My professor introduced me to do this when I was doing my Masters in Engineering and it has helped me prioritise my work efficiently ever since (especially if I have questions like, is this task important? can it wait? is it a priority?) 🙂 “‘Time Management’ is the only thing that separates highly productive people from the lazy ones!”
In a time where missing deadlines is not an option, the Covey Time Management grid, helps you prioritize tasks in relation to their importance and urgency, helping you to decide whether you need to address a task immediately or if you can postpone it 😮
PS: This post may seem too cliché or ‘obvious’, but try implementing it for a week and you’ll notice a drastic change in your overall performance!
As you can see from the grid below, there are 4 quadrants organized by urgency and importance. The grid has several applications, use it however you want! The 1st and most obvious one though is to take your current ‘to-do’ list and sort all the activities into the appropriate grid. Then, assess the amount of time you have to accomplish the tasks (feel free to reallocate the activities according to your job role).
Another application could be using the grid to assess your personal/current strategies. You can start by creating 2-4 copies of the grid and use it every day listing all activities and time spent. At the end of the week, combine the individual day data onto one summary grid and calculate the % of time spent in each grid. This way, you can re-evaluate how you spend your time and if your tasks need to be re-organized.
Matrix Template for you to use
Who is Stephen Covey?
Stephen Richards Covey (October 24, 1932 – July 16, 2012) was an American educator, author, businessman, and keynote speaker. His most popular book was The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. His other books include First Things First, Principle-Centered Leadership, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Families, and The 8th Habit