How to organize your day: methods of productivity geniuses

The method of Benjamin Franklin

Benjamin Franklin (Benjamin Franklin) was the son of soap-boiler, but thanks to the self-discipline and succeeded in many areas: in politics, diplomacy, science, journalism. He is one of the founding fathers of the United States - took part in the creation of the Declaration of Independence and Constitution.

Portrait of Franklin placed on a hundred dollar bill, although he was never president. He is credited with the authorship of such familiar expressions as "Time is money -" and "Do not put off for tomorrow what you can do today."

Time for Franklin was truly a tremendous value.

Do you love life? Then do not waste time, for time - the fabric that makes up life.

Benjamin Franklin

In 20 years, Franklin has developed a system for the organization of time, which is used throughout life. Contemporaries called it the "pyramid Franklin" (sometimes also found the name "Productivity Pyramid» - productivity pyramid).

At the base of the pyramid - the values ​​of life. This moral compass in solving any problems. Franklin called them virtues.

For himself, he identified 13 virtues: temperance, silence, love of order, determination, thrift, hard work, sincerity, justice, moderation, cleanliness, tranquility, chastity and meekness.

To work on a daily basis, Franklin started a special notebook, which averted a page for each life principle. Each page of lined it into seven columns (days of the week). Then spent 13 horizontal lines by the number of virtues.

Thus, each day, he focused on one of the virtues, and in the evenings in the boxes marked blunders committed on the way to the "moral perfection".

The next stage of the pyramid Franklin - a global goal. It is based on the principles of life and answers the question: "What do I want to achieve by N years?" The overall aim for doctor, for example, may be a desire to become the chief of department up to 35 years, and for the manager - to launch its startup.

Benjamin Franklin - true forefather to-do-planning. He always maintained order and painted virtually every step. Therefore, further to its pyramid are:

• master plan - step by step guide to achieve the global goal;
• long-term plan - the objectives for the next 3-5 years;
• short-term plan - objectives for the coming year and month;
• Planning for a week and a day.

All stages of the pyramid are arranged sequentially - each next based on the previous one.

Output

To organize your day according to the method of Franklin, you need to define the fundamental principles of life, put a global goal and a plan for achieving it.

For long-term and short-term planning, you can use one of electronic instruments or to have a paper notebook and implement a system of "rapid entries".

Method of Stephen Covey

One of the followers of the Franklin system is considered by Stephen Covey (Stephen Covey). This world-renowned expert in the field of management coaching. Covey - a professional speaker and author of numerous books. One of them joined the list of the most influential business books of Time magazine.

This is ahead of its time, the book "Seven highly effective people skills." Covey wrote it in 1989, but it became a best seller only after the re-release in 2004.

Covey's concept is based on the sequence of the seven skills.

1. Sharpen the saw, that is, constantly improve.
2. Achieve synergy, that is, to strive for mutually beneficial cooperation.
3. Be proactive.
4. Try first to hear, and then - to be heard.
5. Begin with the end goal.
6. I think in the spirit of "win - win".
7. First, do what needs to be done first.

Implement the last skill will help a matrix of tasks and priorities. Her Covey borrowed from the 34th US President Dwight David Eisenhower (Dwight David Eisenhower).

All tasks are divided into four groups:

1. Urgent and important (to do as soon as possible);
2. Non-urgent important (strategic objectives with distant deadlines);
3. Urgent unimportant (you need to do quickly, but can be delayed or does not engage himself);
4. Non-urgent and unimportant (as a rule, such cases can be deleted or have a third party).

According to Covey, successful people rarely find themselves under time pressure as quickly straighten out the tasks of the categories 1 and 3, and without pity donate things from the square 4. Thus 60-80% of the time and effort they give to the decision of problems of square 2, because they are the engine of progress.

Output

To become effective at the end or beginning of the day write out your tasks and ask them priority in using the Eisenhower matrix (or matrix Covey - as you wish). You can use the application Eisenhower (iOS) or MyEffectivenessHabits (Android). Try to observe the proportion: 40% - important urgent business, 60% - important non-urgent.

Tim Ferriss method

Tim Ferriss (Timothy Ferriss) - a popular productivity guru. Recordings of his public speeches collected millions of views, and books diverge the same huge numbers.

No wonder - who does not want to "work for 4 hours a week, does not stick out in the office" from start to finish ", and thus to live anywhere and prosper"? Ferriss book of the same name was the number one in the bestseller lists The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal.

His method stands on two pillars:

1. Pareto Law20% of efforts gives 80% of the results, while the remaining 80% of the effort - only 20% of the results. This means that you need to focus on activities that are really important.
2. Parkinson's Law: Work fills the time allotted to it. This means that the problem must be removed as much as is necessary for its implementation.

To complete more, no need to increase working hours. On the contrary, reduce it, only focuses on the really important things. Everything else is simply brush, outsource or delegate.

Ferriss approach corresponds technique 1-3-5 plan. Its essence is simple: in the list introduced another important thing is the three middle and five smaller ones. Total - nine. They distributed a priori in terms of maturity, which helps get rid of the feeling of Abraham did.

Ferriss - opponent multitasking and information overload. While simultaneously performing multiple cases occur defocus attention. As a result, productivity is not increased, and falls. So it is with the incessant absorption of information. Permanent checking e-mail, instant messengers and social networks only creates a false sense of employmentBut no closer to the goal.

And here stressesOn the contrary, says Ferriss our helpers.

Fear - an indicator. Fear - our friend. At times, it shows what not to do, but often shows that just should not do.

