The One and Only Time Management Trick That Actually Works

I get a bit worked up about the topic, actually. I think a large part of the time management subject matter is built into us from deeply rooted beliefs that would be a challenge for any trainer to shake. Still, these trainings are obviously useful from a certain point, for example, if you've decided to end your perpetual excuse-making mode and want some self-entertainment with fun techniques, instead of simply following the only existing time management rule: I give myself time for what's important to me.

It's an entertaining topic, by the way. You've never heard someone speak so much in the passive voice. So many things happen to all of us outside our own control every day (and over years, decades), it's unbelievable. :)

The Pomodoro techniques, the daily 3 to-dos (I personally love this, I even had an app for it on my phone for a while), taking on the most painful thing first, the plethora of GTD techniques are all very usable. If you've accepted that you have the same amount of time as the person next to you, and no, neither of you can influence how much.

There's a bit of a conceptual confusion here, by the way, 8 billion people trying to manage something that's completely outside their sphere of influence.

But now.

The trick.

If someone tells me who it came from, I'll link it later, I have no idea, the chatgpt is stuttering, and google doesn't know. The task takes about 5 minutes, you need a white paper, silence, and a pen.

Write down the 25 most important things in your life that you want to do. I spend meaningful time with my family every day. I exercise every day. I learn something new every day. I avoid ready-made meals. I get fresh air, no matter how disgusting the weather. The sixth time, I really do hang out the laundry every time.

Rank them in order, with 1 being the most important, 2 the second most important, etc. You'll ponder a bit here, it's hard to place a lot behind something, but now, it's definitely important.

Now, draw a line under the top 5. These are the five things in your life that you will give priority to from now on. No matter what.

The exciting thing is that the advice itself is nothing more than to avoid the next twenty at all costs. Because they are the activities that are important enough for you to pay attention to them, and thus precisely those that take time away from the really important things.

And well, this is unfortunately very true, whoever came up with it. So just follow it. Obviously, it's not that you should never tidy up before going to bed, which might be, say, 8th on your list. But if 'exercise every day' is fourth and 'tidying up' is eighth, and it's 9 pm and you haven't exercised yet, then you don't start tidying up, but you take out your weights.

Then you won't be able to fall asleep right away anyway, so tidying up can come next. :)