Information would come in, I would review or listen to it, decide where it needed to go next, and then move on to the next thing. And like her, I did it as fast as I could.

The Self or Human Element of the Workflow.

The Self, or the Human element, of the workflow process is the only portion we have much control over. We sort through the volume of tasks coming at us every day; we decide what can and cannot get done, the quality of the finished task, and, to a degree, when we will complete the task. Two people can receive the same What and have the same amount of time available yet produce very different results because the Self is different. Our experience, skills, habits, priorities, standards, preferences, and judgment influence how we process what comes our way.

Three Natural Human Constraints

The first area a person needs to assess and reflect on is the three natural human constraints we all face: 1) Review Capacity. The volume of information that we can effectively review. 2) Work Capacity. The volume of work that we can effectively do. 3) Production Capacity. The volume of results that we can effectively produce, and at what quality.

The first constraint, review capacity, with practice, we can increase our capacity to review information, but the most effective solution is to eliminate, reduce, or streamline what must be reviewed in the first place.

The second constraint, work capacity, likewise: with practice, we can become more efficient at our tasks, but at the end of the day, regardless of our efficiency, we can only do so much.

The third constraint, Production Capacity, is not only about how much we produce but also about the quality at which we produce it. Meaning, with unlimited time and money, we could produce a near-perfect something. However, most of us are limited in the amount of time and money we can spend. That said, The Self must decide when something is good enough to meet the need and when additional quality justifies additional time and effort.

Taking back control

As my personal and professional roles and responsibilities increased, I found it increasingly challenging to do everything I thought needed to be done to the level and quality standards I set for myself. Not meeting the goals I set for myself really bothered me and led to an unhealthy level of stress in my life, which wasn’t good for me, my family, or my colleagues. I knew something needed to change.

There are many time-management tools and methodologies we can use to help make these decisions. I would encourage anyone who has not already done so to explore some of them and determine what works for them. What I think is important to highlight here is that the tools I explored helped with portions of my workflow but, at least in my experience, didn’t account for the entire workflow. That was what I was struggling with.

For me, one of the most influential was the Eisenhower Matrix. I began my time- and task-management journey by learning to use the Eisenhower Matrix effectively, which taught me to quickly determine what was important and urgent compared with what was important but not urgent. This had the single most significant impact on my daily routine. I was relentless in teaching myself to quickly sort through my responsibilities to determine what might be important and urgent, important but not urgent, not important but urgent, and not important and not urgent. For what it’s worth, my Eisenhower Matrix included both personal and professional tasks, events, birthdays, anniversaries, etc.

Being a slow learner, it took me a year or more of deliberate practice before the Eisenhower Matrix became automatic for me. I created a daily and weekly task list system. The combination of the Eisenhower Matrix, daily and weekly task lists, and my calendar really helped me become less stressed and feel more in control of everything life threw at me, to the point that I added quarterly, annual, and two-year task lists. Admittedly, the quarterly, annual, and two-year task lists were a product of my work environment. That said, it’s hard for me to communicate just how much my stress levels decreased when I settled into my time and task management workflow system, which allowed me to see and prioritize essentially everything happening from now to two years into the future.

An unintended benefit of having a 24-month detailed time and task management workflow system was that it allowed me to more clearly and effectively communicate competing priorities with my supervisor and family. It wasn’t uncommon for me to sit with my supervisor and reprioritize tasks. We might agree to adjust the suspense or shift resources, neither of which would have been possible had I not had a clear and detailed task management system in place.

Teaching yourself how to prioritize your time is the first step in being able to feel like you have some level of control over your time. Without the appropriate priorities, it’s easy to become overwhelmed by the not important, not urgent, which means you risk missing the important and urgent.

Learning this system early in my career helped me feel comfortable and empowered to approach my boss and ask for help in deciding which item belongs in each of the four quadrants. I think it’s important to highlight two key points. 1) As I reflect on the early days of my career, I need to give credit to my senior leaders and managers who helped teach me what went into each of the four quadrants. Because what I thought was important wasn’t necessarily what they thought was important. It was their mentorship that taught me to understand what was important and urgent. 2) Also, it is critical to appreciate that what is considered important and urgent will evolve over time and change from one organization or situation to the next. Remaining flexible, open-minded, and most importantly accepting of shifting priorities communicates a willingness to be a team player and reduces stress.

It took me several years to fully implement my task and time management workflow systems; however, once I did, I was able to effectively work on and oversee hundreds of large and complex initiatives with minimal levels of stress. It’s important to mention and keep in mind one critical point here. The number and complexity of tasks a person can effectively manage will depend on the nature of the work, available resources, individual capacity, and the effective use of time and task management tools, systems, and processes.

The Self is what makes a time and task management system personal. We don’t all receive the same demands, process information the same way, establish the same priorities, or produce work to the same standards. The goal isn’t to eliminate those differences; it’s to understand them. Once we understand our own capacities, priorities, and tendencies, we can build systems that work with the way we actually operate rather than constantly fighting against them.

RuReady Framework Connection:

This article is part of the Basic Universal Skills (Do) elements within the RuReady Adult Readiness Framework.

This series explores Time and Task Management, using a personal workflow approach to develop skills required across all three domains of our lives.

Explore the complete series:
Skill (US03.01): Time and Task Management Workflow
Skill (US03.02): Time and Task Management Workflow: The What
Skill (US03.03): Time and Task Management Workflow: The Self
Skill (US03.04): Time and Task Management Workflow: The When
Skill (US03.05): Time and Task Management Workflow: Only Do What Only You Can Do

If you enjoyed this article, explore the broader RuReady Adult Readiness Framework:

Preface: A Field Manual for Adult Life
Chapter 1: Why Do We Do What We Do?
Chapter 2: An Exploration of the RuReady Framework
Chapter 3: Life Skills for the Personal Domain
Chapter 4: Career Skills for the Professional Domain
Chapter 5: Leadership Skills for Every Level

Before moving on, feel free to use the checklist below to assess your readiness level.