If I had six hours to chop down a tree, I would spend the first four hours sharpening the axe
Abraham Lincoln
When you embark on many endeavours, the number of tasks you need to manage also increases. And, then add to it, all the other parts of your life like family, commute, cooking, eating, etc.
Looking at my own life, I have plenty going on:
- a couple of bootstrapped projects
- 2-3 e-newsletters,
- vlogs (2 channels!)
- 2 podcasts (2 shows, which include recording, editing & publishing)
- Blogging
- Writing 2-3 books
- Coding study (3 categories: no-code, coding, and AI)
- Grocery shopping, cooking & eating
- Commute to my 9-5 job (1.5 hrs each way)
- Spiritual activities (prayer, reading, meditation)
- Social media management (regular engagement on Twitter, Instagram and Threads)
- Keeping up-to-date with world events (reading news, watching interviews)
- Reading
- Sleeping
- Bodily needs (shower, toilet breaks etc)
- Fitness & workouts (12,000 steps/day, gym workouts)
I am tired already 🙂
So, how do I manage all of these and more?
1) Enjoy the chaos!
You need to enjoy doing many things. If you don’t like that kind of life, SHRED! Meaning, don’t take on extra activities till you’ve finished what you’ve taken on.
2) Make a list!
Put it down on paper. Then, move it to an online reminder/to-do list, if you prefer. There’s something about writing it down on paper that makes it look more real and actionable.
3) Prioritize!
In my case, I pick 5 things I need to accomplish that day from my treasure chest of to-dos. Those, are the only ones I will focus on for the day, without feeling guilty about anything else.
4) Organize it!
I use the old-fashioned timetable. It’s something I learned in school. You know, the one where they have different subjects/classes per hour? I still use that system to this day. But it’s on an Excel file like below:
5) Focus on execution
In my above example, although it’s a Saturday. I work through my list of activities like it was a 9-5 job. Full seriousness!
I avoid distractions as much as possible, and I take a break every 45 minutes. I step out, take in fresh air, look at the sky and the plants, take a toilet break if required, drink plenty of water, and then get back to work. if it’s a work day, then I action my personal tasks, post 5 PM, if it’s absolutely critical.
Conclusion
Do the above 5 steps every day. It will subconsciously become a part of your life. If you have a dozen tasks across each project, then change the project each day if you can. That allows many to be executed in the week. But, I wouldn’t cram a dozen projects into a single day. That would yield low-quality work.
That’s it. Hope that helped! Share your habits in comments.
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