[jhein]

Hi,

while I am already pretty good at storing and managing information in OF, I still suck at doing actual work. I also remember that I saw some threads about the perspectives people use to determine what to do next, but I could not find them again.

I would really appreciate it if someone would share a) which perspectives and b) which strategies you use to actually work on something.

Links to existing topics would also be great. I tried to use the search engine, but did not find anything really usable, but I am sure there is something.

Thank you,
Julian

[Lucas]

Hi Julian,

It probably depends on when you stop doing work. What do you do instead of working on your projects?

[wilsonng]

Search for a "today perspective" to get an idea of what many folks are using as a "today" list.

I created a perspective that I put on the toolbar that looks like this:

Context filter: Active
Grouping: Due
Sorting: Due
Availability Filter: Next Action
Status Filter: Due or Flagged
Estimated Time Filter: Any Duration


I look at this perspective first to look at any due items that I have to knock off first. I also flagged anywhere from 3 to 6 tasks/projects that I am focusing on this week. Call this my Big Rocks of the Week.

I intentionally focus my energy for the day or the week to knocking off all the tasks in this perspective first. I try not to get distracted by the new shiny object and lose focus doing something else.

After I finish my "Today" perspective, I can look at my other perspective that I call "My Agenda." This is a broader list of available next actions that i have available to me.

Context filter: Active
Grouping: Context
Sorting: Due
Availability Filter: Available
Status filter: Any status
Estimated time filter: Any Duration


This perspective gives me a list of available actions that I can do.

i can also create variants of this perspective that are focused on "Home", "Work" and "Errands".

I've also learned to stop tinkering in OF so much. If I spent all my time tweaking projects and tasks or I might be trying to figure out which next action i feel like doing, I don't get any real work done. So I just look at the perspective and just do it!


Another trick is to just look at your context list and write down 3-6 tasks that you want to work on today on a 3x5 index card that you can carry in your pocket. Then just look at that list and do those items only. Don't look at OF anymore. This gives you better focus on what you intend to do and provides you with real intentions about what you want. Otherwise all those other tasks in your OF window is distracting you from what you really want to get done.