Task Management 101
An associate of mine, who is a very organised and driven businessman, recently showed me how he prioritises his workload to make sure he spends his time on the right tasks. He essentially divided a sheet of A4 paper into quarters and catagorised each task based on its urgency and importance. You can see what I mean with this diagram…
I thought this was great, but I also recently learned of another technique developed by Brian Tracy, author of a book called ‘Eat That Frog’. Brian’s book is all about how to stop procrastinating and manage your time and, it’s also now on my shopping list. Brian’s technique is called the “ABCDE method” and it prompts you to categorise your tasks based on whether they will have consequences to your business, whether a tasks needs attention because it will affect your business, tasks you can delegate etc. To get the full story, either read the book, or check out Aurelius Tjin’s post (and then buy the book) and watch his video.
Now, both techniques look pretty good to me, but they can actually be combined quite nicely. Essentially anything that is important and urgent, is a task that you must do to avoid consequences, whereas a task that is important but not urgent, you can probably delegate. Anyway, I combined into the chart below which I’ll be using from now on. Hopefully by properly categorising my task load, I can identify areas for prioritisation, delegation, or where I should simply let the task drop as it will not affect my business.
I would love to hear what time management and prioritisation techniques everyone else uses. I’m sure there must be some fantastic ideas and resources, whether simple paper based techniques as I’ve mentioned above, or maybe through Outlook tasks etc. Please, what works for you?
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It is better be prepared and organized, i don’t make diagrams, i just write ALL tasks and make them considering importance, priorities and time. I am trying to avoid ‘tight corners’ and try make everything in time to avoid urgent matters.
A common strategy to avoid procrastination that I find very useful is to combine urgent, important tasks with tasks that can be completed quickly. It helps me feel like I am accomplishing something making me more motivated to continue to get things done.
I’m more of a list guy. I start the day with my simple to-do list, prioritize it by putting A,B or C in front of it and get to work. Works for me…
this is really great information.thanx for sharing…task management is really important not only in the business but everywhere in the life.
Looking forward for the news about new events that are more interesting things than ever before. We need to learn more and more about in detail. Thanks.
Good Matrix! I would use this tool on a big blackboard, so it has a style and therefore gives motivation to work!
I really like that first method as a way of sorting any given day’s to-do list quickly. It’s not necessarily “full-featured” but it can definitely point on in the right direction in terms of organizing his or her day.
Decide the priority of work
Manage the time accordingly
make the daily task routine
I use the Eisenhower system, too. Very effective
Ah yes, top-right: “to avoid consequences”
Sadly, that’s still a driver for the majority of labour, especially in big businesses. Though practical on the surface, I expect most of the time this is a fear-based judgement and therefore not the most creative or disruptive.
This is great! I am somehow following the Aurelius diagram, I try to delegate the not so important things to someone else so I could focus on the rest.
Honestly this is a nice co-ordinated system that you were able to blend and I am able to tell myself from your psot that I learnt something valuiuable to employ in my daily lif. I think it is a good model.
Employing the japanese method of “kaizen” is also very helpful and I have seen it working wonders.
The Project Manager’s key time management task is to manage the critical path.
I don’t use a published technique. I basically get everything I need to do in the upcoming month and map it out on a week by week basis. I prioritize what needs to be done, the vital (necessary) stuff gets a higher ranking and so on. After that I have room to put in the ’spur-of-the-moment’ stuff. I also do the same for my budget; this is probably the most important part. Regards!
thanks for the nice post. however, what works for me and my business is to write all your priorities in one sheet of paper and post it at your work station. the basics are still the best.
They do combine nicley ive been trying the same sort of thing out at home. hard to start with but got there eventually, so thank you
Thank you for the info. i’m looking forward to the additional valuable information here. thank you
Hi,
The initial diagram comes from Covey’s 7 habits of highly effective people.
The section of the book it comes from is ‘Put First Things First’ and is about prioritising.
