If you haven’t done so already, take a few minutes to think about how and where you receive information that may cause you to take action.  For illustration purposes, I broke the what portion of my workflow into 7 categories: emails (personal and professional), phone calls (personal and professional), verbal (conversations, personal, professional, friends, and family), hobbies, postal mail, social media, and text messages.  Then I looked at the volume of information I received from each of these categories, as well as how I needed to respond to each of these action items.  This basic analysis allowed me to create a customized time and task management system that worked for me. 

Most of us spend a lot of time sorting through emails, phone calls, conversations, traditional postal mail, social media, and text messages.  And if that’s not enough, a lot of us have multiples within each of these categories.  For much of my career, I had two cell phones, one for work and personal use.  Most of us maintain two-plus email accounts; according to the internet, the average person has seven social media accounts. 

If you haven’t already, spend some time reflecting on where and how you receive tasks.  Next, ask yourself, can you streamline or consolidate where or how you receive tasks?  The following examples won’t work in every situation, but will hopefully inspire some ideas for your own situation.  When appropriate, I would systematically and intentionally work to move how I received tasks to email.  When people would verbally ask me to do something, I would ask them to send me an email or a calendar invite.  When people sent me a text message with a task, I would politely respond by asking them to send me an email.  This may sound a little rude, but it was my way of managing my workflow process.  In some situations, I would send myself an email to remind me of the task.  Over time, my email inbox became a consolidated place to manage my To Do List.  At the end of the day, your system will either manage you, or you can manage your system.  It may feel hard and even awkward at first, but over time, you will come to appreciate an efficient system that works for you.

As you examine the what portion of your time and task management workflow, consider this: the first constraint in any time and task management system is how much or the volume of what you can sort through.  All of that to say, are there any elements you can eliminate, reduce, or streamline within the what portion of the workflow? 

Start by looking for opportunities to eliminate, reduce, or streamline the “what” portion of your workflow.  Everyone’s situation is different, but for example, maybe you can automate your monthly bills or cut back on social media.  Anyway, you can eliminate, reduce, or streamline the number of things you have to sort through is the first step in freeing up more time for you.   

1. P/F _____ Have you thought about where all your tasks come from? Knowing where and how your tasks come to you is the first step in regaining control of your time.
2. 2.0 _____ Can or should anyone else take responsibility for something you’re doing? Sometimes we do something so long that it just feels easier to keep doing it ourselves.  However, that isn’t always what’s best for the organization or us.   
3. 1.0 _____ Have you thought about eliminating, reducing, or streamlining things that might cause you to take action? Reducing the number of things that can cause you to take action is the most effective way to regain control of your time.
4. 1.0 _____ Can or should any elements of the What Portion of the workflow be automated? As AI continues to improve, it may be of value for AI tools to automate some of the things you do manually now. 

_____: Assessment Grade

RuReady Resources:

1. RuReady.fyi To Do List Worksheet

 Amazon Books:

1. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, by Stephen R. Covey, Jim Collins, and Sean Covey. This has long been one of my favorite books.  I have used many of the lessons taught in this book throughout my career.
2. How to Get Control of Your Time and Your Life, by Alan Lakein, is a concise, energizing guide that turns time‑management into something practical and genuinely empowering. It’s one of those rare books that leaves you feeling clearer, more focused, and ready to take action.
3. Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World, by Cal Newport, is a sharp, motivating call to reclaim your attention and produce work that actually matters. It’s one of those rare books that doesn’t just inspire you, it gives you a blueprint for transforming how you think, create, and succeed.
4. Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less, by Greg McKeown, is a refreshing reminder that doing less, on purpose, can lead to far greater impact. It’s a clear, uplifting guide that helps you cut through the noise and focus on what truly matters.
5. Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity, by David Allen and James Fallows, is a game‑changer for anyone who wants clarity, focus, and a calmer approach to productivity. It transforms everyday chaos into a simple, reliable system that helps you breathe easier while getting more done. 

YouTube Resources:

1. The Eisenhower Matrix: How to manage your tasks with EISENHOWER, Andreas, founder of Eisenhower.me I think this is a great 2-minute video explaining the concept and application of the Eisenhower Matrix.