Journaling @ Work

Over the years at work I have tried various solutions to task management: the mental to-do list, the simple paper notebook, the electronic PDA or Smartphone, to-do software or combinations of the above.  I have until recently not found a solution that lets me list my tasks and record what I actually do each day.

My solution is the humble Moleskine Weekly Notebook (below).  As the name suggests the weekly notebook is a cunning combination of weekly diary (on the left page) and notebook (on the right page).  This allows me to write my to-do list for the week on the notebook page and record what I do each day on the appropriate section of the diary page.

Having my work log and to-do list in the same physical entity has been a real break-through for me as it means I can track my progress towards my objectives and be able to account for where my time is spent each day.  This has allowed me to analyse my working patterns and evaluate what is taking up time that could be better spent working on the tasks in my to-do list.  Being able to record unexpected events that have taken up time e.g. build breaks or sickness has also proven very useful.

What I don’t use this notebook for is an actual appointment diary or strategic to-do list as I have found through experimentation that there is seldom sufficient space for such things.  I have Microsoft Outlook which does appointment and calendar management and Evernote which does high level strategic tasks lists and note gathering.