If I remember correctly though the idea of importance comes from the task fitting your own objectives, and urgency is just when the thing needs doing. So… something which is urgent but not important is likely to be something someone else is demanding of you, and if it doesnt fit your objectives it might not need doing.
If you wanted to align the other model with this I would suggest these are the tasks you would delegate. I wouldn’t suggest delegating important tasks that are not urgent, these are the key business tasks that drive a business forward, the strategy, the extra development meetings etc, they are important but nothing will break if they are not done. (I say business here but equally its about being effective as a person so it could easily relate to personal objectives, paying bills is urgent and important but wont do anything positive, whereas learning that language or whatever your objectives are will, you just need to find the time)
Urgent and important is almost fire fighting, we need to do these tasks first to make sure nothing breaks, then we must remove the work not important to us altogether and focus all our remaining effort on the important and non urgent quadrant.
The book explains it better than I have but I do think you should re-think the delegation stuff
Cheers
Wayne
I basically set the top 2 tasks for each day and make sure I get those done at all costs. If I get those done, it’s a good day, although I will do other tasks if I still have time.
Do you think making a graph is easy? I don’t think so.
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As a poster said above, it’s best to keep it simple. Just jot down what needs to get done and plaster the to-do list right in front you. This way, you will know when you haven’t completed your tasks.
Hi there, Like your site some very useful information for social bookmark manager and your post regarding Management 101 : Marketing Blagger looks very interesting for me. Keep up the good work.
actually there are many types of tasks management, this technique is new to me, but i was always writing my task and labeling their priorities, that helped me a lot
Thanks for the great info in this post. Managing tasks is extremely important for a small-business owner.
Yep - this looks like Stephen Covey’s seven habits program. This has been around for a very long time. I took the course about 13 years ago.
Hello,
I am just about to step into configuring and using Central Desktop for task management. It has taken longer then expected because I needed to fire/hire to get someone in place who has the skills and fortitude to be able to work virtually with me. I just made my hire on Friday so we are ready to step in. I am looking at using Drop Box as well. I would love to chat with you briefly… can share what I know bout salesforce.
yeh- this is stephens covey’s seven habbits programme. i to took the course a fair few years ago.
That’s a great post!! It helped me the understand the entire concept behind this idea of time management Not only this it also helped me implement the ideas in real life…
Excellent! Good way to organize everything. Sometimes I feel like I have ADD and start too many things and don’t end up finishing any of them.
Excellent. How do you do your graphs? What program do you use. Looks really professional. Keep up the good work
For sure theres no way you can keep things in the rigt prioritized order, unless you have one of the very few great brains of our time. You have to figure out an order to these things.
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Very good! Amazing article! I´ve tested this method and it really helps on saving time organizing jobs and stuff by priority. Time is money.
I personally feel that the method you mention is great. However, once I have started out a way of getting my task done I don’t really feel like changing it. This is my way of dealing with given task. Its using the software called NowDoThis. The task is shown one by one and not a whole list o f it.It’s my all time favourite as I won’t be pressure to known how many task are there that goes on.
That diagram looks like product positioning. I think its a great way. Thanks for the useful information. It is very helpful.
Thanks for the graph, i’ve seen it before, but haven’t saved it anywhere. I don’t use any special graphs and stuff (at least until now i haven’t), only simple to-do lists. Sadly, many things stay on that list for a loo ong time
Yeah I think I might have seen it somewhere else too but it’s an excellent graph. Hahah but like lektoriranje says things tend to stay on there for a long time.
You have to figure out an order to these things.i to took the course a fair few years ago.
Thanks for this good advice. Staying organized is one of the most important things in business and this is a good organizational technique.
Hmmm - I wouldn’t delegate “Important but not urgent” - sometimes these can be the absolutely critical tasks that you need to do to prevent problems in the future - or to take advanatge of opportunities. “Delegatability” - is independent of importance/urgency - delegate what you can sensibly delegate - not mechanically based on urgency/importance.
