Masonry Magazine April 1993 Page. 40
Taming the “To-Do” List Monster
Used well, your to-do list will help keep your desktop clear of irritating clutter and your energy focused on the things that count.
By RICHARD G. ENSMAN, JR.
TO-DO LISTS YOU'VE read about them, and very likely, use them to keep track of your work assignments. In fact, to-do lists are often touted as a panacea for the lack of time and efficiency prevalent in so many modern organizations.
Unfortunately, to-do lists can quickly become an end in themselves. They can become a virtual roadmap for a day's work, rigidly programming every action and thought of the day, without regard to true priorities. Preoccupied with the need to write down every last assignment and check off every item as "complete" at the end of the day many to do list users become frustrated. Their lists accumulate and so does the aggravation, as the end of each day approaches and the lists seem just as long as ever.
To-do lists can be a productivity building tool in your business life. If you'd like to use a to-do list more effectively or use one for the first time here are a few simple suggestions:
Use the to-do list for important assignments If you have a casual suggestion or a low priority assignment without a deadline, don't put it on your to-do list at all. If you must include an item on your to-do list, rank it according to the priority of the job.
Delegate first Ask yourself: Am I best able to carry out the task at hand? If not, delegate or refer the task to someone else before entering it on your list. If you feel you must track the completion of the task, maintain a separate "delegation" list, which you can review from time to time.
Maintain a perpetual to-do list The perpetual or "running" to-do list is not discarded or filed at the end of the day. You'll continue to add items to this master list on an ongoing basis and check items off whenever they're complete. Whether your list is simply an unordered list of things you must do, or a collection of tasks arranged in priority order, it's just as useful to you on Friday as it is on Monday. Because the list is perpetual in nature, and not geared toward any particular day, it will never need recopying (except when your notebook fills up), or require completion by 5:00 pm or any other artificially imposed deadline.
Maintain functional to-do lists for different types of projects Many experienced managers maintain separate to-do lists for telephone calls, correspondence, reading, and other responsibilities. They may maintain to-do lists for items they'd like to discuss with subordinates, with supervisors and at staff meetings. They may have lists for long-term projects or ideas. They may have as many as eight, ten or even twelve lists. Complicated? Not necessarily. If you keep multiple lists to track multiple duties, they'll reduce your entire workload down to a few pages in a notebook. And if these lists are maintained on a perpetual basis, they can remain functional for weeks or even months.
Spend allocated time each day on your to-do list Without careful attention, to-do lists can end up controlling your work day, filling it with older projects that shouldn't necessarily command large chunks of your time. You might begin working on a task at 9:00 in the morning, for instance, and become intent on finishing it. When 5:00 rolls around, you might still be at it and you will have given up the chance to work on new, high-impact projects. So limit yourself to a set period of time an hour, two hours, or whatever's appropriate to work on your to-do list. Leave the rest of the day open for fresh and important tasks.
Set up a workable priority control system A coding system might be as simple as an A-B-C guide, with an "A" item considered "high prior-
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