Rebel Without a Clock

People usually think I am a very regimented person because of my work and expertise. In reality, I am a big rebel… against rigid scheduling. I tend to feel better and function better when I have a prioritized list and an open block of time, rather than scheduling out every minute of the day. When I see a week that is blocked out with numerous little appointments all over it, I cringe and the rebel inside of me wants to chuck it all to the wind and run away! And yet, many friends tell me I am one of the most productive and self-disciplined people they know.

Are you shocked? I think there is a huge myth out there that you must exactly follow someone else's expertly engineered system to manage your time. What I have come to believe is that time management is very personal and unique, as unique as a fingerprint, and unless you follow a customized system that works for your brain and your personality, it will never stick for long. I also think people may need to change their time management systems periodically because they get bored or their circumstances are different. One size does NOT fit all.

There are many kinds of systems out there, from elaborate paper planners to conceptual methodologies to sleek electronic solutions. Whatever system or combination you choose, I believe it all comes down to these five essential components: (UPDATE: I ended up writing a series expanding on each of these bulleted points. Click here to read those posts.)

• CAPTURE: Find the best ways for you to capture information about appointments, ideas, and tasks securely so you can relieve the stress of trying to remember it all. I have several capturing tools: paper & pen, Jott service on my phone, e-mailing myself, having others e-mail me, and typing things directly into my computer.
• COMMIT: Make the decision to prioritize and take action on projects and tasks that are right for your goals, obligations, and objectives. For some people, committing to something means putting an appointment on the calendar to do it, and for others it means moving it to the top of a list or highlighting it on a page. A big part of this committing process is deciding what the next action is. Sometimes you don't commit to taking action, and an idea ends up just being captured somewhere for the future.
• CUE: Find the best ways to remind yourself of things you have committed to at the right time. I use my calendar for this and check it daily. I also use reminder alarms on Outlook & Blackberry. Members of our Clutter Diet program can use our customized e-mail reminder system to send themselves messages at any kind of repeating interval (weekly, every other day, every 3rd month, etc.).
• COMPLETE: You ultimately must take action for any of this to work! I think Socrates said it best when he said, "Know Thyself." If you understand what motivates you to take action, that is probably the biggest factor of all. Rewards are a great motivator, and sometimes fear and consequences are very effective too! For me, I work best with deadlines and accountability to others, and I think that is true for most people.
• CORRECT: Take time out to review what's working and not working for you and adjust to changing priorities. Pay attention to new solutions and methods so that you can assess and improve over time. Travel, job changes, and other life transitions can mean temporary adjustments to focus more or less on your scheduling rigidity. David Allen's "GTD" concept of the Weekly Review is a great example of making corrections on a weekly basis.

Certainly there are weeks that necessitate my planning things out to the minute even if the rebel inside me doesn't wanna do it. But finding multiple reliable solutions that work for your own unique personality will ensure that a system has the flexibility to keep up over time.

Share your thoughts and your favorite Capturing & Cueing tools in the comments!

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