This is a quick tip for anyone who is really struggling with focus or overwhelm. It’s also for those of us who want to really zero in on what matters each day.
I picked this tip up from this video by Ali Abdaal – https://youtu.be/iONDebHX9qk on time time management tips. I am not sure if I will stick with it, but there is one way in which it is really making me think.
Most of us will have many tasks on our to do list each day. Most people seem to begin the day with between 20-30 tasks of varying size and importance. Many of us will follow some kind of prioritisation system, that signifies some tasks as more urgent or more important than others. I follow my version of Carl Pullein’s 2+8 system. I have 3 objective tasks every single day. Three MUST GET DONE tasks. Others might use the Eisenhower matrix and would want to focus on the task that fall into the Important but Not Urgent box. Whatever it is, we make priorities.
The Daily Highlight takes this one step further. This method forces you to choose one task that is the single most important thing that you will do that day. More specifically, the thing that you feel will have the biggest impact. Just one and only one. This is your daily highlight.
I like this because it makes me think. I have an aversion to putting somethings on my to-do list or my plan for the day. I don’t want to consider them to be ‘just another task’. This would include things like reading the Bible, praying, spending time with my family. Many people reading this would agree. The concept of the Daily Highlight made me think. As I looked at my lists and my plan for the day, I realised that NONE of the most important things that I would do that day had made it onto my to-do list or into my plan. This was because I did not consider them ‘tasks’. However, something I have observed time and time again in myself, in family members and friends, is that we would all say the same thing, the most important things we do in life, are the things we struggle to have time for. This is because, as we look at our list of 30 things to do today, or our plan for the day, none of these important things feature. As the Merovingian says, “if we do not take time, how can we ever have time”
So, here is how I am using my daily highlight. Whatever is the most important thing that I can do with time that day, this is my daily highlight. I signify this, not in my task manager, but in my plan for the day by…well highlighting it. Often this will be something like reading my Bible & praying, but often it might be spending time with my family (or one of my children). This is where it makes me think. Arguably, reading my Bible and praying could always be the most important thing, but arguably on a specific day, there will be other things that have a bigger impact. I tend to only choose this as I start my day, often after I’ve read the Bible and prayed.
The Daily Highlight helps to keep me focussed on what really matters in the midst of everything else. The Daily Highlight helps me to shape my day. Suppose for example that the Daily Highlight was to go and engage in a small group Bible Study, or have date night, this focus means I can shape my day to be sure that by the time I get to the evening, I am not completely worn out and unable to engage. Suppose the Daily Highlight was writing something, or calling someone, this focus means I can select the best time of day for that exercise.
So, look at your list of things to do today right now and ask 2 questions.
- What on this list is the single thing that will have the biggest impact today?
- Will there be anything else that I do today that will have a bigger impact than what is on my list?
Then, whatever it is, find a way to flag that as your daily highlight.
