[wilsonng]

I used to rely on OF as my crutch whenever I got stuck. I would refer to it and scan for any next action that was available. But more often than not, I'd go for an easy next action instead of the best next action.

My problem was that I had too many next actions that were available for me to do. Sometimes too much of a good thing is not good at all! I would scan the Next Actions available perspective from top to bottom several times until I settled on one that i wanted to do (usually something really easy but not necessarily the more important one).

Now I've changed my workflow. I would use OF as my bucket list of actions. At the end of today, I will whip out an index card, review my available next actions and write down 5 next actions that I want to focus on tomorrow. I will rank them in order of importance.

Usually, I'll follow the "eat the frog" rule and do the least desirable next action first. Then I'll rank the rest accordingly. I tend to focus on completing the first three next actions. Those are my Big Rocks of the Day. My day is considered a success if I can get through those three. I have two extra next actions if I can complete the first three Big Rocks.



Then I'll sync OmniFocus to my iPad and quit OmniFocus on my Mac. I've found that if I kept OF for Mac open, it is just too tempting to go back and start scanning my OF list. Then I'll think I'm being productive by doing more planning and editing in OF. That was a complete illusion and left me no time to actually complete my next actions. Quitting OF for Mac was good enough for me. I don't see it on my dock and resist the temptation to click on the OF icon.

Then I'll put that index card with the five tasks directly in the middle of my desk and leave the office. When I return the next morning, I'll already know what to do. That index card shows what I need to focus on for that day. I don't have to open OF to hunt for the next task or project to work on. By focusing on those tasks, I'll make significant progress. I'm not burning up precious time peeking at OF and then get sidetracked with another interesting project.

I'll check off the tasks from my index card and my iPad. If I want to capture an idea or task, I'll resist the urge to go to OF for Mac and enter it on the iPad instead.

I'll never touch OF for Mac until the end of the day. About 60 minutes before I leave, I'll sync my iPad and Mac to get the new updated database. Then I'll repeat the review process again. I take out another index card and determine the five Big Rocks for tomorrow.

I think the only time I will really use OF for Mac is when I'm doing some intensive planning and review with projects and tasks. This is how I've learned to step away from OF but it is still a big part of my workflow.