October 6th, 2009 by Daryl Furuyama
Procedure List + Monday Refocus Form
I use procedure list cards in my 3-ring binder to have a detailed list of action items for recurring projects (such as cleaning the bathroom). It keeps my todo list simple and gives me the procedure to get it done efficiently.
This form is pretty simple to use and saves me precious time from thinking about challenges that I’ve already solved:
- Fill in the title of the procedure: Most of your procedures are going to be some sort of routine that (a) you haven’t memorized yet and (b) something you wouldn’t do spontaneously. Most of my routines have to do with some type of cleaning because I tend to put it off until things are dirty.
- Fill in how often the procedure repeats itself: I like to spread out my cleaning, so I attack a different room on each day. As you add new cards, you may need to change the schedule to balance the work load. Having these cards makes it easier to see how much pre-planned work you’ll have on any given day.
- Write down the actionable items in order: The first time you do the procedure, you just need to write down all the things you need to do to finish it. As you try it out a couple more times, you may find a more effective order that you will want to preserve. It’s also useful if you need to get someone else to do it for you
- Put it in your tickler file: Once you figure out your procedure, just put it in your tickler file. If you faithfully check your file, you no longer need to think about when you’ll need to do your recurring tasks again. Sweet.
Download and Try It!
This form is free for you to download and try out. It is in a 300ppi PNG format:
Download the Procedure List (PNG)
Bonus: Refocus Form with Week Beginning on Monday
I’ve received a request for a modified Refocus form with the weeks beginning on Monday and I decided to include it in this post as well.
Download the Monday Refocus Form (PNG)
This post made me smile, there are more “mad” people in the world.
I have a couple of processes defined for myself with a reminder set in outlook. They are for a couple of important but not so exciting task. I actually use mindmaps so I can “freestyle” a little.
Benifits
1. Quickly get stuck in
2. No thinking required, overcoming a barrier to starting
3. Good idea how long it will take as you are repeating a task you did before
4. Less likely to tolerate interruptions
5. Opportunity to improve if define (mind map helps here)
Piaras
Haha, I’m glad I’m not the only one either. We just need one more and it will confirm that we’re not crazy.
Interesting. I do this activity almost everyday. It helps me keep my tasks in sync. I use http://www.taskerous.com to manage my activities instead of paper since I usually end up losing the paper somewhere during the course of the day while doing my tasks
You’re definitely not crazy. I have a boardful of these procedure lists.
I use it for:
* reconciling financials
* paying bills
* backing up files via command line
Thanks for the confirmation. I’m surprised that there are a few people besides me who keep a bunch of list (either on paper or computer) on how they approach a task. Cool.
Love this idea. Can you share some of your recurring procedural lists if you think others might benefit from them?
I don’t think there’s many unique routines that wouldn’t normally cross your mind (since they’re mainly cleaning), but here are a few:
- clean bedroom
- clean bathroom
- clean kitchen
- clean car
- end of month routine (print out re-focus, check for bank deals, wash blankets)
- pay expected taxes (quarterly)
But there are a few things that you guys have suggested that I probably should do, like backup my files. Thanks
Super useful! I have one that I’m using for my Weekly Review because I’m still fine-tuning the steps. This will help!