Tim Ferriss

It should be noted that Tim Ferriss is not the only one who is committed to productivity, working less. Stever Robbins (Stever Robbins), author of the book "9 Steps to ensure that work less and get more done," offers This method of "active days", when on a certain day appoint a "supervisor" who will monitor progress.

Output

This method is suitable to you if you can not follow a strict schedule and to-do-lists do not work for you. Build up your day so that 20% of the time occupied by the most complex and important issues. Let the rest was okay. In other words, if you want to hold a business meeting, you need to choose the day, time, duration, and strictly follow scheduled. The remainder of the day can be devoted to any ongoing work.

Method Gleb Archangel

Gleb Archangel - an expert in the field of time, Founder and head of the eponymous company. Its peculiarity is not to create original designs, and that he sets out methods of time management is simple and accessible, adapting them to domestic realities.

Archangel - the author of several popular business books: "Work 2.0: breakthrough to the free time", "Formula of time", "Time Drive" and others.

The latter is the most popular. In the "Getting Things Done" is about the importance of planning, goal-setting and motivation, as well as provide effective time management techniques and combat procrastination.

• "Frogs". Everyone has boring tasks that are constantly postponed. These unpleasant things piling up and psychologically pressured. But if every morning to start with "eating frog", that is the first thing to perform some uninteresting task, and then move on to others, then gradually become ordered case.
• "Anchors". This binding material (music, color, movement) associated with a certain emotional state. "Anchors" are required in order to tune in to the solution of a problem. For example, you can train yourself to work with mail to classical music, and every time there is a laziness unload the inbox, you will need only include Mozart or Beethoven to catch the desired psychological wave.
• "Filet of an elephant." The bigger problem (write a thesis, learn a foreign language, and so on), and the harder the deadline, the more difficult to proceed with its implementation. It scares the enormity: it is not clear where to start, if enough power. Such problems are called "elephants". The only way to "eat an elephant" - cook from it "steak", that is a big deal to split into several small ones.

It is noteworthy that Gleb Archangel pays great attention not only streamlining work processes, but also the rest (the full name of his best-selling book - "Time Drive: how to have time to live and work"). He is convinced that, without a good rest, including a healthy sleep and physical activity, you can not be productive.

Output

Plan your day each. Todoist, Wunderlist, TickTick and other similar programs and services to help you in this. Sophisticated large-scale tasks fractions into simple ones. In the morning do the most unpleasant job to do in the rest of the time only that much. Develop triggers to help you cope with laziness, and do not forget to include in the schedule vacation.

Method Francesco Cirillo

Perhaps you do not recognize the name of Francesco Cirillo (Francesco Cirillo), but you must have heard about the Pomodoro. Cirillo - author of the famous art of time management. At the time, Francesco had problems with their studies: the young man could not concentrate all the time distracted. I come to the aid of a simple kitchen timer in the form of tomato.

heart Pomodoro technique: Periods of time allotted to work - a "tomatoes." A "tomato" = 30 minutes (25 minutes on and 5 work to leisure). Start the timer and are working with maximum efficiency and minimal distractions for 25 minutes. Alarm sounds - it's a five-minute break time. Then start the timer again.

Thus, performance is measured by the number of executions per day, "tomatoes". The bigger, the better.

To save 25 minutes on inventing yourself to make, the list of tasks you need to make in advance. In it you will also be able to mark as many as the number of "tomatoes" (put X in front of the problem) and distractions (apostrophe). This allows you to determine how long it took the execution of a task and how much it was hard.

Pomodoro method - affordable and flexible. Do you want to - keep a to-do-list on paper and work out how 25-minute intervals a kitchen timer and want to - use special services and applications.

According to Cirillo, the optimal duration of the "tomato" - 20-35 minutes. But, having mastered the technique, you can experiment and change intervals for themselves.

Detail the method can be found Francesco Cirillo here.

Output

At the beginning of the day, make a to-do list and follow them, measuring out the "tomatoes". If within 25 minutes you are distracted, put in front of the symbol of the problem '. If the time has expired, but the task is not yet done, put the + and devote her next "tomatoes." During a five-minute break completely switch from work to relaxation: walk, listen to music, drink coffee.

So, before you are five major systems of time management, with which you can organize your day. You can study them more and become an apologist for one of the procedures and can develop its own, combining different techniques and technology.

GTD - an alternative to time-management

David Allen (David Allen), creator of GTD methodology - one of the most prominent theorists of personal effectiveness. His book "How to put things in order: the art of stress-free productivity" Time magazine named the best business book of the decade.

The term Getting Things Done on the ear, and many people mistakenly identify it with time management. But even he calls Allen GTD «enhance technique personal effectiveness».

Here's how explained the difference between time management and GTD expert in this matter Vyacheslav Sukhomlinov.

GTD - it is not time management. Manage time is impossible. A day in all the same number of hours. It is important not the amount of time, and what you fill it. You must be able to handle large flows of incoming information to determine what actions are needed to achieve the objectives, and of course acting. GTD is about. This is a certain way of thinking and living. And yet GTD - it is about a state of flux and reducing psychological stress.

Vyacheslav Sukhomlinov

Ready to argue? Welcome to the comments. What, in your opinion, more in GTD - time management and personal effectiveness? Also tell us what techniques to help you organize your day.

see also

• 10 ideas on the organization of time for spontaneous people →
• 4 ways to put the correct deadline and meet deadlines →
• How the brain works in multitasking mode →