The Ultimate Guide to Personal Productivity Methods
Think about your day. Doesn’t matter what day of the week it is, or whether you are at work or home. Like most, you’re probably uber-busy. And getting things accomplished just provides room in your day for other things to get done. So how do you manage? Many people employ a simple to-do list. You may even have it on your phone so it’s handy. But is that really the best way to manage your time and effort? Here is a complete guide to different systems you can use, depending on your real needs. Pick the one you want to try and… just do it.
FROM THE TODOIST / BY TRICINA ELLIKER
You don't need a to-do list, you need a system you can trust.
The right productivity method can make a huge difference in your work. A friction-less workflow can take you from feeling overwhelmed, unfocused, and unproductive to feeling calm, in control, and prepared to take on even the biggest projects.
The good news is, there are new methods being developed, tweaked, and shared all the time. There’s bound to be a system out there that fits your unique personality and projects. But wading through the thousands of articles about different productivity systems can be a massive time commitment — time you could be using to actually get things done.
That’s why we decided to do the legwork for you. We’ve gathered the most powerful productivity methods and frameworks all in one convenient place. This post will give you a brief overview of the most popular and useful productivity methods, how each works, and what kind of person will find each useful. It’s designed to help you get set up with your ideal workflow as quickly as possible so you can start reaping the productivity benefits right away.
How to get the most out of this guide
First, we broke down the time commitment needed to get started with each method, rated with a simple Low, Medium, or High.
Eager to begin a huge project but feel completely lost whenever you try to start? Start with a method rated Medium or High.
Up against a hard deadline with a to-do list the length of California and a tendency to procrastinate under stress? Jump to the systems with a Low rating.
We’ve also indicated which methods are more Visual, Tactile, or Abstract — many are a combination. If you know which learning/work style you lean toward, you can skim through and jump to the methods that align best with your natural approach:
Visual
If you’re the kind of person who prefers maps over written or verbal directions, you’ll probably find the visual methods more satisfying.
Tactile
If you love the feeling of physically crossing items off a to-do list or you often find yourself strategizing by moving note cards around on the floor, you’ll probably feel most comfortable with tactile methods.
Abstract
If neither of those approaches sound like you — if you organize projects simply by writing it down or you strategize easily in your head with no physical or visual representation — you might find the abstract methods most useful. The upside of abstract methods is that they also tend to allow for more complexity in prioritizing and categorizing.
As you learn about the way that you work best, here are a few things to keep in mind:
The goal is to actually get stuff done. While it’s common for new workflow to take extra time upfront, they should become increasingly effortless over time. If you find that sticking to a certain productivity method is taking up a significant amount of time, energy, and mental bandwidth, it’s probably not for you. That’s ok. There are plenty of other options out there.
You’re not married to one productivity method forever. You may find that a given method is better suited to some of your projects, and not others. A method that used to work for you might become a burden to maintain later on, or you may need a more robust system to tackle a growing workload. Be flexible and don’t be afraid to make a change.
To borrow a phrase from Pirates of the Caribbean, productivity methods are more what you’d call “guidelines” than actual rules. The methods outlined below are great starting points, but they’re infinitely more powerful when you mold them to fit your specific work style. Experiment with different methods and mix and match to find your ideal workflow.
Ready to find the right productivity method for you? Use the overview below to jump to the methods that seem the most promising to you. Then click the title to bring you to the details of that methodology.
Productivity Methods Overview
Personal Kanban
Time commitment to get started: Low
Type: Visual, Tactile
Perfect for people who: Have a tendency to start a lot of projects but finish very few of them.
Eating Live Frogs: Do the Worst Thing First
Time commitment to get started: Low
Type: Abstract
Perfect for people who: Struggle with procrastination.
Must, Should, Want
Time commitment to get started: Medium
Type: Abstract, visual
Perfect for people who: Need to prioritize a large number of tasks, but tend to go for lists over graphs.
The SMART Method
Time commitment to get started: Medium
Type: Abstract
Perfect for people who: Are in the early phases of a big project and need to strategize before jumping in.
The Action Method
Time commitment to get started: Medium
Type: Abstract
Perfect for people who: Need to turn creative brainstorming into an actionable to-do list.
Time Blocking
Time commitment to get started: Low
Type: Visual, abstract
Perfect for people who: Find small tasks and interruptions are taking over the whole day or those who have more than one major area of work that they’re responsible for, especially managers.
Biological Prime Time
Time commitment to get started: High
Type: Abstract, visual
Perfect for people who: Love data and self-experimentation and want to optimize their days for maximum productivity.
Getting Things Done
Time commitment to get started: Medium
Type: Abstract, visual, tactile
Perfect for people who: Are feeling overwhelmed with the number of things they are responsible for and need a way organize it all.
Systemist
Time commitment to get started: Medium
Type: Abstract, visual, tactile
Perfect for people who: Feel overwhelmed with the number of things they need to do, but find maintaining a Getting Things Done system too time-consuming and complicated.
The Medium Method
Time commitment to get started: Medium
Type: Abstract, visual, tactile
Perfect for people who: Love the concreteness of pen and paper to-do lists, but have too much to keep track of to rely only on pen and paper. If you like to slow down to review and really process everything you’ve learned and thought throughout the day, this method is for you.
Pomodoro/Sprints
Time commitment to get started: Low
Type: Abstract
Perfect for people who: Feel like there’s never enough time in the day, but have a tendency to get distracted.
Don’t Break the Chain
Time commitment to get started: Low
Type: Visual
Perfect for people who: Want to adopt new daily habits.
The Eisenhower Matrix
Time commitment to get started: Medium
Type: Visual
Perfect for people who: Like graphs, have trouble seeing things in black-and-white, and would rather prioritize on a continuum than stuff tasks into a few categories.
Agile Results
Time commitment to get started: Medium
Type: Abstract
Perfect for people who: Are goal-oriented and are tackling complex projects and need to keep to a timeline.
The To-Done List and the To-Don’t List
Time commitment to get started: Medium
Type: Abstract
Perfect for people who: Spend too much time worrying about how much didn’t get done yesterday or have a lot of bad habits that prevent productivity.