Does anyone else listen to or read Cal Newport’s content?
His “pull system” for tasks has changed how I prioritize my days and weeks, and my inbox has never been emptier*
Here’s an article on Cal if you haven’t heard of him:
https://lnkd.in/g9MtAea5
Cal has some prescriptive ways of naming and using your list(s) and a “workingmemory.txt” file, but here is how I’ve used his advice:
I have three Word documents open at all times on my smaller/side screen:
– Pull Task List
– To Discuss
– a secretly named file for working with a larger vendor
The Pull Task List has some categories: tasks, waiting, and backburner.
📒 The task list is just a simple list of tasks that need to be done. I keep up to 3 on my mind at once. When a task is completed, it goes to the bottom of my Word doc (I like to see what I’ve done).
📒 The Waiting list are tasks that I need to wait for someone else to do something in order to add it back to my task list.
📒 Backburner is a list of ideas from myself and others that may or may not bubble up to the task list.
My To Discuss doc has a table with one column being names of people I work with frequently and the other column a running list of things to discuss with that person when we meet during a regularly scheduled 1:1 or other setting. This prevents emails flying back and forth and allows us to use our 1:1 time productively. This is important in a remote setting because the default is to email someone the minute you have one question for them. That’s a waste of time for both people – I find that keeping a small list of items to discuss takes 15-20mins where emails on 5 different topics would take up a lot of unnecessary brain space.
The last document, the super secret vendor one is our weekly meeting agenda, I add things to it as needed and have a table with columns for tracking some work in progress.
*You’re probably still reading this because you want to know why my inbox is empty-ish… If an email requires action on my part, that action is added to my Pull Task List. If no action needed and it’s not of interest, I delete the email. If there’s something interesting, I’ll add to the Backburner list.
When you send less email, you get less email – my To Discuss doc helps me with this goal!
When your build out the Task List, are you incorporating deadlines? Like, more urgent ones go up top?
I like the concept but leaving Outlook’s To-Do list gives me anxiety
No deadlines on my task list. If it’s an urgent task, it’ll be the top one listed, or at least in the top 3. That’s why I use the backburner and waiting lists for things that truly aren’t “my” task in the moment.
I have tried using Outlook’s task list, but it isn’t real to me. Having my separate list is helpful because it filters the noise. The list is most helpful for me in clearing my email inbox… if an email requires something of me that I can’t take care of in the moment of reading that email, it goes on my list and the email is filed in my “FYI” folder or a specific folder if it’s for a project or person that I think deserves their own email folder!