When something comes across your desk or shows up in your email that requires action, a quick decision needs to be made on how you’ll approach the task. This split second decision can have a significant effect on your productivity. Do you have a strategy for figuring this out, or do you just fly by the seat of your pants?
Time management expert David Allen has created a simple model for prioritizing actions in the moment. The model is based on 4 criteria: Context, Time Available, Energy Available, and Priority.
Context refers to the location and setting you’re in. Are you in the location where the action can happen? Do you have the tools you need - office, home, phone, computer, etc? If not, the task needs to be deferred until the context is right.
Time Available will determine what kind of work you’re willing and able to do. If you have 5 minutes or 2 hours, time will affect your choices. Schedule things that take longer than 2 minutes in a time slot that is best matched to the task.
Energy level: How much energy do you have? There are times when you’re fresh and ready for clients, and other times when you’re toast and it’s best to purge the files, water the plants and/or fill your stapler. Important tasks should be reserved for a time when your energy will best meet the challenge.
Priority: And finally, after you’ve considered your context, time, and energy, now you can ask, “What’s the best thing for me to be doing?” Allen often says, “You can only feel good about what you are not doing, when you know what you are not doing.”
Try using this framework when you handle tasks that come to you for action. Do your best to match a task to the context, the time available, and your energy level. And then, say “no” to the tasks that are lower priority. Unless you have a system that controls the “whims” of your environment, you’ll continue to struggle to do the best you can with what you’ve got.
Source: Adapted from "You Are in Control When You Can See It All" by Ana Maria Gonzalez
No comments:
Post a Comment