1. A Capture system is separate from the execution
Everything that needs to be done should be kept in a to-do list and every new task should go into that to-do list. Having a good capture system is crucial, this will free our brain resources and allow the brain to focus on the new and incoming things, knowing that the previous items are stored in a list somewhere. The less stuff we keep in our working memory the more we can focus on what is in front of us. My guess is that the most productive people are very good at this, they just free their brains from trash so they can focus intensely on what is in front of them, giving them Superman-like powers
2. Prioritize and take out items from the todo list each day
Now is the crucial part, taking a look at the items in the to-do list and asking a simple question, what will move the needle forward? What will be the most valuable item to do? This is what separates the successful people from the rest, the ability to identify the most important tasks and schedule time to work on them throughout the day.
Bonus point: Use time blocking technique to go through the tasks of the day
Using the time blocking technique, we assign each hour of the day to a task (it does not have to be from the to-do list) and crucially we look at our to-do list and we grab the most important task and assign it to a specific hour of the day! This is super important, every hour of the day should have a task, even leisure. It’s not about being productive, it’s just about being intentional with every hour we have. This might seem like too much work but trust me, it’s very freeing when the whole day is planned out, even leisure, to a specific time in the day, the brain is even looking towards a new context switch. What we don’t want is to have unscheduled time, because then we tend to do what is the easiest thing, which is doom scrolling social media, binge binge-watching TV shows, which will make us feel even worse afterwards.