The objective of prioritization is to help you achieve results with as little effort as possible. Here are some hacks for prioritizing tasks with no pain.
1. Use a Whiteboard to List Out All the Tasks You Need to Do
If you prefer to do your own task management, you might find that a whiteboard can be a very effective tool. Place it in an open area so that everyone can see it. It will become embarrassing for you to leave tasks incomplete and acts as a motivating factor to complete the tasks that you list.
2. Use Asana
It is a simple and easy-to-use web-based project management tool. It can provide a macro view of the whole project and allow you to delegate tasks that can be completed by other people. Alternatives to Asana include AgileZen.com, which is a shared task list tool for teams, or Huddle, a comprehensive platform for collaborating on content in the cloud. There are many more task management choices on the web to check out as well, but give these a look.
3. Delegation
You need not finish everything on your own. The fact is that it may only cost you five dollars an hour to complete a task you have been procrastinating on, so why not give that a try? There are many websites such as Elance.com, Fiverr.com, and ODesk.com for you to find freelancers of all skills — including designers, web developers, mobile programmers, writers, translators, and more.
4. Write Down Three of Your Daily Important Tasks on a Post-it Note
Place the note somewhere you’re always looking at, such as the edge of your monitor, inside your wallet, or even on your smartphone screen. By doing this, you won’t miss or forget any important tasks.
5. Identify which task is the most important
It is essential to set a goal before you work on prioritizing tasks. The book Eat That Flog! provides you with 21 effective methods for conquering procrastination and accomplishing more. If you don’t know what to prioritize, you can go through this book to get some ideas of how to get things straight in that area.
Featured photo credit: Portrait of nervous female college student with textbooks via Shutterstock
Prioritizing your task is such a pain that we designed on IQTELL a unique workflow to deal with it.
1# Set specific priorities to tasks and filter them according to importance on the app task screen.
2# Choosing IQTELL as your default tasks/project manager allows you to connect all the platforms you’re working with in one place. For example: Google, iCloud, Evernote, Yahoo etc working with each other under one roof.
3# Manage delegation, collaboration and sharing through IQTELL’s interface and reach easily employees and colleagues through the app’s sharing abilities.
4# Write your next actions/ important tasks on the app’s Dashboard. Make it the first thing you see when you enter the app and the last thing you’ll see before you close it.
5# Identify the most important task and connect it to the required platform on the app to ignite the workflow (That includes platforms that don’t communicate usually like iCloud + Evernote + GCal).
These are decent tips, but nothing beats the GTD philosophy.
Thank you for this. I personally use Producteev, though I think Asana would be worth a try. Although I personally think that writing it on paper/whiteboard/post-it notes is a better way to do it. I tend to forget to check them since they’re all filed with other tabs and windows. The great thing with writing tasks on something outside your screen is that it stands out, especially the post it, and you won’t forget to cross out what you’ve done and check what you need to do.