I’ve heard of some people using the Task Progress Tracker as a project planning tool. It is basically the Task Progress Tracker with the addition of the Schedule Grid. Unlike the Emergent Task Timer, which is an organic “what’s going on” tool, the Emergent Task Planner is for people who want to get something done in a more time-structured manner. Usage: End of the WeekĪt the end of the week you end up with a sheet for each day of the week. Total hours are summed on the side I’ve marked item 02 as billable with my B code. In the Task Area, you can see the actual-versus-estimated time taken for the tasks that got some time. When it comes to doing the next day’s form, I’d just copy those items over. I also added two more tasks that I thought I would have wanted to do, but didn’t actually get around to them. You’ll also see that I ended up adding planning to the 4:00PM section after the client meeting, since I had to do that anyway. I made an impromptu checklist on the right-side of the note area, wrote a few phone #s down, doodled, and noted some information I wanted to remember for tomorrow. This would have been the piece of paper in front of me, so I keep it handy as scratch pad and task reminder. PRACTICAL MULTITASKING? Maybe! :-)īy the end of the day, I’ve used the notes area extensively. I know from experience that server backups invariably have some block of time where you’re just sitting and waiting for something to copy, so I figured I would make a call during that lull. I overlapped two tasks at 1200, the “server backup” and “call to plumber”.I used the task numbers to indicate where “planned tasks” fell on the schedule grid (they’re the circled numbers).I left some unscheduled time at 4PM, because I know that after client meetings I’m usually wiped, and that part of the day would be ad-hoc. NOTE: This is a made-up example form, based somewhat on my actual Friday.Īt the beginning of the day, I wrote down a few things I needed to do, estimated some task durations for each task, and took a few notes. I know how tightly the day is scheduled, so I get a better hour-to-hour sense of how badly I’m slipping during the day.Īs a bonus, I can log billable time in the task area, so I don’t need to bust out another sheet for that separately. Because the schedule grid shows times, this provides a means by which I can pace myself for the day. With the estimated duration for each important task, I can easily fill-in the schedule grid and get a sense if my planning is realistic.The part I liked about the earlier MotD form was the Schedule Grid, which allowed me to visualize the day as a series of discrete chunks. A Notes Area on the bottom right, for keeping track of what you’re doing as the day goes on.An Important Tasks for the Day at the top right, with room for 9 numbered tasks.I’m not quite sure if it really is the mirror of the Emergent Task Timer, but read on and tell me what you think. So here’s a stripped down version that I’m calling an Emergent Task Planner, AKA version 6.1. Adding the weighted value points mixed planning and production together in a way that was not useful during the day. If the form makes you think too much, it just isn’t as useful. A good productivity form is one that provides focus and stability for the day as a support tool. Conceptually, it ties together a lot of important functions, but my main design error was to forget about mindset and context. Please visit the official ETP Page at for the latest downloads.Īs I wrote earlier, I found the new Menu of the Day form to be too cumbersome for my actual daily use. Please note that this version of the Emergent Task Planner has been replaced.
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