Agenda INFRASTRUCTURE – Get clear – Choose your work consciously – Track your work PLANNING – Weekly plan – Daily plan EXECUTION – Strategies to keep moving forward – Better management

INFRASTRUCTURE Get clear Choose your work consciously Track your work

GET CLEAR

I need to buy milk When am I going to work on the budget--- WHERE should I go on vacation? I have to call my sister about Thanksgiving Is my credit card payment due this week? What am I going to do about my problem with my mother? I have to apply for re-certifcation Where is that article that I need to get ready for the Friday presentation When am I going to do my taxes…

I need to buy milk When am I going to work on the budget--- I have to call my sister about Thanksgiving Is my credit card pyment due this week? What am I going to do about my problem with my mother? I have to apply for re- certification Where is that article that I need to get ready for the Friday presentation When am I going to do my taxes… Get everything out of your head 7

CHOOSE YOUR WORK CONSCIOUSLY

I may be able to do anything but I can’t do everything…. The sane person’s motto

Say Yes! to your own goals, and 11 No …to work that pulls you away from them

TRACK YOUR WORK

Keep one calendar that includes all your time commitments, plus: reminders, deadline notices, and tasks that must be done on specific day.

Simple, single master to do list

All work that is currently in progress Master to do list * Ideas for later list Record on a List Or on the Calendar

Free, any OSIf this is what you use at work iOS only Wunderlist Outlook Tasks (coupled with Touchdown for Android, Reminders for iPhone) Reminders Remember the MilkThings ($$) Toodledo (premium version $) OmniFocus ($$) Todoist (premium version $) Sample list manager programs /apps … and numerous others

PLANNING Weekly plan Daily plan

WEEKLY PLAN

Weekly planning 1.Set boundaries for work and personal time 2.Review / update your inventory of work - both job and personal 3.Identify three high priority things to accomplish

Set boundaries for work and personal time dinner Your child's birthday party Work

To reduce bleed over: plan personal time, set work boundaries Your child's birthday party dinner Social event Family time Movie Personal time Work work Exercise, meditation, etc

Review / update your inventory of work: –Empty your inboxes ( , paper) –Lists Up-to-date? –Calendar 1 week back, 3+ weeks forward

Work on project budget Work on 12/1 conference call work on birthday party plans Identify ~ 3 high priority things to accomplish And even better 

Define as outcomes ( A SIGNIFICANT “ CHUNK ” OF A PROJECT THAT YOU WILL COMPLETE ) Work on project budget  Get agreement on project specs Work on 12/1 conference call  Make a distribution list, and s end to group to get agenda input with 11/10 deadline work on birthday party plans  finalize the guest list and send invitations

Schedule time to work on these outcomes using “time blocks” Mon Definition: A block of time, of any length, that you set aside on your calendar to do work by yourself Length? No rule. But, we work more effectively in intense 90 minute spurts, followed by a short break.

DAILY TASK PLAN

Daily task plan: Must* be done today –. – … Aim* to do today * The deadline is today * “It will be so great if I get this done today but nothing bad will happen if it don’t.”

Must be done today –. – … Aim to do today

Must be done today –. – … Aim to do today Triage new to do’s that show up:  Must this be done today?  Is this more important than remaining Aim to do tasks? If “no” to both, record at the bottom of the list to deal with later –.

Daily task plan using an index card

EXECUTION Strategies to keep moving forward Better management

Strategies to keep moving forward

Manage distractions 1- Multi-tasking 2- Continuous Partial Attention 3- / device addiction 4- Interruptions by other people

Do something related to the high priority work before you look at (or do any other routine work)

the Pomodoro technique Write down what you are going to do Repeat as needed Manage interruptions Francesco Cirillo

Pomodoro apps Web /desktop – Tomato Timer – Focus Booster iOS – iPhone Pomodoro Timer by Navel labs Android – Pomodroido by Artifix Blackberry – Pomodoro Helper by Chin Your local hardware store….

BETTER MANAGEMENT

Empty inbox INBOX ZERO!

Create a “backlog” folder If you have more than ~ 200 messages in your Inbox….

Projects Reference Sample folder structure

Decide the first time!  Delete  File  Store in “Optional reading” folder  Do / reply now

Decide the first time!  Delete  File  Store in “Optional reading” folder  Do / reply now  Defer?  First, ask WHY?  Then, what is the next thing you need to do to move toward completion? ~ 90% completed

The path to “empty” Don’t: “Check” Do: time-limited “Batch” Don’t: “Skip” Do: complete as many actions as possible for each message

Books (selected) David Allen – Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress Free Productivity (2002) – A popular, effective complete system Kerry Gleeson – The Personal Efficiency Program, (2008 version) – An alternative complete system Julie Morgenstern – Time management from the Inside Out – The original detailed description of “time mapping” Jason Womack – Your Best Just Got Better: work smarter, think bigger and make more (2012) – Includes many strategies for assessing your work habits and for how to make changes