_edited.png)
If you struggle with time management, then you know that getting things done relies on more than to-do lists. Organizing and time coach Julie Morgenstern's WADE Formula shows you how to move from a list of tasks to a doable plan.
I’d picked up a copy of Julie Morgenstern’s book, Time Management from the Inside Out at my town library’s book sale earlier in the year. Honestly, the book looked it had never been opened … it was someone’s good intentions, but (ironically), they didn’t possess the time to do the work outlined in the book. (I’m guessing they didn’t have the time to do the work, but who else would buy a book on time management?)
This is definitely a case of you need to take the time to make the time you want to put toward more meaningful projects.
The book sat on my shelf for seven months before I got past the introduction. Like many skills in life, reading information about what you should do isn’t the same as implementing the information and building the skill.
After explaining some of the reasons why our schedules are disorganized (and pointing out that it’s more a matter of technical skill than psychological barriers that are tripping us up), Morgenstern dives into a quick-start program to give us some of the necessary skills for managing our time.
Julie Morgenstern’s WADE Formula
Morgenstern’s WADE Formula is that quick start. Its goal is to shift you from reactive to proactive, with the intention of helping you take charge of the to-dos coming at you on a daily basis. She recommends focusing on now as opposed to dealing with the backlog of tasks that have piled up.
You may be thinking that you have to do all those things as well, and you will. In fact, if one of those tasks is urgent, chances are that it’s more than just a note hidden at the bottom of a pile somewhere.
And remember, this is a quick start, you won’t be ignoring your backlog of task for weeks (which you may have ended up doing before trying out this formula).
What does WADE stand for?
Write it down.
Add it up.
Decide.
Execute your plan.
This helps you choose between the tasks on that endless to-do list (whether it’s on paper or swirling around your mind) that you face each day.
Write It Down
I remember working with a woman who would talk through her to-do list as a topic of conversation. I once asked her why she didn’t just write things down on a piece of paper so she wouldn’t forget any of the tasks that she seemed so concerned about forgetting.
She insisted her method kept her mind active. I saw it as a method that seemed to keep her in a constant state of stress.
If you think like she did, that remembering your list is good exercise for your brain, I’d like to suggest that there are far better things you could be doing with your brain. Instead of remembering your shopping list and errands for the afternoon, you could use your mental energy to sit down and meal plan or schedule the tasks that will help you achieve a goal.
From To-Do List to Action List
And if you’re insisting that you’ll just lose your notes, write things in one consistent location instead of on whatever scrap of paper you have available. This means a planner (or even a notebook where you can keep both a master to-do list and your daily to-do lists) or a notetaking or calendar app on your phone.
Doing this is a habit, not something you can try once and give up on because it doesn’t work.
Morgenstern doesn’t like master to-do lists, but I find them a useful starting place for getting your thoughts (and tasks) onto paper. I then break down that list into smaller lists focused on home, health, relationships, work, etc.
However, things on a list can taunt you with all you have to do. So, Morgenstern suggests that you write your to-dos in a planner (paper or digital) when they need to get done so they don’t get overlooked by being in a list of tasks that are less important or urgent.
Add It Up
Time Management from the Inside Out recommends a technique that I rarely see mentioned in books and articles on productivity, adding an estimate to how long each task will take. Yes, I know that a lot of systems have you put tasks on a calendar in time blocks that are dedicated to a task.
But how long should those blocks be? If you struggle to manage your time, you may not understand how long it takes to accomplish different tasks. If you dread a task (emptying the dishwasher), you may think that it takes you much longer than it actually does.
(I once timed cleaning the bathroom sink and toilet, a task I was convinced took 10-12 minutes and was surprised it took only two. And I didn’t rush.)
On the other hand, you may underestimate how long other tasks take. They may be enjoyable or not. If you overlook all the smaller steps that make up a task, it’s easy to underestimate how long it takes you to complete. All you know is that you never have enough time. And you don’t know why.
Time How Long Tasks Take
If you don’t know how long a task takes, you can’t schedule adequate time for it. If it’s on your list of things to do during the day and it gobbles up a lot of your time, you may chastise yourself for not getting to the other tasks, calling yourself lazy. But really, you didn’t have enough time.
