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Prioritise Your Next Actions with the Priority Planning Worksheet
Posted by Adam Pash at 3:00 PM on February 7, 2008
To help prioritise his projects and next actions, blogger Ian McKenzie put together a free Priority Planning Worksheet available as a PDF download. The worksheet uses a simple calculus for determining the best order of tackling your next actions by assigning importance and urgency factors to each item. Once you've ordered your actions, the worksheet asks you to list and describe each item and the steps required to complete them. If your personal productivity benefits from structured systems, McKenzie's worksheet might be just the ticket for you.
Tags: download | pdfs | priorities | productivity
Comments (AU Comments · US Comments)
There are currently no AU comments for this post.
Deprong Mori
Posted 3:42 PM 7/2/08
Calculus? You know, I don't think I need calculus to manage my to-do list, thank you very much.
Pass.
Deprong Mori
cuiusquemodi
Posted 5:42 PM 7/2/08
Sure, calculus... this system helps you differentiate your integral tasks.
I'm here all week, be sure to tip your waitress.
cuiusquemodi
Adam Pash
Posted 5:42 PM 7/2/08
Ha, I was using calculus in the general sense... i.e., any method or system of calculation. Sorry for the confusion.
Adam Pash
arod
Posted 5:42 PM 7/2/08
from the website:
[Multiply the Importance value by the Urgency value to determine the Success factor for each priority. Enter the result in the "S" column.]
Multiply? Is this the calculus you are referring to? Hmmm, I'm no Will Hunting but I think I can manage this calculus pretty well.
arod
malvim
Posted 11:42 PM 7/2/08
Well, thinking of it a bit more, the problem is not using multiplication, but assigning the lowest numbers to the most important things, and then ordering the scores from highest to lowest.
malvim
malvim
Posted 11:42 PM 7/2/08
Yeah, multiplication is kinda weird, since he tells you to assign 1 to the most important item, and 1 to the most urgent... If you multiply using that system and order by highest score, you'll be doing the less important, less urgent things first, right? Or did I not understant the thing properly?
malvim
langba
Posted 11:42 PM 7/2/08
I have a similar system...weird.
BUSINESS IMPORTANCE (bottom line, profit, job security)
6 = Long-term gain
4 = Mid-term gain
2 = Short-term gain
0 = Not important
BUSINESS URGENCY (customer demands, deadlines, quick fixes)
9 = Safety or fire related issue
3 = Behind schedule
1 = On schedule
0 = Not urgent
Instead of multiplying, I add the two together. Highest score wins.
langba
arod
Posted 4:43 AM 8/2/08
@Adam Pash:
Adam, I take back my snarky comment. There is a way to use calculus with this worksheet. Just print it out on paper, make it into a mobius strip, and try to calculate the curl. Hours of calculus fun!!
arod
Summy
Posted 6:45 AM 8/2/08
For those interested in prioritizing check out The Priority Game. It's a good exercise to make sure that you really are prioritizing tasks in the best way.
Summy