You have a busy week ahead. Tired, you sit staring at your phone, thinking what tasks will take up most of your time during the next seven days. You try to ignore the effort it will take to keep up with the week's demand for task completions. Reality is, we all have felt unsure of what the week ahead has in store for us, of what tasks we must complete to keep our life together.

Creating a 'to-do' list fixes this uncertainty. Personally, I utilize my sundays to plan the week ahead. I began implementing this habit to have a head start, to define what tasks will be at the top of my priority list. Now, if you don't have a somewhat consistent routine, defining your 'to-do' list might be strange at first. However, once you nail down a 'standardized' routine, a routine that will most likely be recurrent throughout the near-future, you won't need to plan everything ahead, as you will already know what tasks will need to be completed. If changes are needed, make them, but it'll be extremely easy once you have a consistent routine with a properly structured 'to-do' list.

In this article we'll get into the 'to-do' list, and it's importance. When I speak about prioritizing certain tasks that are coming ahead in my week above others, I think in terms of potential value; and also effort and time required to complete them. I personally take a top-down approach. What I mean by this, is that I tackle the hardest tasks first and then gradually decrease task intensity during my week.

Moreover, your 'to-do' list must center itself in a core concept: effectiveness. Laura Ernest tells us how different it is to be effective versus being efficient.

“Let me say that I distinguish between efficient and effective, but that both are needed for peak productivity. Efficient is doing things right and effective is doing the right things. So the most productive people work on the high value tasks, making sure that how they are doing those tasks is the best way."

We must pursue effectiveness, as it involves having a clear aim towards a clear goal. Effectiveness aids with planning ahead, but also helps to execute tasks properly. Once we understand this, the world of productivity is simplified, as we identify the tasks with most value, and that these must be our priority. Tasks of the highest value are usually ones that take most of our effort. As I mentioned before, tackling the tasks that are more demanding is the best initial approach for me, but also identifying which ones provide the most value, within those most demanding tasks, is fundamental to my progress. This is why ranking my 'to-do' list in terms of value, effort and time is essential to my routine.

Now, to commence ranking your 'to-do' list, view the following steps:

  1. Group your tasks within categories, that classify them as: High effort + high time required; High effort + low time required; Low effort + high time required; And low effort + low time required. IMPORTANT: The category in which a task falls under, does not determine whether it's of high value, or not.
  2. Once you're done grouping your tasks, view what tasks are the most valuable in terms for your progress in regards to 'x' pre-defined goal(s) you might have. High value tasks will usually align with personal priorities, as these tasks' value is subject to the criteria of each individual.
  3. After identifying the high value tasks, organize them according to your own needs and schedule's availability. Prioritize tackling these efficiently, as they will be the ones that will effectively launch you towards your goals' finish line.
  4. Also, tasks that have lower value for you, can be considered as maintenance tasks. Tasks that are necessary, but not strictly productive (i.e doing laundry, doing the dishes, making your bed, and any other basic task in this regard). Utilize these smartly as they can serve as tasks where you can rest, as they're not necessarily very effort and/or time demanding.

Taking on this initiative doesn't mean you have to live strictly by taking onto the highest value tasks all the time. It is necessary to find a balance between effort and rest. This is what this article is for, to help you identify what tasks are most productive for you, so yourself can then adapt them according to your own necessity and availability.

This should help to structure your routine with intent. When we begin planning with intent, progress is feasible, and also notorious. This initiative touches on working smarter and harder. Once you structure your routine based on identifying, thus afterwards prioritizing the highest value tasks, you will be effective and efficient, allowing you to work smarter, and also harder!

Hope you have a great week guys, take care, and as always, apply this habit! :)

-Aritz.