How to correct this? Time some common activities, particularly those that cause you to run late or not get other things done. How long does it take you to get ready in the morning? If you’re always arriving at work late, chances are that your morning routine takes more time than you think.
You may wish different activities took less time. However, that involves questioning why the task takes the time it does. Do you allow distractions like texts, emails, and phone calls? What decisions can you make to trim that task (if it can be).
Decide
If you’ve added up your tasks for the day and realize you need more time than you have, you need to make decisions to create a more doable and plausible plan.
You may think that you’ll do things faster, and that may work for some tasks but not all. That’s why you need to time your actions over the next week or two so you can understand how long on average you need to complete tasks.
Morgenstern calls her decision-making progress the Four D’s: delete, delay, diminish, delegate.
Delete, Delay, Diminish, Delegate
Delete is deciding that something on your day’s list just isn’t important, at least not for that day. In some cases, you can even ask if a task needs to be done at all or is it something you think that you should do?
Delay is a matter of postponing a task to another day or even week. You may want to do a task that you find enjoyable but compared to the other tasks on the day’s list, is this something that you can put off to another time.
If the task is enjoyable for you, could you treat it as a reward for getting through other tasks first?
Diminishing a task isn’t about doing shoddy work but identifying what’s “good enough” for certain tasks as opposed to putting optimal effort into every action.
You can also diminish tasks by brainstorming ways to do them faster (or not at all). It might take time to create a master shopping list and a meal plan for the week, but then you save time by only going to the grocery store once a week as opposed to four or five times. Or you can now order groceries online and save yourself the trip to the store.
Delegating tasks requires a shift in mindset along with the skill of delegating. You may think that you have to do everything because you can do it better than others could. But would you rather have the energy to focus on projects and tasks that only you can do by freeing yourself from more mundane tasks.
Delegating often requires a time commitment in teaching someone how to do something (and maybe even writing up instructions or a checklist) and then reviewing the results of their efforts. Depending upon the task, you may also need to be available to the individual while they work on the task.
Think of telling a young child to clean their room. They stand there by themselves, looking at things on the floor or piled on their desk and they have no clue where to start. Working with them helps them learn to first pick up clothing and hang it up or put it in their hamper, then to put their toys in bins that are labeled by category, and so on.
You may need to give this type of effort to an adult working on an unfamiliar home chore or a work task that you don’t need to do but does need to get done.
Execute Your Plan
After putting in the effort to creating a doable plan, you next need to put it into action. This could be assigning times (or parts of the day) to when you’ll do the tasks that are on your list for the day.
In executing your plan, you may realize that you need longer buffer times between tasks. Or that you need to switch tasks around on other days so that you can work more with your energy levels at different times of the day.
At the end of the day, review what you succeeded at doing and what didn’t work out (or could be done better). Then reflect on how you could improve the next time you do the task and list a few options to try (put this note in your planner!)
Review, Reflect, Repeat
Going from being someone who struggles with getting things done to someone who is more in control of their time isn’t an overnight process. It takes consistent practice.
And don’t forget to schedule a time for planning tomorrow while reviewing the results of the current day. Even if you don’t complete everything on your day’s plan, give yourself credit for what you did do. When you feel like you’re succeeding you’ll be more tempted to persist than if you feel like you can’t get anything done.
Julie Morgenstern’s WADE Formula at a Glance
Remember, this is a framework to start with. If you struggle with any area of the formula, focus on how you can get it to work for you.
Write it down in one place. Whether you use a paper planner or a digital calendar, keep your tasks listed in one place.
Estimate how long each task will take, add it up, and then see if you have the available time to do all the tasks you want to accomplish. Don’t forget to work in buffer time.
Decide what you’ll delete, delay, diminish, or delegate so that you have a doable list of actions for the day. In some cases, you’ll need to take time now so that you’ll have more time later.
Execute your plan and then review your successes as well as areas for improvement.
You’ll be planning your day every day, which means that you’ll get a lot of practice at managing your time. The goal isn’t perfect, stress-free days, but the ability to be flexible and make appropriate changes when urgent tasks arise.
Comentários