Task Vs. Project
What qualifies as Task? And what as Project?
“I see many people juggling with their pocket diary, todo list and many other reports, breaking down each activity as task, and ending day with a longer list than seeing few getting crossed off.”
Its depressing and deflating to see the to-do list growing, and no respite to already busy schedule.
the whole reason to maintain a todo list is making us more productive! right?yes, in essence, its right, but its all depends on how we are making this list. and one of the key differentiation is identifying which items qualifies for being in task list and items which can be part of a project
So what is TASK : a task is something, which you can get it done in one seating, in one go, no follow-up to complete the task
and PROJECT : any thing, which has concrete outcome and a specified timelines. a Project will have many task (> 1 task)
Make a tea for spouse can be a Task if you go in kitchen and make tea in one go, but if you want to make that special Aasam tea, which needs some shopping list and some over night preparation, it qualifies for a Project with multiple tasks, e.g go out and get the special tea, get some special herbs, prepare overnight the water for that wonderful aroma etc…
I know, once we say Project, the fear of getting is complex crips in. But don’t worry, Project is only helping us to have them special focus, that it. It helps us declutter the great big to-do list. It make us see logical structure behind the reason of getting things done.
Once you are done with this, focus on how to make your todo more impactful.
While making a todo list there are many ways to make it light and compact, few of them are making [[Important and Imperative]] list, following [[Urgent and Important]] list
some good reads
Do This Now! List of Imperative Verbs – INK (inkforall.com)
The Eisenhower Matrix: Introduction & 3-Minute Video Tutorial