{"id":2076,"date":"2009-08-31T07:42:35","date_gmt":"2009-08-31T15:42:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gtdtimes.com\/?p=2076"},"modified":"2014-02-03T14:32:53","modified_gmt":"2014-02-03T22:32:53","slug":"when-to-block-your-calendar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2009\/08\/when-to-block-your-calendar\/","title":{"rendered":"When to block your calendar"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Is it OK to block your calendar to work on something, even if it doesn’t have a concrete deadline?\u00a0 GTD’er Michael asked about the best ways to find time for the time-demanding projects that are important, but don’t have a deadline.\u00a0 One of our executive coaches replied with some helpful tips.<\/p>\n

I have been using the Getting Things Done system for about two years now and with terrific success. The ability to free my mind of all the commitments I\u2019ve made and things I need to do has not only helped me function more effectively, but also been a tremendous relief! As a part-time MBA student with a full-time job, I\u2019ve been able to balance many different projects at once as a result of the GTD system. Friends, family and coworkers often remark about how impressed they are with my ability to keep up with it all \u2014 GTD is my secret weapon!<\/p>\n

Despite my success with the system so far, I\u2019m always looking for ways to become more productive. One of things that I struggle with the most is balancing \u201ctasks\u201d with \u201cpriorities.\u201d I often find myself quickly checking off the little, inconsequential \u201cto do\u2019s,\u201d but not always finding time for the more important, time-demanding projects.<\/p>\n

I realize that the premise of GTD is to only put things on your calendar that have to be done at a specific time or on a specific date, and that items without a concrete deadline go on the next action list. With work and school and family and friends, I find very little free time to get to the non-time-sensitive, but pretty time-intensive projects. I\u2019m very tempted to block off the time it will take to complete them on my calendar, but there\u2019s a part of me that feels like this goes against everything GTD stands for.<\/p>\n

Any advice would be appreciated.<\/p>\n

Regards,<\/p>\n

Michael<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Coach Janet Riley<\/a> replied:<\/strong><\/p>\n

It is so great to hear how successfully you are using GTD to enable you to keep up with all that you have on your plate.\u00a0 Good for you!<\/p>\n

As a GTD presenter, trainer and coach, I often find that folks who’ve been faithfully implementing GTD and following best practices believe, as you do, that nothing can ever go on the calendar that isn’t a time-specific or day-specific action (meaning it has to be done at a specific time on a specific day such as a meeting with someone, a doctor’s appointment, or scheduled conference call).\u00a0 It is true that we emphasize that it is not productive to create lengthy “to-do” lists you expect to accomplish on a specific day and then keep moving that list from day to day when unexpected priorities and tasks arise.<\/p>\n

However, there are circumstances where blocking time on your calendar to focus on a significant and important larger task is appropriate and not in conflict with GTD best practices. For example, when I coach new or even experienced GTD users about doing a weekly review, I often suggest they block the time on their calendar for that review in order to find the “chunk” of time needed to get the review completed with as few interruptions as possible and with thoroughness as required. But they are choosing that time and working alone during that weekly review period.\u00a0 Otherwise, people often find that they would go thorugh an entire week and never have a 1 to 1 1\/2 hour block of time unexpectedly clear for doing that review.<\/p>\n

In the same way, I often recommend that if you have a task that requires a “chunk” of significant time to complete or make progress on–such as 2 hours to write an article or report, 2\u00a0 hours to draft a budget or 90 minutes to create a project plan, it can be a best practice to block the time for that work on your calendar. For many people, finding a full two-hour block of time to work on one project or task is as impossible as expecting to have a two-hour meeting with someone without you both scheduling it–that kind of open time in your calendar may be highly unlikely to show up without some planning.<\/p>\n

The most important guide is that you honor that blocked time.\u00a0 In other words, treat it as if someone was showing up for a two-hour meeting that you’ve scheduled with them.\u00a0 Make that appointment with yourself equally as important as that appointment with others would be, and be sure you use it to get the work done you intend.\u00a0 The caution I often suggest is not to block time to work on larger tasks and then constantly ignore those blocks or become numb to them by using them in other ways.\u00a0 Be judicious and thoughtful when you follow this behavior.\u00a0 In addition, be consistent about reviewing your calendar both backward and forward at least a couple of weeks when you do your GTD review.\u00a0 That is key to ensuring that if you do have something on your calendar that gets overrided or cancelled by an unexpected even higher priority or emergency, you will be conscious to reschedule time for that missed work either on your calendar or ensure it’s still on your next-action list.<\/p>\n

Janet<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Is it OK to block your calendar to work on something, even if it doesn’t have a concrete deadline?\u00a0 GTD’er Michael asked about the best ways to find time for the time-demanding projects that are important, but don’t have a deadline.\u00a0 One of our executive coaches replied with some helpful tips.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[109,110,397,398,746],"class_list":["post-2076","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-productivity-tips","tag-gtd-best-practices","tag-gtd-coaching","tag-workflow-coaching","tag-calendar","tag-productivity-tips","entry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nwhen to block your calendar<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Is it OK to block your calendar to work on something, even if it doesn't have a concrete deadline? 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