{"id":10,"date":"2016-09-12T18:44:08","date_gmt":"2016-09-13T01:44:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/astug012016\/?p=10"},"modified":"2016-09-12T18:44:08","modified_gmt":"2016-09-13T01:44:08","slug":"on-getting-things-done","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/astug012016\/2016\/09\/12\/on-getting-things-done\/","title":{"rendered":"On Getting Things Done \u2122"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>We started mapping our commitments over the semester and that\u2019s got me thinking about time \/ project management and how we learn how to do it. The Chapman Learning Commons offers <a href=\"http:\/\/learningcommons.ubc.ca\/time-management-101\/\">a toolkit on time management<\/a>, and UBC\u2019s Wellness Centre has <a href=\"http:\/\/students.ubc.ca\/livewell\/services\/wellness-centre\">sessions on work\/life balance<\/a>. Your <a href=\"http:\/\/cap.arts.ubc.ca\/group\/peer-mentors\/\">CAP Peer Mentors<\/a> will have their own ideas to share with you, too.<\/p>\n<p>While I\u2019m no stranger to procrastination or <a href=\"http:\/\/www.lifehack.org\/articles\/productivity\/11-differences-between-busy-people-and-productive-people.html\">being \u201cbusy\u201d vs being productive<\/a>, over the years I have learned a few tricks that have made it much easier to manage deadlines and Get Stuff Done (GSD). My #1 approach is based on David Allen\u2019s <em>Getting Things Done <\/em>(GTD): it\u2019s a system in which you <strong>capture what you need to do, by categories, break each item into \u201cnext actions,\u201d and continuously set, assess, and schedule priorities<\/strong>. The Life Hacker blog <a href=\"http:\/\/lifehacker.com\/productivity-101-a-primer-to-the-getting-things-done-1551880955\">here<\/a> gives an excellent overview of GTD\u2019s key principles, but I\u2019ll list some of the things I\u2019ve taken away from it:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>If it takes <strong>less than 2 minutes, do it right away <\/strong>(exception: texting in class!). If not, do it in the scheduled time for that kind of task.<\/li>\n<li>Have a way to <strong>capture what you\u2019ve got to do<\/strong>: keep a notebook or use your phone to jot down things you need to remember. This clears your mind and frees up your mental energy because you aren\u2019t fretting about remembering all this stuff. (It also helps when you are writing papers and come up with brilliant ideas when you\u2019re not at your desk!) Allen says this helps you get to \u201cmind like water.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>Allen doesn\u2019t like \u201cto do\u201d lists. Instead, he proposes \u201cNext Action\u201d lists: <strong>what are the smaller <em>actions <\/em>you\u2019ll need to take<\/strong> to accomplish a big project? (We\u2019ll talk about this more when we break our summary and lit review assignments into steps that you\u2019ll schedule.)<\/li>\n<li>Recently I\u2019ve started using the calendar template in Word for my capture system: I print off a calendar page, and write out all the things I need to be doing, by category (e.g., \u201cASTU\u201d is one category), around the edges of the calendar. Then in the squares for each day, I write down the specific smaller action I will take to move that project along. This works for me because I can <strong>keep the big picture always in view, and have a daily plan<\/strong>. If I have extra time on a particular day, I can pull something in off the big list. Carry the list \/ next actions with you, always. (Some people make theirs using Google Docs so it\u2019s always accessible.)\u00a0<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-11\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/astug012016\/files\/2016\/09\/IMG_20160912_174256869-300x169.jpg\" alt=\"img_20160912_174256869\" width=\"300\" height=\"169\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/astug012016\/files\/2016\/09\/IMG_20160912_174256869-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/astug012016\/files\/2016\/09\/IMG_20160912_174256869-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/astug012016\/files\/2016\/09\/IMG_20160912_174256869-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/astug012016\/files\/2016\/09\/IMG_20160912_174256869-500x281.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/li>\n<li>Whatever kind of action \/ to-do list you make, it\u2019s a good idea to <strong>schedule your working time <\/strong>(and fun time), and <strong>update the action plan at the end of each work session<\/strong>. You\u2019ll know best what you need to do to move things forward when you\u2019ve just finished working on something, rather than the next day when you\u2019re coming back to it.\n<ul>\n<li>Sub-hint: <strong>schedule different kinds of tasks for different times of day<\/strong>. What takes the most energy &amp; focus? Do that when you\u2019re the most energetic and focused (e.g., first thing in the morning). Got some menial work to do (e.g., formatting your Works Cited page)? Schedule that for while you\u2019re watching TV. Etc.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Some other things I\u2019ve learned:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Keep a <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.designsponge.com\/2013\/09\/how-to-never-again-lose-your-keys-the-landing-strip.html\">landing strip<\/a> <\/strong>for your stuff: park your keys, wallet, etc. in the same place when you get home. Saves you time looking for stuff or saves you forgetting something you need.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Pack your bag the night before<\/strong>: see above re: not forgetting stuff.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Find and use scraps of time<\/strong>: think about the things you can do in 5, 10, or 15 minutes, and pull items off your list. Got 5 mins? Review your lecture notes, read a page in a textbook, update your \u201cnext actions\u201d list, etc. Those small scraps of time can really add up to a lot of productive time if you\u2019re prepared to use them.<\/li>\n<li>If you\u2019re stuck, get things going again by <strong>taking back control of some other aspect of life<\/strong>: tidy up your desk, fold your laundry, take out the recycling, etc.<\/li>\n<li>If there is something I\u2019m avoiding, I <strong>set a timer for 15 or 20 minutes and make myself start<\/strong>. I can have a treat of some kind once that timer goes off, but not until then. (Sub-hint: make a list of rewards to give yourself!)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>What are your tips and tricks for Getting Stuff Done? I hope you\u2019ll add your own suggestions (or questions) in the comments.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>We started mapping our commitments over the semester and that\u2019s got me thinking about time \/ project management and how we learn how to do it. The Chapman Learning Commons offers a toolkit on time management, and UBC\u2019s Wellness Centre &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/astug012016\/2016\/09\/12\/on-getting-things-done\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18775,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/astug012016\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/astug012016\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/astug012016\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/astug012016\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18775"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/astug012016\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/astug012016\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":79,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/astug012016\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10\/revisions\/79"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/astug012016\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/astug012016\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/astug012016\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}