Confession: I’m a productivity nerd. I take time management very seriously. I read voraciously on the subject, seek out skilled friends for advice, and have taken online courses to master the latest tactics. To-do lists give me a sense of real satisfaction. On days when all my tasks are complete, I feel like a champion. I adore my planner so much, I have considered taking our relationship to the next level by investing in a bullet journal. (Sadly, I haven’t done that yet.)
Where your work meets your life.
What’s the #1 Productivity Tool? For Me, It’s Timeboxing.
It’s time to organize your never-ending to-do list.
September 29, 2021
Getty Images/everything bagel
Summary.
Do you often find yourself carrying forward tasks that should be done today to tomorrow, and then the next day, and then the day after that? To-do lists gave the author, Neha Kirpalani, a sense of real satisfaction, until she was promoted at work and the array of new responsibilities she eagerly wanted to excel at were throwing her (highly) organized schedule off kilter. She experimented with timeboxing and found it came with great additional benefits, including:
- Removing the paradox of choice: We all have to make so many choices every day, and one benefit of timeboxing is removing the paralysis that’s induced by having to choose between a multitude of tasks on a seemingly never-ending to-do list.
- Enabling strategic prioritization: On a long to-do list, it’s natural to pick tasks that are either easier or more urgent, over what’s important. With timeboxing, you can prioritize what’s important (as opposed to simply what’s urgent).
- Providing a clear track record for future reference: You no longer need to rely on memory or hurried/scattered notes. Instead, you have a concrete record of all your projects and accomplishments from every week, in the form of your timeboxed calendar.