To be frank, I’ve found that these categorisaton systems don’t help much.
For me there’s only one important categorisation - do I really need to do it or not? If I do, it gets scheduled. If I don’t it gets dropped. The key to improving productivity for me has been the courage to drop more stuff.
Ian
I suppose everyone has his own way of staying organized, not everything works for everyone. Some people may need multiple classifications for the importance of their tasks while others are comfortable with just designating whether or not a task needs to be done at all. I could see how Ian’s method could be effective, but I think many people have trouble getting around to doing things even when they know they should.
I am not a big fan of prioritizing. but i am always open minded and will have to read the ‘eat that frog’ book.
That’s pretty smart. I remember seeing a similar graph in one of my managament courses. We had couple exercises concerning it and it worked great.
It is better be organized.its really good information.
It’s important to have orginised employees. However you act and manage your time and tasks is not as important as you employees habits.
I had lots of trouble with my time organization. I have a notepad with todo tasks to make. Important go to the top, less important are in the bottom. I just copy, paste the info and work this way.
It works for me!
Task management help us to achieve our goal that we set. Believe that task management is powerful tool because task is the instrumental of doing anything we do, doing something wrong on task level will effect whole project or business plan..
It is important that we should organize our task from the top priority to the lower one.
I do a couple of things…
1 - Write a list of things in Outlook. I like to this, because I can change and add things easily without erasing, and having to write in a hurry. I have bad handwriting, and will look at a neatly typed list before a scribbled list.
2 - Try to do the smaller/quicker things first….this way I have a sense of accomplishment, narrow down the list substantially, and usually have more time to conquer the lager tasks.
3 - Try to complete all tasks during the day assigned - that way I don’t start the day already behind!
This task management 101 simply reminds me of my younger years in high school where I have to really manage my time with the use of my organizer. Now that I am a big guy I am fond of utilizing industrial machineries to have my job done. I will make it a point that having these apparatus will definitely make your time valuable every minute of it. It assists me to feel like I am achieving something making me more inspired to continue to get things done easily.
In order manage your time/task successfully, have an awareness of what your goals are will assist you in prioritizing your activities. Developing and maintaining a personal, flexible schedule, create a schedule that works for you this personal attention gives you the flexibility to include the things that are most important to you.
Managing your task can gain you the following:
- eliminates cramming
- gain time
- reduces anxiety
- reduce stress
- reduces avoidance
- motivates and initiates
May this tips can help you..
[…] Task Management 101 (marketingblagger.com) […]
Other benefits of Organizing/Planning your task it will help you:
Increase your Productivity
- knowing exactly what needs to be done and when you don’t have to waste time and energy keeping track of things.
Get things out of your head. Clear your mind
- keep your lists in easy task. Clear your mind of all the clutter that is stopping you from increasing your productivity and reducing your stress.
Reduce your Stress
- knowing that you are not forgetting anything will make a difference. Your mind will be clear to concentrate on the next task at hand.
Have more Energy
- Not wasting energy trying to remember your Projects and Tasks. You instead spend that energy accomplishing more in your life.
Don’t ever forget another appointment
- with a clear list and a mind like water you won’t forget another appointment or task.
[…] Task Management 101 (marketingblagger.com) […]
I know this diagram well. Its by Steven Covey and its in his book - 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.
Anothet good method I like to use is one by Tony Robbins that uses Outcome, Purpose and Action to break down what you want out of life. Thats more of a long term planning method though.
I use the Eisenhower system, too. Very effective Thank you
task management is really important.
in task managmnt u shud do or imlement most importnt tasks first rather than jst planning. no matter which technique u r using u should belive in execution of yor tasks as per there importance.
