We all have a to-do list somewhere, whether it’s written down, or just a vague list of “things that you should do” that you keep in your head. The problem with most to-do lists is that they’re just a list of things with no real structure. If you want your to-do list to be both simple and useful, keep the TASK in mind when you’re compiling it.
The TASK method involves asking yourself a few questions when adding something to the list. The things you need to consider are:
Time – When does it need to be completed.
Is there a due date, or can it just be done at leisure? What else do you have to do on the due date? How long will it take to complete the task?
There’s no point having a to-do list with unrealistic dates for completion of tasks. It just becomes discouraging and you’ll end up so far behind it’s not worth using the to-do list anymore. If you just take a little extra time to make sure you realistically schedule your to-do list, it makes it so much easier to work with.
If you find you have a lot of “whenever” tasks, consider making them a single entry (or separate list) of jobs to do when you have a bit of spare time.
Action – What exactly is it you want to achieve
Make sure that the task title in the to-do list accurately and briefly describes what you want to get done. It’s no good having a note to “Write Letter” if you have several letters to write. But you don’t want to have a task title so long it cuts off before you can see what is really needed to be done.
Also, by spending a few extra minutes thinking about what you want to get done, you may think of other things that will need to be done at the same time, or as a consequence of the original task. i.e.: Write letter might necessitate a task to Buy Stamps
Steps – what separate items need to be completed for the task to be finished
If there are several steps needed to complete the task, consider making separate entries for each step. This is particularly useful if you have a time delay between steps (i.e.: waiting for something to dry).
KISS – Kiss principle (Keep It Simple Stupid)
Don’t try to be too tricky with your task list. Make it as simple as you possibly can. Things like colour coding, flags, priorities are all immensely useful at times, but if you find it takes you more than a couple of seconds to add a task you’re probably trying to be too fancy.
So there are the basic steps for creating a functional to-do list using the TASK method.
If you’d like some more ideas, check out my previous Hints & Tips posts
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