My daily task list is failing me. Or rather, I’m failing to use it—a checklist is just a tool, and tools don’t do work. I’m at fault if certain jobs go untended, procrastinating stuff I know I should do. But it’s getting worse. Last week I barely launched my to-do app at all.
So this month I’m trying something new. Instead of having tasks to complete, I have a daily list of categories to fill with tasks. Twice a day I compare each category to what I’ve done so far. A well-rounded day has at least one complete task per category.
The original concept had 15 categories; the second draft had four. Today I’m up to:
- Chores & maintenance
- Business projects
- My projects
- Friends & family
- Creative
- Health
They’re not finalized. They’re not in order. They’re not even all nouns. But they roughly sum up what might be a “balanced” day for me. Ben Franklin had a similar goal. His daily list didn’t mention specific tasks, but was a framework for getting things done. (He also didn’t use OmniOutliner. But I’ve never built an odometer, so we’re even.)
So far, so good. Instead of putting off a task for “write Metickulous blog post,” “clean the bathtub” or “finish HTML for Project World Overlord,” I have questions: “How have I exercised today? What have I done for a friend or family? Have I done something creative yet?” Instead of crossing items off the list, I add items to the list. It’s backwards, but it works.
Of course, I still have specific tasks with deadlines to do. One of them is to review this system after two weeks. If all goes well, I should have at least one task accomplished in each category for 14 days. If not, I’ll invent something else.
What’s next?