Productivity hacks to help you prioritise

We start Sunday with a plate half-full of work left over from the last week. And straight till Thursday, we keep piling on more and more things to do. Of course we get some work done, but how many of us can attest to being at our productive best? We spend our days constantly burdened with everything we need to get done, never fully at peace. And while all of us make mental notes and are fully confident in our abilities of prioritisation, our judgment is often clouded by this very self-confidence. But there has to be a method (or rather methods) to this madness. So let's go through some steps.

First thing's first: list out your tasks. Most of us stop at this part. Heck, I stop at this part. But the ginormous list that you've just come up with is counter-productive—it's sheer length discourages you from looking at it again the rest of the week. So what do you do?

Sort. Sort tasks by Must, Should, and Want. We all know how this works. Your musts are the tasks that you have say deadlines for, that need to be handed in as soon as possible. Then come the shoulds and the wants.

Want to go the extra mile? Write tomorrow's to-do list tonight. If you get into the habit, you're definitely going to start seeing results.

If you're still not getting anywhere, break it down even more. What are the three most important things you need to get done? Write them on a sticky note and stick it on your desk or your bedroom mirror (whichever you frequent more often).

Your number one most important task is the thing you should do first. There really shouldn't be a doubt about it. And if it's something you really don't want to get involved with, you should start with it right away. Get it done; nothing will beat the feeling of relief afterwards.

To help you with prioritising, ask yourself a series of questions about each task: Will it help me reach a goal? Can this only be done by me? Is it important? Does it matter to my boss? Does it make money? Does it make my life easier? Does it have to be done today? Sort out your tasks based on the number of yeses.

And if you can't get started on that scary "number one most important task", do something on your list that is comparatively more fun or creative—that gets the juices flowing when nothing else does.

The writer is Sub-Editor of the career publication of The Daily Star. She is also a senior at the Institute of Business Administration, University of Dhaka.