In a perfect world, we would not have to worry about setting priorities because we would only have one task at a time to think about. Priorities would be a non-factor, and we would have less stress in our lives because we would always know exactly what we were supposed to be working on at any given time. Nice dream isn’t it? In our multi-task oriented reality, it just ain’t gonna happen. What we can do is set priorities on our multitude of tasks, so that we keep the stress and crisis thinking down to a minimum.
Setting priorities is an important part of a successful time management system. There is no one right way to do this because each one of us has different priorities depending on where we are in our lives. The six factors discussed here are just a few of the ways you can prioritize your task list.
1. Family Obligations
If you have a family, chances are that there are any given number of places you need to be during a typical day. Music lessons, dance lessons, sports games all require adherence to a schedule that’s not of your choosing, and getting the kids to their events on time definitely qualifies as a priority. If your day revolves around making sure that everyone gets where they need to be on time, you can use this as the starting point for prioritizing your schedule. (Note: This is much easier to do when you’re self-employed or working from home.)
2. Project Deadlines
A second way to prioritize your task list is by project deadlines. For many people this is the most common way to set priorities. Knowing exactly when a task needs to be completed and the consequences for not getting finished on time can be a great motivator. For example, if you have a task that must be done by Friday, and another that has a deadline of two weeks from now, then you know that this Friday’s task must have a higher priority.
Also, if you have projects and items on your list with no specific deadline, you can create a deadline for them. This will help you prioritize more effectively, and ultimately increase your productivity.
3. Stress Level
If reducing stress is one of the reasons you are setting priorities for your work, then you can use this technique for scheduling. Rate your tasks by stress levels from one to five, with five being the most stressful. Whether the stress is caused by a dislike of the task, or whether it’s a job that weighs heavily on your mind, you can often reduce stress by completing this task first and getting it off your mind and off your list.
4. Project Length
Setting Priorities by project length is useful for students with many assignments, and for others who must do large amounts of writing. For tasks and projects that will take more than one day, you can put them higher on your priority list, and set your schedule to work on some part of them each day. It is a good idea to schedule the longer projects for the most productive part of your day. This way you can use the slower part of your day to complete the shorter tasks, and the momentum gained from completing several short tasks will get you through the down times of your day.
5. Location
If your tasks involve being away from home or office, you can prioritize them by location. Grouping tasks that take place in the same area together is not only a great way to save time, it’s also a great way to save on travel expenses.
6. Degree of Difficulty
Prioritizing by the degree of difficulty can be a double-edged sword. Since more difficult tasks will usually take longer to complete, you can assign them a higher priority than the tasks that are easy for you. Depending on what motivates you, you may want to schedule these tasks for the productive part of your day, saving the easier, more enjoyable tasks for a “reward” during the slower part of your day.
As you can see from these few examples, there are many ways you can choose from when setting priorities for your work. Setting priorities is an intensely personal decision and there really is no right way to do it. The important thing to remember is to set your priorities in a way that is most comfortable for you so that you stick to them.
