The art of prioritization

To prioritize is totally linked to the idea of making decisions. That means when I am prioritizing I am helping myself to make better decisions, but also when I prioritize tasks, I am training my own capacity to make decisions.

The first thing you need is CLEAR CRITERIA. Why would I do this task first? Why to postpone this task? How do I know which task should be before this one?

I have 3 criteria for prioritization and that is something I change from time to time – before, I had only 2. It helps me to canalize my energy in a better way and, I must say that this system has been for a while now and it came from a very old method: try and try and try… It is possible these criteria tune with you, but you have to create your own criteria, according to your life style, personality, time availability, etc.

My main criterion reflects what will generate impact in my life. I make a conscious effort to understand the tasks from a perspective of its impact: How will this affect my present professional option? What will be the effect of this on my health? In which way will this help me with the present change I am going through? By asking questions, you can understand which tasks should be performed before and which ones after.

As a balance, my second criterion is related to the easiness of the task. I have noticed in myself and others that as the easier the task, there will be more enthusiasm for it. How many hours will I spend doing this? How much of this task I can perform by myself? What is the level of weariness I will feel after finishing the task? Sometimes, I have to split the task into small subtasks, so this criterion is very important for me and it helps me to avoid distraction: the more difficult the task is, the more I try to avoid it.

My last criterion is new for me and I am still working with it. The idea behind it is that every task should contribute something important for me or for others, and I give more marks for those tasks that contribute to others. What is the reasoning behind it? As an IT guy (retired), I realized I give lots of attention to small details like ordering my folders, so this type of tasks has been put as a very low mark as it only contributes to my personal state of mind…

But my IT skills are very useful, so prioritization for me it very easy, but complex enough to create interest: I sum up all the criteria and order it in a spreadsheet by total, impact, contribution and easiness. Then, I start working on it, fulfilling every task.

I hope this helps you to be more productive! Check my post on productivity too.

https://lookingformorethanjob.blogspot.com/2019/06/tips-of-productivity.html

The blessing of obstacles

We want an easy life. Some people would say that is the law of nature to flow where there is less effort, and we humans relish the benefit of that law.

However, a reality you can observe is that the same obstacle affects different people in dissimilar ways and one of the reasons for that is how you see that test in your life.

It is like a game: you will only appreciate it when you have the right attitude with which you see it as it is, just a game, something to be enjoyed not to cause sorrow. And yet, a game will be much more fascinating if you keep the desire to win it… That is the game paradox and its effect on us.

Bringing it to life, when you see things happening that are not good, with a vision of benefit and enthusiasm, that will create in you the same wonderful effect of a very good game: enjoyable, but you are there to win it!

Obstacles are a blessing in disguise as they enable us to go over our own lethargy and experience life in a whole new level. Of course, too many blessings can’t be good…

And if you feel overwhelmed with obstacles, look for help, something that is always available. Otherwise, just enjoy the ride!

Prioritization, such a long word...

When you go to a TM course, one thing you will learn is how to prioritize and, at least in my case, how to spell that word...!

In reality, prioritization is natural to human beings. If you want to go deep about how we work mentally, I suggest the book Thinking, fast and slow, by Daniel Kahneman, which gives a deep insight on human mind. It helped me to understand the reality: we always have a priority.

Even when we are children, we prioritize between tasks (hug mom or dad first?), objects (teddy bear or a rattle?) and even food (mom's milk or baby food?). That helps us to decide (hug mom, teddy bear and baby food) and becomes part of our personality as a whole.

But, when we are already grown-up, it is time to check how we prioritize. So, it is not that you will learn how to do it - you are going to RElearn how to do it. This time, you are going to use what I call Prioritization Criteria.

For instance, in my case, I have two basic criteria: impact and easiness. Impact helps me to give more energy to those things which are really important and that will generate an effect in my life, or in a project. But it is important for me to go easy - so, I chose things which are not so complicated, or that don't demand time. The sum of both criteria has helped me to write this blog post before posting new pictures in pinterest, for instance.

What are your criteria? Even better: which criteria will help you to do tasks in such an order that you won't feel exhaustion or boredom?

Both questions I think are important. The first one will help you to understand your own way to prioritize. The second will help to understand the BEST way to prioritize.

Your personal work will be to shift from one to another. That requires discipline, deep understanding of any tasks and appreciation for all the time you will be saving through that.

Take care!