Many of our people struggle with time management and/or personal productivity.

Each week in our small groups, we go over—or at least touch upon—a lot of the techniques and methods to get a handle on time management and improve productivity.

But for those who haven't been in our small groups or those who need a refresher, a quick list of popular productivity approaches follows:

"Eat the Frog" : Do the hardest thing first in the day. Do your "feared" things first, not "first things first."

Eisenhower Matrix : Prioritize your tasks by urgency and importance. Also known as the "Eisenhower Method" or "Eisenhower Principle," former president Dwight D. Eisenhower reportedly learned it from a colleague and used the system for his own decision-making. The four quadrants of the matrix determine if you: do, schedule, delegate, or eliminate a particular activity. Author Stephen R. Covey later popularized its usage and is also called the Eisenhower-Covey Matrix.

Two-Minute Rule : Tasks are things that should be completed in two minutes or less. Projects take longer. Do your tasks immediately.

Pomodoro Technique : Work for 25 minutes. Rest for five minutes. (This is is considered one "pomodoro.") After 4 pomodoros, take a longer break—twenty to thirty minutes. Start another set of 4 pomodoros.

Time Blocking : Allocate specific time for specific tasks and projects on a daily basis. This helps to eliminate the illusion of urgency which can get us off-task.

Batching : Group similar tasks, attack them, and finish them collectively.

Pareto Principle : Also known as the 80/20 Rule, which states that for many outcomes, approximately 80% of the consequences come from 20% of the causes. So, focus on the top 20% of your tasks or projects—that is where you will get 80% of your results.

Parkinson's Law : C. Northcote Parkinson wrote that, "work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion." To challenge this law, set shorter deadlines for yourself to prevent expansion of work.

Take a break : Every once and a while, really embrace the free time in your life. You are not "breaking" from productivity. Proper rest is a crucial part of being productive.

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As always,

Brian