In an effort to help me stay focused
throughout my day, I've developed a
simple task-tracking system that's
completely analog. These are the tools
that I use: sticky notes and a marker. As
I go throughout my day, each time that I
start working on a new task I grab a
sticky note, create a quick sketch and
title that represents the task, and I add
a checkbox. I then post that sticky note
to the inside of my door to my office,
which is not directly in front of me
when I'm at my desk working but still in
my peripheral vision. And similar to Neil
Gaiman's advice about writing, at any given
moment I give myself the permission to
do nothing (I can look out the window or
stare at the wall), but I don't give
myself permission to do anything else
other than the task that I've identified.
No Twitter, no Instagram, no checking of
my email. Just that task until it's done.
Once I've completed it, I get the reward
of standing up from my desk and walking
over to my office door to check it off.
Then I decide what the next most
important task is and that's what gets
the next sticky note, and I dig in.
To give you a sense of what these sticky
note tasks have looked, like here's a
sampling from a few weeks back. I like
that with each task I have the
opportunity to practice drawing out a
simple icon, which provides some skill-
building for future sketchnoting
sessions. That visual reference also
makes the task feel more approachable
than just a bunch of text. The visual
alludes to the action, which helps me
move a bit more quickly to taking that
action. I've found that this process also
helps me to switch more smoothly from
one task to the next. It provides just
the right amount of intentional
transitioning. Taking the time to quickly
draw and write out the task and then
stand up to post it to my door - that's an
intention-setting activity, which helps
the work that follows it come that much
more naturally. After checking the box on
one task after I've completed it, I do a
brief mindfulness check-in to see what
my brain and body might need before
digging into the next task. That
mini-break often helps me decide which
tasks to tackle next.
So rather than going through my
work day with a mindless march of
checking off boxes, I've got a deeper
sense of agency and engagement with the
work itself. Another benefit of tracking
my tasks in this way is that it supports
the end-of-workday business log that
I've been keeping, modeled after what Jim
Collins shared in his podcast
conversation with Tim Ferriss. I call it
my Daily Creativity Log. It's a simple
Google Spreadsheet in which I list out
the creative work that I did that day,
jot down the total number of creative
work hours (which I track with an upward-counting stopwatch on my phone), and I
rate the day from negative 2 to positive
2. That running log is a helpful
reflection tool, especially when it comes
to noting what causes a negative 2 day
compared to a positive 2 day. And then
the following day I get to kick it off
by removing all of those sticky notes
from the door and start with a clean
slate. Here's a recurring theme that I've
noticed in my life over the past few
years: the degree to which I enjoy my
days is directly connected to the
quality of my attention. So I try to
regularly ask myself: what's the quality
of the attention that I'm giving to the
current work? What's the quality of the
attention that I'm giving to this
conversation that I'm having, this book
that I'm reading, this podcast that I'm
taking notes on, this relationship that
I'm building? These simple sticky notes
have helped me keep the quality of my
attention during work hours higher than
it would be otherwise. If it sounds like
it might be a helpful addition to your
workday habits and routines, then give
it a try. And if you'd like to develop
other visual thinking tools to help you
become a better learner, problem-solver,
and storyteller, check out the courses
available at www.verbaltovisual.com. My
course An Introduction to Visual
Note-Taking is a great place to start.
Thanks for watching and I'll see you
next time.
