No Time Management 2.0

Original link: http://www.cnfeat.com/2022/11/03/NoTimeM/

I haven’t done time management in a long time.

No time record, no task list, no to-do list, no four-item limit, no Pomodoro clock.

Come to think of it, this should have started when I built my personal product shelf. Once you make sure all your time and energy is doing the right thing in the right way, time management is no longer necessary.

I don’t have a schedule, everything is made up of cards. The most important one, always stick to the top and only write one thing.

I was addicted to time management at one point, expanding infinite things with to-do lists, trying to maximize the use of limited time, and pretending to be busy and capable, but the truth is that time management creates an illusion of control, Yet another form of busyness is formed, covering busyness with busyness.

To-do became a game of Tetris, things kept falling through the air, filling my world, and I had to scramble to find a way to eliminate them.

I used to be passionate about using apps and software to solve the problems of my daily life, setting up complex combinations and processes that didn’t solve problems, but created problems – problems that didn’t exist in the first place.

I have recorded time expenses, and found that it is extremely easy to forget, or it is easy to jump in the middle of doing things – Hey, it turns out that I have to do time expenses. I repeatedly blamed myself, thinking that I didn’t have enough time. After all, so many experts are doing this, I can’t do it well, is there no way to manage my time well?

I admire people who are proficient in apps and software for time management. I also once wanted to figure out how they can eliminate an infinite to-do list. There are too many things to do, how to make the most of every minute? ?

I have learned from classical creators. I went to Asimov’s autobiography to find out how he wrote 500+ books without an app. It’s not enough to look at one creator. I also read the Paris Review, and I want to know how a group of masters create in the countryside without mobile phones and computers, and without the Internet.

Just tossing, adjusting, and watching for a long time, suddenly one day, I figured out——

I was on a business trip that day, and I had a full schedule of work all day. When I came home in the evening, I thought that the work of the day was over. But as soon as I sat on the sofa, I suddenly felt that I couldn’t sit down. My phone, computer and notebook were reminding me that I should go to work: check WeChat group messages, organize meeting minutes, make new plans, outline tomorrow morning meeting, mid-year summary report……

What overwhelmed me was not just the number of tasks, but the fact that they were competing for priority to be completed at the same time, trampling on each other in my narrow mind. This anxiety and tension made me unable to sit still, so I simply stood up, went to the kitchen to get a cup of hot water, went to the balcony, looked at the lights and stars in the distance, and suddenly remembered Qi Yu’s “Answer” :

The stars in the sky/why/ crowded like a crowd, the people on the ground/why/and alienated like the stars

I closed my eyes and asked myself: why are these things coming to me? What do I want to do? What is the most important thing right now?

I went back to the living room, took out the card and pen, sat at the dining table, wrote all the matters on the card, and asked myself: if there is only one most important thing right now, and finishing this one will allow me to sleep peacefully at night , what is this thing?

I add one more: bathe my son, go to bed, read two picture books, and sleep. Then all other things are crossed out.

In the future, I will no longer have a task list or todolist, but a memo list. It can be complicated and long, and it can be done or not. It is no longer used to urge me to act and take care of everything, but to unload and clear my mind. prevent me from forgetting.

More important than the to-do list is the stop doing list ( Stop Doing List ).

My to-do list is always written on a card, this card will always have only one thing, only this thing will ultimately create value and bring results, this thing may change, but it will always be done, always on top, Always star. Other things are just subsidiary to this one.

I don’t need a list of getting everything done, because I can’t get everything done, there’s always more things I want and do than I can do in time.

I am more concerned with a meaningful and purposeful life. When I review my work and life every month every month, I prefer to see a long list of tasks that are meaningless, or a list of only three or five real achievements.

I used to want to do time management, but I didn’t really want to manage time. I couldn’t manage time. I could only manage myself and find a way to make myself do the right thing in the right way.

Before you understand what is the right way and what is the right thing, time management is good, but every minute is spinning in place, without the slightest progress, all efforts are meaningless.

It doesn’t matter if I don’t spend my time well, the reason I forget time is because I’m immersed in flow. If you don’t do certain things, it’s easier to generate flow, so it’s okay not to do it. No matter how precise the pinch is every second, it is better to plunge into the product shelf, and then there is no light and no time.

Creation continues without the use of various applications. Without the drive to create, without the habit of creating, no application will work. Not doing time management is not a purposeful giving up, it is more like a natural development that suits you. ∎

PS All my experiences and insights on personal productivity have been included in the Personal Productivity System Guide .

The “Personal Productivity Development Guide” integrates all my seven years of personal productivity practice experience. Since the first edition in September 2021, it has gone through three major editions and nearly seven or eight minor edition updates. The book is divided into 7 chapters, with a total of 130,000+ words, which will help you improve your efficiency and enrich your body and mind.

This manual will only get thicker and more expensive. Buy it early and benefit from it. Buy it once and update it forever.

Try reading the QR code

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