Developing a schedule
Since I’ve graduated, I’ve been asking around for advice on how to best take advantage of this time off. In between trying to job hunt and work on personal projects and take care of myself and have a social life, I ended up being even more stressed and exhausted than when I was in school or working. Everyone said “make and stick to a schedule!” and I….tried
Without set deadlines or responsibilities, I’m responsible for choosing and performing tasks, but that has turned out to be a double edged sword. There are so many things I want to do and learn, but my time and energy are limited. Every time I start a new task, I think of the countless things I’m not doing until I’m paralyzed by indecision and end up aimlessly scrolling through a social media feed. I know prioritizing and completing tasks is a skill that will be vital in whatever I end up doing, and I should take advantage of the time I have right now to develop good habits.
I did read a lot of good books though
But how do I start? My to do list feels endless and unformed. Formless ideas like “improve coding skills” are next to concrete tasks like “send a thank you note to ___” until everything feels impossibly complex and difficult. My haphazard approach is no longer working, things are slipping through the cracks and I’m constantly overwhelmed despite feeling like I’m completing nothing. I need concreteness and organization.
At once buoyed and dismayed by the sheer number of articles and apps I’m finding on how to ‘hack productivity’ (whatever that means), I go back to my tried and true research method. On my path to becoming a “UX-pert” I’ve read and studied numerous products in an effort to figure out what works and what doesn’t, and my favorite method has always been to try it myself. So, as my own test subject I’m going to pick a bunch of ways to organize my life and time and try each one for a week to see what works. I currently use a combination of many things but would prefer a one stop shop, or see if there’s a way to combine more effectively. The plan for the month of July is as follows.
Week 1: Google (Calendar + Keep)
My current go-tos, but I’m not sure if they’re really working. Calendar is great for scheduling meetings, and Keep is nice for notes, but I’m always forgetting about things or not sticking to them. Week 1 will be about putting my entire life on both to see what works and d
Week 2: ToDoist
Consistently listed as one of the top apps for productivity I’m going to spend week 2 trying to organize my life using this popular tool.
Week 3: Toggl
Toggl focuses on time tracking overall, which I think would be a huge benefit. I was initially looking at Microsoft’s To-Do and RescueTime in conjunction, and Toggl seems to do both features quite well. Understanding how and where I’m spending my time may be necessary in changing my habits.
Week 4: Journaling
Bullet Journaling is a huge trend, and while I do carry around notebooks I’m still frazzled. Week 4 will be about unplugging and trying to be organized using the classic paper and pen.
It’s going to be a month of changes and I hope they’ll be positive ones! Each week I’ll record and discuss what it was like using this method and if I’ll continue. Thanks for reading!