Great idea’s…planning the task is very important to us..it help us in our daily routine to be organize to achieve every task we have in this way we can accomplish on time.
common strategy to avoid procrastination that I find very useful is to combine urgent, important tasks with tasks that can be completed quickly. It helps me feel like I am accomplishing something making me more motivated to continue to get things done.
good idea, but it’s better if we can avoid task that is urgent
avoid a task becoming urgent
plan and schedule our work well, so we will not need to have an urgent task.
focus with our schedule, if something coming and become urgent, we should leave it because itwill ruin our whole schedule
You will do well to prioritize your list of tasks at the beginning of each day. Time is your most precious resource. It cannot be replaced but it can be optimized.
Whatever people may essential triple classifications for the importance of their tasks time others are comfortable with honorable designating whether or not a chore needs to be finished at all .Managing tasks is extremely important for a small-business owner. Actually there are many types of tasks management, this technique is new to me, but i was always writing my task and labeling their priorities, that helped me a lot.
Task management is important to our everyday routine. To be able to do your desired goal for the day, you should be able to manage everything that you do. This includes planning, testing, tracking and reporting. Task management can help either individuals achieve goals, or groups of individuals collaborate and share knowledge for the accomplishment of collective goals.Tasks also differentiate by complexity, from low to high.
I have just come across this site and blog and thus far have found it very interesting. I have to say that one has to organizes their staff if not there would be complete ciaos, and one has to manage them to, so time management would be useful here to one should set daily or even weekly tasks in order to keep staff motivated.
This is really good! article! I´ have tested this and it really helps on saving time organizing jobs and stuff by their priority.
Excellent posting! Managing injuries is not only morally right, it is financially right for the employee AND the employee. It is one difinitive way an employer can play a big part in the dollars attached to an injury.
Thank you!
Being just out of university I haven’t developed my time management and prioritisation techniques, the methods outlined above seem top class and I’ll be looking to implement them into my repertoire. The book by Brian Tracy sounds very interesting and I’m going to add it to my Amazon wish list.
I’m more of a post-it note on the wall sort of guy. Then rip then off when done. Only issue is that the number of posters being put on the wall are at a higher rate than those removed!
Priorities work great if you also make sure to do some of the less important tasks that might have no short term consequences but long term benefit to a business.
I don’t use a published technique. I basically get everything I need to do in the upcoming month and map it out on a week by week basis. I prioritize what needs to be done, the vital (necessary) stuff gets a higher ranking and so on. After that I have room to put in the ’spur-of-the-moment’ stuff. I also do the same for my budget; this is probably the most important part. Regards!
Some good advice and useful tips there - will try and get a copy of that book by Mr Tracy.
This is a fantastic site I love how you have used the graph’s can one do that on the pc and what program would you be using??
I have just stumbled upon this is site and look forward to seeing what else I can learn from here
hey i think that’s really great as i think blogs are the most visited places and members are there to do interaction and share their views.
hi i also think that blogs are more popular than any other resources as they are very informative.
Ah yes, top-right: “to avoid consequences”
Sadly, that’s still a driver for the majority of labour, especially in big businesses. Though practical on the surface, I expect most of the time this is a fear-based judgement and therefore not the most creative or disruptive.
These techniques look great, its so easy to get distracted especially when working from your computer. i’ve looked at the book that talks about only checking your emails a few times a day and also use a mac tool to create a ‘mind map’ showing priorities for the day. It allows you to create a project and then make smaller branches off it along with completion dates and individual tasks.
I tend to have a list of minor and enjoyable tasks, those sort that get me out of my chair or even out of the building. For every few major/hard tasks I get to do one of these less stressful ones. It’s amazing how you can look forward the emptying the refuse bin lol
Make a new list every morning. Prioritize it and actually read it frequently. It’s common to have a small amount of time available while working on one task that could be used to progress on another task. It’s like incremental multitasking.
Wayne
I sometimes struggle with task management. I know that there are programs that can be used for this. Can anyone recommend and give a review of such computer softwares?
