One of the most discussed topics in business is task and project management. People write books about the subject and get into spirited debates on the right way to creative productivity. There are endless software platforms that function as glorified to-do lists. From Basecamp to Asana, Monday and Notion, companies have long fought for the crown of system-of-record for generalized organizational productivity. My companies have used various tools over the years, from a few years of Basecamp, to Wrike, and now some people on the development team use Notion and seem to enjoy it.
I realized recently that we are not using any tool overall right now, perhaps for the first time. Slack offers immediate communication, and this has taken the place of assignment of tasks. I have to assume that people manage their own tasks and to-do lists. If one person wants to use sticky notes and another a subscription to ToDoIst, I feel like autonomy in overall management selection must have some real value for individuals.
Meaning, people are adults – if they have something to do, they should be able to figure out how to remember to do it. My knowing-that-they-are-doing-it 100% of the time is superfluous to getting things done and could even be considered a waste of time, since it introduces multiple steps into execution.
The real issue overall though is that I have come to realize that many times, you are better off not getting your to-do list done. You may have 30 items on your list, and complete all of them over the course of the day. Are those 30 things worth doing? Did you have a net positive effect or make a real change, or make something important happen? We have a limited time in each day, and have to make sure that we’re using our time well.
One way to think about this is that computers can execute to-do lists. In software, a routine is done, whereby each step is executed. We are not computers though, thankfully, and have a much greater capacity for decision-making and prioritization. I try now to focus most thinking of what is most important, and then setting aside time to execute on vision. Determining that vision is something that computers cannot do, and something that software does not help with. It’s not long-form content, but rather long-form or slower thinking that is important – taking just a few minutes to step back and using our creative minds to determine what we should be trying to do before we set aside time to do it.
We are not robots, and kidding ourselves into thinking that we are being productive is all too easy these days. Things call for attention perhaps like never before – focus and clarity are more important than ever before. So right now, I’m finding success with a simple notebook, but thinking-with-a-notebook most importantly, before trying to knock things out on the to-do list. That’s the challenge for all of us – using our time wisely and making true progress toward meaningful goals.