Making a to-do list is easy, but getting everything on it done? Not so much. Prioritizing the tasks can help you accomplish what you need to and the ABC method can make that easier. It’s a simple way to categorize tasks that was devised by Alan Lakein, an author known for his time management books.
The ABC method groups items by need, timeline and time necessary to complete them like this:
- “A” items are “must do” tasks that are the most important or critical and have close deadlines.
- “B” tasks are “should do” items that are medium priority, will be important later and don’t have a looming deadline.
- “C” is for things that are low priority now and can wait.
The idea is that figuring out what needs to be done immediately and what can be done later will help you feel less overwhelmed, so you can actually get started. Once you rank every task with an A, B or C, you can figure out if you need to devote a whole day to A items that are really demanding and urgent, and how to spend your time most effectively. Just be sure to evaluate your to-do list every morning, since some C-level projects can suddenly become A-level urgent overnight.
Source: Lifehacker
Scott's Thoughts:
- I’m so ambitious when I make the to-do list, but not when it comes to actually completing all the tasks!
- I have daily things I do on the list in my head. When I start writing them down, I get overwhelmed.
- What’s the best productivity hack you’ve started using to get more done?