It’s important to classify the tasks at hand in order to really effectively manage a business. Do you have any diagram that can be applied for delegating tasks to employees?
Being organized is very easy for some people, and personally is a daily challenge so I’m always looking for some tips. in my case I’m doing well focusing my efforts in no more than two projects. I used to have 6 websites, and now working only with two.
If it’s an option…learn how to delegate to others. Find a competent HIGHLY MOTIVATED person, assign a specific task and GET OUT OF THE WAY! The last step is most important. Micromanagement is the scourge of most management styles.
Great information. I always procrastinate, this is why I am not very productive. I am going to use the things I’ve learned here to manage my time. But do you think it will work for me? I lack self-discipline.
Instead of making diagrams, I just make a simple list of my task including the time, places etc. and put it in front of my mirror. If that techniques look pretty good to you then I know It can also help other to organize well their tasks. Anyway, just want to thank you for this article.
It’s a great start at time and activity management but rather basic and difficult to live your life by. Try the Getting Things Done system - google it! - a much more comprehensive system to manage your priorities.
With the proper task management we can finish more task in lesser time. We should also implement this in our workplaces, when all tasks are organized there will be no wasted/idle time. I like this article, thanks.
Nice matrix to use, but I would rather use the simpler “daily to-do list”.
Listing out 5-10 most important things to accomplish for the day, not more then 10 usually I find that for a nine hour work day, more then 10 items to complete will a bit challenging. Tick the accomplish task as you go along and by end of the day you will get a great sense of accomplishment. Cheers
Time management is critical. I for one always create a list of top 10 things I need to do the next day. This help me create a workplan ahead at night and in the morning I am ready to work the plan. However, one have to show some flexibility and alternating between gig and smaller tasks are a good motivator.
Put a check box in front of every task done in the list: it feels like someone giving you a pat on the shoulder for the job weel done.
Interesting post, thanks for sharing.
I have read Brian’s book couple weeks ago, and I found out there are so many useful tips.
I really like the “get everything down on paper” method of sorting priorities, it frees up the brain to think clearly about the single project you are working on and lets the paper worry about everything else.
i was never scheduled to my work task but after implementing your techniques or might be using Brian’s tips i think i can improve my working capabilities and can finish up all the pending task in time and according to the schedule. Thanks.
Your post remind me to my boss who teach me about how to make best decission between urgency and imprtance , it kind like easy thing but you must deep thinking to find the right and the best answer for yourself.
Great Post, time management is very useful for people, for me it’s very hard to organize my time effectively, thanks for this share
It is difficult to find balance between emotions and rational decition making process when you run into difficulties in your life. Task managment can help you a lot.
Excellent Post, it’s difficult to make good balance and organize your time between rest and work, I know many people take courses how to manage their time correctly
I think time management skills are just as important as having great inventions. Without controling of what you do and how you do that you can not make much progress.
I think the difference between success people and others is task & time management, thanks
Is there a Task manger software that has this task management method?
It is really good to envision your task so you can mange it . It helps you to be more focus on your task or set your priorities. If you know how to manage your time you can spend more quality time with your family and friends.
Hello,
I’ve been using the quadrant method that you and Franklin Covey describe for more than a decade now and, fo me, it’s the simplest and best technique available. It’s also a great tool to use mentally when you need to make a quick decision.
success people who can make balance between their tasks and their time, if they do this good, they will benefit a lot, thanks
I think everybody should do this before starting a work because to handle work effectively you have to sort out the tasks.
many people suffer from management of their time, so it’s very important topic needs to be optimized
Your blog is a great one. What really impresses me is that you are correctly mentioned that there are thousands of tools that are available to create a website or launch one but what matters is that you choose the right one, the one that gives you all that is actually needed.
Reminds me on my first marketing lessen in high school! Never forgot those things. Very helpful.
your post is very informative and helpful for people who suffer from managing their work and time together, thanks