Prioritizing

We all have so many things to do in the 24 hours that we have been given in a day and we have only this much energy and resources to achieve what we have to achieve. And let's admit it, we cannot expect to do everything equally well at the same time if we don't learn how to prioritize and organize our time well. In fact, if we don't learn how to prioritize, we may never get anything done at all. Prioritizing can help us solve that frustrating problem.

Prioritizing is a way of saying that you need to list down stuff you need to get done within a certain period of time and then deciding which ones needs to get done first. We need to effectively recognize which one is important and decide which ones are urgent and which aren't.

One way to understand which tasks are important is this: long-term goals should be given the front seat. Short-term goals should come next. Urgent tasks are ones that need to be done within a short period of time and if they are not done, you will have to deal with circumstance that might lead to long-term consequences.

The way to get through the day is to finish the urgent stuff as quickly as possible and handing over the projects while you spend the rest of your time on the important but not urgent stuff. We know it is easier said than done but if you sit down every end of the day listing down the next day's tasks, you can do this! We know it can be done because many people have done this before.

The key is to finish off the urgent matters that need your immediate attention. Once you've checked them off the list, you should focus your energy and attention on things that give you long-term benefits.

However, sometimes, unexpected tasks come along and you have to add them to the list of things to complete immediately. We know that's unplanned but here's what you do. You don't place it at the top of the list. Now, if you've done what we've asked you to do earlier, you would have a list of urgent matters in hand. You would have marked them according to their importance. If the task is rated as 'B', then add it to the end of the list of 'B' importance tasks. If it's rated 'A', add it to the end of the list of 'A' importance tasks.

So, what happens if the list gets too long for you to complete in a single day? Ask yourself whether you can postpone it and start planning when and how to do it the next day. If it cannot wait, you should ask for help from others or at least delegate the task to others. Everyone's got his or her own limits and you're only human. Don't expect yourself to be perfect and stretch yourself too thin over unimportant things that are classified as 'urgent'. Remember, letting others take responsibility over tasks that you know they can handle efficiently will help you in the long run.