Are you struggling to find time for the things you love to do? Do you feel overwhelmed by simply thinking about all of the things you need to get done? You are not alone! As I struggle to find time to work, maintain relationships, and build a business, there doesn’t seem to be any time for the things I truly love to do like playing with yarn, traveling, and even reading. We formed this business so we could spend more time doing these things and learning new stuff to love, but it looked like they would have to be sacrificed for the greater cause of the business. I always say if you know what you are looking for, you will find it or something better. Sometimes it’s even right there in plain sight. One technique and two small books crossed my path at precisely the right time (when I had time to read them). As I combine the information I have found I feel more re-energized and more productive than I have in quite some time.

I’d like to share this journey so that others can benefit from my experiences. The two books I read are:

(1) Getting Things Done: The Are of Stress Free Productivity by David Allen

(2) The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing by Marie Kondo

These two books use very similar concepts, but David Allen is primarily talking about all the things we need to do and Marie Kondo is talking about all the things we have, but I think it’s important that we deal. Both books advocate for dedicating large blocks of time to get the initial organizing done and both books give real processes for maintaining the organization over the long run. Both use a process of gathering ‘everything’ in a category in one working area, we’ll call it an Inbox, then methodically going through the Inbox item by item until every item is gone or put into an appropriate place so you can access it when you need to and stop thinking about it. I read Marie Kondo’s book first, but couldn’t even get started because of the thoughts that kept popping in my head like, “But I have to pay my bills” and “we’re out of milk” and “I really want to knit”. Reading David Allen’s book paired with the Four Box Technique really help me to calm that voice in my head and start getting something done. What I learned it that it is the voice in my head NOT the length of my To Do List that was overwhelming me.

The Four Box Technique is a method to decide what you are going to tackle now and what will have to wait. David Allen has you take all of the your tasks including the thoughts of stuff you want to do and putting them into projects (yes in writing). Task that you estimate will take less then 2 minutes should be done immediately and not added to a project list. So you’ve sorting through your Inbox and you've created all of your projects and you are already feeling energized and productive because you finished a bunch of 2 minute tasks. Now it’s time to create your Four Box:

1. Divide one sheet of paper into 4 equal boxes by folding in half vertically and horizontally

2. Label 3 boxes: Project 1, Project 2, and Project 3

3. Label the 4th box: Everything Else

4. List the next actions from your top 3 projects this week in the appropriate box and everything else in the 4th box

5. Use only one side of the paper

6. I transfer these items to the days calendar for the week and I can check them off digitally. I do this more for sequence than to set a deadline. Just leave it on the assigned day and check it off when it’s complete. It’s ok to complete Tuesdays task on friday

7. Do not transfer unfinished task from this week to next week unless they are next actions in your top 3 projects for next week. They are already safe a project or in you can add them to your Inbox.

I usually do the Four Box and calendar work on Sunday night and I often find there are quick items that I need to do on Sunday night that will set my week up for accomplishing more. Limiting myself to one side of one piece of paper gives me permission to NOT do a lot of things this week and not think about them either. Once a thought is captured on paper and placed in a project you will be amazed that your brain will quiet down magically. When uncaptured thoughts pop in your head write them down and throw them into your Inbox, make sure to clear you Inbox on a regular basis. I can’t tell you what regular is yet because I’m still working through my massive Inbox, but I can tell you this, I’ve gotten more done in the last few weeks that I have in a long time. Feeling overwhelmed brings on depression like symptoms that stop us from getting things done which makes us feel even more overwhelmed.

If the things I love to do can’t be one of my top 3 projects this week, I put an item in the Everything Else box just to make sure I’m loving every week.

If you are struggling to find time for the people or things you love, I recommend you read both books and give the Four Box a try and let me know what you discover.