The first principle of my blog is Creating Ecosystems of Success and a key focus is Health/Wellness. Many people have problems managing their lives. This is particularly true when shouldering responsibilities for one’s self and others. The following contributed post is entitled, 3 Tips for Staying on Top of the Important Things.
Everyone has certain important responsibilities that they have to attend to, as well as various chores and less pressing obligations that nonetheless have to be handled, in order to prevent significant problems from developing.
Whether you are trying to remember to change your auto insurance, or are planning a vacation getaway with a special someone, it’s essential to have effective strategies at hand in order to stay on top of the important things in life.
Here are a handful of tips for staying on top of the important things.
Simplify your life as much as possible
It’s very easy, all things considered, to forget important tasks and duties – and to procrastinate on important projects – if you have too much going on in your life at any given time.
If you’ve got dozens of different tasks to keep track of, combined with all sorts of distractions in your everyday life, and a host of decisions that need to be made on a regular basis, it will naturally be harder to get anything done.
According to the book “The Paradox of Choice,” by Barry Schwartz, an overabundance of choice is actually psychologically detrimental, while also increasing the degree to which people remain static or become so overwhelmed or otherwise complacent that they let important things slide.
So, in order to stay on top of the important things, begin by simplifying your life as much as possible. For starters, work on filtering out those distractions and decisions that don’t enrich or benefit you in some way, but that instead serve as time sinks.
Use automated tools and systems to keep yourself reminded
Part of the reason why the budgeting service You Need a Budget is so popular with such a broad audience, is because it helps to streamline a usually difficult process – namely money management. Specifically, it “automates” a lot of the irritating number crunching, and can allow you to track “scheduled” transactions and so on – but it doesn’t “automate” the overall process to the extent that it allows you to be complacent.
If you are at risk of forgetting about important pending transactions, or upcoming appointments, consider using automated tools and systems to keep yourself reminded.
Simple forgetfulness and inattention are frequently the reason for a failure to get important things done.
Use a task and project management system that requires mindful engagement and review
There are various task and project management systems out there which thrive specifically because they focus to a significant degree on promoting regular engagement and review of various tasks and projects.
David Allen’s famous “Getting Things Done” task management system, for example, involves constantly reviewing the different projects that you have to handle, so that you can continually identify and act on the “next action” down the line.
Ryder Carroll’s paper-based Bullet Journal Method, on the other hand, involves writing entries out by hand, and copying them out during regular “reviews” and “migrations.” The overall effect is that you’re forced to remain proactive and to engage with your to-do list.
Generally speaking, task and project management systems that require mindful engagement and review are going to be much more effective in terms of actually ensuring that you get things done as required.