: To-Do Lists Are Not the Answer to Getting Things Done
#23I create todo lists because I forget what I wanted to do within minutes, or even seconds.
Having a todo list at hand to write these things down means I don't lose them, even if I don't look at them again for weeks or months.
Not sure where you'd put this on a Calendar.
Re: To-Do Lists Are Not the Answer to Getting Things Done
#24Earlier quoted context omitted.
This mentality can be a little dangerous. You're training yourself to cater to your moods. This can result in important but not urgent tasks that you're never really in the mood to do never getting done. Or, if it's a task that has to be done, a lot of resistance because you're used to waiting for motivation to kick in. For me, a better approach has been to consciously force myself to do things I don't feel like doin…
I used to try this method, but it's never worked for me. My productivity is so incredibly low when I'm trying to work on something I don't want to do that it's just a big waste of time. If it's something actually important I'll do it eventually. If it's something I truly dread, I might do it at the last possible moment, but I'll do it.
Perhaps there's a middle ground.
I've found that my moods are fairly cyclic. I'm high energy in the a.m., start to trail off in the afternoon and then catch a second wind after dinner. To the extent I'm able I structure my day around these cycles, reserving the high-concentration/creativity tasks for the a.m. and the more mindless/mundane for the afternoon. Evening's a free-for-all depending on whether I still have work to do or not.
Re: To-Do Lists Are Not the Answer to Getting Things Done
#25I don't know about most people, but this works terribly for me. Motivation is huge for my happiness, so I want to do something when I'm in the mood for it. This means I do keep a list of the things I need to get done, so whenever I've got free time, I take a look at the list and see what I'm most in the mood to do. Of course, this is the real world -- sometimes something has a firm deadline so you have no choice (so…
Totally agree that scheduling is not for everyone. I've also read a lot of so called productivity expert saying that you should write down all the things in mind without bothering scheduling them. IMHO, there's no single solution for personal productivity boost but to work hard and figure out the best solution for yourself.
Re: To-Do Lists Are Not the Answer to Getting Things Done
#26I don't know about most people, but this works terribly for me. Motivation is huge for my happiness, so I want to do something when I'm in the mood for it. This means I do keep a list of the things I need to get done, so whenever I've got free time, I take a look at the list and see what I'm most in the mood to do. Of course, this is the real world -- sometimes something has a firm deadline so you have no choice (so…
This mentality can be a little dangerous. You're training yourself to cater to your moods. This can result in important but not urgent tasks that you're never really in the mood to do never getting done. Or, if it's a task that has to be done, a lot of resistance because you're used to waiting for motivation to kick in. For me, a better approach has been to consciously force myself to do things I don't feel like doin…
Different approaches work for different people. I wish people would understand that, instead of assuming that what works for other people is ~secretly harmful~ and they should just use what works for the speaker.
The first and only ironclad law of productivity is "Do what works."
Re: To-Do Lists Are Not the Answer to Getting Things Done
#27I think the big mistake of people talking about productivity is the idea that a single formula works for everyone. For example, I finally discovered that I am most productive when I have no todo lists. I just work better by simply picking whatever has highest priority in my mind and doing it. The point is, if something is important it should be on your mind. If it is not, it probably is not important or urgent. Of course, if something needs to be remembered you make notes, but nothing similar to a todo list. Whenever I have a todo list I instinctively start to slack off.
Re: To-Do Lists Are Not the Answer to Getting Things Done
#28> SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE DON’T MAKE TO-DO LISTS.
Request for disproof: Any successful people here make to-do lists?
Re: To-Do Lists Are Not the Answer to Getting Things Done
#29I don't know about most people, but this works terribly for me. Motivation is huge for my happiness, so I want to do something when I'm in the mood for it. This means I do keep a list of the things I need to get done, so whenever I've got free time, I take a look at the list and see what I'm most in the mood to do. Of course, this is the real world -- sometimes something has a firm deadline so you have no choice (so…
The main point of the article is not that scheduling is superior to TODO lists. Instead it is that continually adding to a TODO list is bad and instead making a schedule makes that impossible.
I feel using a TODO list with time estimates would give the benefits from the article was also letting you schedule flexibly as you feel like it. By putting the time estimates in it makes it easier to say no to tasks that don't have to be done.
Re: To-Do Lists Are Not the Answer to Getting Things Done
#30"When you schedule things, you are forced to deal with the fact that there are only so many hours in a week. You’re forced to make choices rather than add something to a never ending to-do list that only becomes a source of anxiety."
Great observation. I get the feeling scheduling is something that MBAs are taught, where "time is the restriction". What about JIT scheduling? In my view, adding dates to every task is another BS and unnecessary task. Here's an alternative restriction, tasks per day. "Ivy Ledbetter Lee" (business productivity guru 100 years ago) had another approach. Spend 15min at end of day doing the following:
* specify six tasks you need to finish
* prioritise them one to six
* do each task, in order, till finished
* work your arse off
* left-over tasks are added to tomorrows list
* repeat
The restriction here is how many tasks I NEED to do TODAY. Read more about "Ivy Ledbetter Lee" below.