An Entire Productivity Framework in 3 Minutes: Get Things Done Today The Guaranteed But Old-School Way
It's endless to-do lists that kill your productivity. Use post-its and applied psychology instead.
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To-do lists with dozens of items will kill your productivity.
And the fancy new productivity app that just dropped is not what you need either.
What you really need to get things done, is a pen and a block of post-its.
Key Takeaways
In a nutshell: The three easiest or most important or urgent tasks, two minutes per task of effort, all on one post-it.
The important thing is to get moving, to start building momentum towards completing tasks.
Sometimes it’s the most basic and old-school ways to approach things that work.
We all got a massive amount of tasks that we somehow “need” to do. And we have all heard that setting priorities is important and that focussing on the essential stuff is what will drive results.
I am a big believer in focussing on your priorities myself.
However, when we are stuck, it’s sometimes those priorities that get in our own way.
Usually, those are big topics, far away milestones or seemingly unachievable dreams.
I know, you know that you are supposed to break them into smaller pieces of work to make progress. That’s one part of the solution.
The other part is momentum.
But to get things into motion, we need motivation, right?
Wrong. What we need is just to start - disregarding if we “feel like doing it”. Because motivation will follow action. Not the other way around.
Therefore: Just start.
The 3-2-1-Post-It-Hack
Here is how it works:
Three tasks max
...because focus is key (as well all know 😅).
Just write the three most important, urgent or easy tasks for today on a post-it. You can choose either characteristic. Maybe if you feel really stuck today, take three easy ones. If you feel you are ready to take on the world, take the most important ones. What’s crucial is that you choose them consciously, according to your energy level.
The goal is to get moving.
And once your three tasks are done (and crossed off the list), get a new post-it and repeat the process.
Two minutes per task
...is all the time that you need to get going.
Don't overthink it. Just do one small step for each task on your post-it. Set yourself a timer, if you need some additional accountability. It’s just two minutes that you gotta work on things. That’s all I ask you to do.
But I can guarantee you one thing: You don't want to stop after the first two minutes are up. And you shouldn’t. When you get moving, don’t stop.
Immerse yourself into your flow state.
One post-it at a time
...is where you capture your tasks for today.
This limits the feeling of overwhelm. And it's a physical thing that sticks around - literally 😇. It will demand your attention in the physical world. It's not just a digital entry somewhere that you don't see - you will be aware of it constantly.
Old-school.
Bonus tips: Circle what you tackle first and write your tasks as if you already achieved them
This is what my today’s post-it looks like currently:
I tackled the “Went for a run” first. Because it’s my key habit, meaning that when I perform this action, it positively influences everything else (like I eat better, sleep better, feel more energized to get stuff done, etc.).
Also, you can write your tasks as if you already did them (see picture above). This way, you trick your brain to think of the goal state and to visualize what you want to achieve.
In conclusion, the 3-2-1-Post-It-Hack is more than just a to-do-list. There are psychological concepts and motivational considerations embedded into it.
Why not try it out today?
One post-it at a time.
I am sure, you will move mountains.
Go get them.
3-2-1-Go.
Happy hunting.
PS: How are you struggling to getting things done in your projects?
