The idea is that you do the simplest tasks, with the greatest impact on other people first. In other words, if someone else is waiting on you to do something, you do that task first. Then you move onto the more complicated, high impact tasks, then the low impact tasks (the ones that just affect you). This has the affect of not only getting you through your tasks, but you get to look good with your clients/co-workers too!

Add them all up in some made up equation with various weights against the different criteria values and score each project. In the end, you end up telling yourself what you already know about what you should do next.. but at least you have a (totally fake) mathematical proof to stand behind. :)

Believe it or not, I don’t use my to-do list to prioritize, per se… It’s more of a catch-all for anything that needs to get done, simply so I don’t forget about it. I scan the list every hour or so, to make sure I’m on task, or to promote or demote items with cut-and-paste. I find that if I spend too much time worrying about which items take priority over other items, I end up wasting time that could be used to actually DO that task.

1– what keeps the fam happy
2– what pays the rent
3– what pays my future (two startups, namely)
4– what I need to do before today
5– what I need to do before the week
6– what I need to get done before I die

A must get done is just that…It must get done. Bills must get paid. Children must get fed. Survival, don’t do this and we all suffer and die.

Need’s…I need to call my mom, & my wife. I need to change the baby, take the dog out, etc. I need to finish the project for work/school. Anything not life and death, but important enough to be done every day.

Want’s…important, but can be finished any time today or tomorrow, no rush. I want to watch Battlestar Galactica tonight, but if I don’t its not the end of the world. I want to finish up some outstanding work items, but its cool with the boss if I get them done by friday.

Like to’s…I’d like to do it, but there may be more important things to do. I’d like to read “War and Peace” but I just don’t have the time.

Maybe’s…Maybe i’ll do it or maybe not, if it does not get done any time soon, It will not cause chaos od destruction in my life. I use this when my son says “Daddy can I have a (insert animal of the week)?” “On my list”…My list of things to be completed before I die. Nothing really high priority, but alot of things that my mother-in-law wants seem to reside there.

I have a notepad with lots of scribblings which I sometime refer to.
It sits right next to my mousepad within my eyeline.
But most of the time I already have stuff I need doing in my head.

JOSH P wrote:
“…I’ve been doing things based on deadlines..”

Dead…lines….?

I’m Douglas Adams with them.