Ep 2 – How Do You Manage Tasks That You Didn’t Create?

How do you manage those tasks which you can’t control? You wish you could be completely in charge but there are some which come from life/boss/spouse/kids/the government that you don’t have a choice about.

What do you do about those?

Here on this podcast, I’ll tackle this problem with Ray Sidney-Smith and we’re hoping to gain some insights and possible solutions that will be brand new…all in real time.

Definition – A time demand is an internal, individual commitment to complete an action in the future.

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Ep 1 – What is the Task Management & Time Blocking Podcast All About?

How do you take your task management and time blocking to the next level? With so many bits and pieces of advice out there, it should be easy to figure out a plan of improvement, or at least your next step.

But there’s no single place you can trust that will help you come up with your next, best improvement. Here on the podcast, we’ll help by first offering up a tricky ask management problem, then exploring a range of possible solutions…all in real time.

The point is to do more than just offer cliches or repeat stuff said elsewhere. We want to come up with something new…every time!

Loaf of bread, container of milk, stick of butter Video – Sesamie Street https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNghp9tPXjo

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Remember to subscribe to this podcast via Apple, Google or your favorite podcast player.

Download a rough transcript of this episode.

Part 16 — Psychological Objects and Tasks


Part 16 — Psychological Objects and Tasks

Why You Must Separate Psychological Objects from their Physical and Digital Counterparts in Your Task Management

Problem

You want to manipulate future, incomplete tasks effectively, hoping to improve the way you manage them so you can become more effective. However, they seem to have a life of their own!

Even though you have set up a system of lists, schedules, reminders, apps, etc. to pin them down, they seem ready to slip away at a moment’s notice. Tasks are unlike physical objects like desks and chairs, or digital objects like documents or email messages. Instead, they are invisible and intangible.

Left untended, they have the unfortunate ability to disappear from view, never to be recalled ever again. Pus, they fade behind our other commitments, only to reappear suddenly when it’s too late, long after a problem has arisen.

Our problem is that we don’t treat them as if they have a special, unique nature. While we know that they are born when we make a specific commitment, and die when a task is completed or intentionally voided, what should happen in between remains a mystery. Even academic researchers barely understand!

Why Is This Important?

Someone who understands the distinction between psychological objects and physical or digital objects can manage each of them according to their unique properties. Given the fact that your task management system probably includes all three, this knowledge can help you make better quality improvements.

What’s the Link to the Rapid Assessment Program (RAP)?

In the RAP you see how it’s possible to make improvements which are in line with the ephemeral nature of tasks i.e. psychological objects. You are more likely to be effective with this insight, especially as you move forward to implement a plan of Pareto Improvements.

Find out more about the MyTimeDesign Rapid Assessment Program in this webinar.


Part 16 — Psychological Objects and Tasks was originally published in 2Time Labs on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Trailer – Introducing the Podcast w Francis Wade

Trailer for the Task Management & Time Blocking podcast with a little splash!

http://replytofrancis.info to leave us some feedback or ask a question via text or voicenote communication

https://timeblockingsummit.info to register for the March summit

https://mightytaskers.ScheduleU.org to join our community

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Remember to subscribe to this podcast via Apple, Google or your favorite podcast player.

Part 15 —Why You’ll Need Systemic Task Management

Why You Must Focus on Your Whole Task Management System Rather than its Parts

Problem

When you want to find a way to improve the way you manage your tasks, it’s tempting to do a Google search or visit a Q&A forum like Reddit or Quora. You’re looking for something important — probably a way to retain your peace of mind while accomplishing more.

But the answers you find at first probably look like small bits and pieces of something much larger. For example, someone who tried a particular practice or started using a new app may have made some gains. If task management were simple, this would be all the advice you’d need.

Unfortunately, that’s not the case. Our self-made systems are combinations of practices and apps we engage in each day. However, these elements are intertwined.

As such, like any complex system, you can’t simply focus on improving a single piece at the exclusion of the bigger picture. You may, in fact, make things worse if you tweak one aspect, but ignore the ripple effect which is created.

Why Is This Important?

It’s only natural to become frustrated when you attempt to make an improvement that only makes things worse. Some give up at this point, but they don’t need to.

Instead, they need to educate themselves about the inner workings of the task management system they use each day. This knowledge can lead them to make Pareto Improvements which have an outsized effect.

What’s the Link to the Rapid Assessment Program (RAP)?

The best way to learn how your task management system works isn’t to listen to a lecture. Instead, the RAP gives you self-diagnostic tools that help you craft a plan of improvement based on the fact that you need to take a systemic approach.

Find out more about the MyTimeDesign Rapid Assessment Program in this webinar.


Part 15 —Why You’ll Need Systemic Task Management was originally published in 2Time Labs on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Part 14 — The Law of Diminishing Returns in Task Management


Part 14 — The Law of Diminishing Returns in Task Management

Why it becomes harder to make improvements as your task volume increases

Problem

When you only had a small list of tasks, it was easy to make improvements. You took your productivity in this area seriously and made some good changes, expecting to continue in the same vein indefinitely.

However, as you moved to the next level, and the next, it seemed harder to keep up the pace of improvements. In fact, it may have felt like you were stalling.

Why did this occur?

To put it simply, you benefited from “beginner’s luck”. When you bring sound practices to a self-taught system of any kind, the effect is generally positive.

However, the reason it becomes harder to make the same progress has everything to do with the easy changes you have already made. Now, you just cannot grow as quickly, and you must shift your methods.

Why Is This Important?

The fact that you are managing more tasks is a sign of success, a fact to be celebrated. Unfortunately, you now need to accept that it will take more knowledge and effort to continue to make changes. As such, your expectations need to shift as well. To maintain the thrill of continuous learning, you must now make an investment in yourself.

You need to add to your knowledge, skills and awareness, enhancing your ability to self-diagnose your task management.

Fail to do so and you’ll get stuck. The Law of Diminishing Returns may lead you to quit.

What’s the Link to the Rapid Assessment Program (RAP)?

Within the RAP, you’ll learn the art of making progressively more sophisticated self-assessments. This takes patience, and a trained eye. But you’ll be more satisfied bythe end as deeper improvements become accessible.

Find out more about the MyTimeDesign Rapid Assessment Program in this webinar.


Part 14 — The Law of Diminishing Returns in Task Management was originally published in 2Time Labs on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.