When you run a company called BAM, which aims to create a positive, dramatic impact on our client’s lives, it pays to have in your arsenal a priority management tool that’s as effective as it is simple and quick to implement.
In today’s hectic workplace, this has become a huge topic — a Google search for key words like “task prioritization” and “time management tools” literally pulls up millions of results.
Consider, for example, Dave Allen’s “Getting Things Done” framework, whose adepts seem to be everywhere, and who heap lavish praise on the method. Or how about all the software that promises to help you organize your day and make life easy and effortless?
Yet for all the hype, I find most of these methods too cumbersome to apply to daily life, and certainly to our fast-paced work environment. In particular, I take issue with the amount of time they require to implement, which makes them, at least to my mind, a poor match to BAM’s philosophy (of course, I do realize they may work well for some people).
So how do I organize myself? Which method do I suggest to our employees?
As you might predict, it’s simple and plain and cheap and fast. It’s also, in my opinion, extremely effective.
Whether you use an electronic version, a print-out, or (as is often my case) pen and paper, this chart allows you to tackle the important and urgent tasks first. Just put any jobs you have on your plate into the appropriate box and attack the list from the top-right to the bottom-left.
Simple, plain, cheap, and fast. Call me old-fashioned, but this beats fancy software and methodologies any day of the week.
How do you deal with concurrent tasks? How do you manage your daily schedule?
JohnAmardeil.com 