Let’s talk about your schedule. The things you put on your calendar, like appointments, conference calls, court appearances, and other time-bound tasks. Things you need to do on a certain day and at a certain time.

Not a lot to say about that. You schedule them so you don’t forget them and you do them. 

But what about everything else? 

What about things you want to do or need to do at some point, perhaps soon, but not necessarily today or this week? What about routine tasks you need to do to keep the wheels greased and the motor running? 

Some people put those on their calendar, too. They schedule time for their morning routine, for example, or block out time during the day to work on a certain project. 

Some people schedule everything. 

They know what they’re going to do today, tomorrow, this week and next. Sometimes, down to the minute.

This is a great way to get things done, but it’s not for me.

What do I do?

I calendar appointments and meetings, of course, but for everything else, I make lists.

Every day, my task app gives me today’s list (based on what I decided to do during a weekly review). At the top are the “must do” tasks, e.g., appointments, etc., and anything else I need to do that day. What you’re reading right now is one of those things. 

Under the must do’s are other things I should do or want to do today, but not necessarily at a specific time. Nor are they “must do’s” so I can do them the next day or in the days to come. 

Finally, there are my routine tasks. Things I try to do every day (or week).

It’s a simple list and, other than appointments and must do’s, everything is a suggestion. 

Actually, it is a very sensible way of working.

I don’t force myself to do anything “now” (unless it’s a must do). I can do it later. 

As long as you do what you need to do, it doesn’t matter when you do it, does it? (If it does matter, it should indeed go on the calendar.)

By the end of the day, I usually finish most of the things on my list. Not everything, but that’s okay. Tomorrow or next week are okay.

If you want to try this, here are some guidelines: 

1. Make your list for tomorrow the night before, after you’ve looked at tomorrow’s calendar.
2. Keep this list short. A few things, not everything. 
3. Keep a second list of things you want to do this week (or so). Keep this short, too. 
4. If you finish today’s list and have time and energy to do more, look at “this week” and choose something else. 
5. Keep additional lists for daily, weekly, and monthly routines. Reference these when you make tomorrow’s list or let an app remind you.  

Working this way allows me to stay productive without pushing myself to do more than I can do, and flexible enough to keep me getting things done.

But maybe tomorrow.  

What would you do if you opened your task app and found it empty? No tasks, no projects, no ideas—nothing. (And you don’t have a backup.)

Would you panic? Not be able to do any work. Or would you see it as an opportunity to make a new and better list?

That’s what I would do.

In fact, periodically, that’s exactly what I do. I put all my tasks and projects out of sight and build a new list from scratch. The new list is, of course, much shorter than the original. Which is the point. The new list contains the most important things I know I have to do. No fluff, no busy work.

Just the essentials.

Once I’ve created the new list from memory, I go through the old lists and add a few things to the new list I’d forgotten. But only a few. The point of this exercise is to get rid of the clutter so I can focus (and do) the most important tasks and work on the most valuable projects.

My re-constituted list is a joy to look at and work through. Because it isn’t a never-ending mass of “too many,” it’s a lean sprinkling of “just right”.

I do something similar with my notes. I have too many to do this much housecleaning, but I regularly archive old notes, eliminate duplicates, and organize notes that relate to current, upcoming, or ongoing projects.

And I suggest you do the same.  

The best time to do this is when you start using a new app. It feels good to populate your shiny new app with the things that are most important to you.

If you’re not not changing apps, or you’re not sure about doing this, start with your someday/maybe list. You know, that dumping ground of ideas you told yourself you want to get to one day. Be ruthless, here. Cut out most of them. (If it’s something you really want to do someday, it will find its way back onto your list).

When you reduce the digital clutter in your life, it helps you identify your priorities and focus on them. You do your most important work, your day is likely shorter and less stressful, and you have peace of mind knowing you’re on top of your work.

You’re doing what’s important, not just staying busy.

I was at the DMV the other day to renew my license. I had the letter with the details in my pocket. 

Yeah, paper. 

It got me thinking about the notes app in my phone where I can call up most of my work and personal notes. I didn’t scan the DMV letter, but I if I had, I’d be able to retrieve it almost as quickly as the letter in my pocket.

And that got me thinking about the many ways we can organize our notes and docs and find them when we need to. 

So, I made a list:  

• Search/Saved Search
• Folders/Notebooks
• Tags/Labels/File Number
• Links/Backlinks
• External Links, e.g., from a task manager or reminders app
• Shortcuts/Stars/Hot List
• Indexes/Maps of Content 
• Alphabetically

Did I miss any? 

I use (or have used) most of these. Clearly, the more ways we have available to find things, the better. But to use these methods properly, we need to do something to our notes to make them findable, i.e., we need to add labels or hyperlinks, or add them our shortcuts. Even if you primarily rely on search, you need to make sure your notes have the right keywords or other metadata. 

Recently, I added another option, a WIP folder, which lives at the bottom of the list of folders in my notes app. I use this for short-term works in progress—writing, research, decisions I need to make—or for an upcoming call or meeting or doctor’s appointment. This is where I would have stored the DMV letter if I had digitized it. 

I generally keep only 5 or 10 items in this folder, which means I can quickly find what I need without adding tags or keywords in advance. 

What’s next? AI, no doubt, which should soon be smart enough to bring us things before we even know we need them.  

Like my secretary did back in the day.