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Part II 10 Most Popular To-Do List Systems

There’s more than one way to create an effective to-do list. This section will describe the top 10 strategies used today. You may already be familiar with some of them. Others may be new to you.

The purpose of this section isn’t to highlight the best system. Rather, it’s to give you a bird’s-eye view of several systems so you can identify specific features that resonate with you.

This section will come in handy when we design a to-do list system that supports your workflow process. You’ll be able to integrate your favorite features from other systems to build one that’s perfectly-suited to you.

1 - The Massive, All-Inclusive List

There’s nothing elegant about this strategy. It is essentially a brain dump. You write down every task you can think of onto a single list.

You can already see the problems inherent in this approach. First, your list will grow too long. If you’re dumping new tasks onto it each day, there’s little chance you’ll ever get through it.

Second, you’ll have too many options. This will impair your decision-making ability. Presented with a long list of choices, you’re more likely to become paralyzed with indecision than you are to take action.

Third, your list will have too much variability. Three-minute tasks will be listed next to three-hour tasks. Low-priority tasks will be listed next to high-priority tasks. You’ll end up spending time on items that don’t warrant your immediate attention.

There are other problems with the “massive, all-inclusive” list approach to task management. But at this point, you get the idea. This strategy leaves a lot to be desired.

It’s worth pointing out that doing a brain dump is an important step toward creating an effective to-do list. But it’s a first step. After you’ve written down all of the tasks you can think of, you need to organize them according to their importance, priority, context, and other elements.

We’ll discuss this facet of to-do list management in more detail later. For now, it’s enough to know that doing a brain dump and working from a single, comprehensive list is a terrible idea. You might feel productive as you complete tasks and cross them off your list. But in reality, you’ll be inclined to choose easy, low-priority tasks that require minimal time to complete and leave the high-value items unaddressed.

This approach is popular. But its popularity isn’t due to its effectiveness. Far from it. It’s due to the lack of training most people receive regarding how to properly design a solid task management system.

I wanted to address this strategy first in order to underscore its flaws. The other nine to-do list systems also have flaws. But they’re less detrimental to your long-term success.

2 - The “Task + Starting Date + Due Date” List

The appeal of this format is its simplicity. It also introduces one of the most important elements of a proper task management system: deadlines.

As we discussed earlier, most to-do lists lack concrete deadlines. An individual may have a vague sense regarding the latest date by which a particular task must be completed, but he or she neglects to assign a formal due date to it.

This is a grave mistake. Deadlines are important because they prompt us to take action. They also help us to allocate our limited time among competing projects and tasks. Assuming our deadlines are realistic and take into account the comparative priorities of our to-do items, they increase our productivity. We not only get more things done, but we get more of the right things done.

This approach to creating to-do lists also introduces a second crucial feature: starting dates. Rather than leaving you with a long list of tasks and their respective due dates, it also provides the dates on which you should begin working on the tasks.

This feature is more useful than it might seem. It delivers two important benefits. First, it allows you to focus on a smaller number of to-do items. You can devote your attention to tasks that are in progress or need to be started that day. You can ignore those that have starting dates in the future.

Second, you’ll be less likely to work on tasks at the last possible minute. The tasks’ starting dates will prompt you to work on them early enough to meet their respective deadlines.

In contrast, consider how most people work through their to-do lists. They select items without knowing which ones can wait and which need immediate attention. Without starting dates and deadlines to inform their decisions, they address to-do items in a haphazardly fashion.

This can obliterate your productivity. You’re almost guaranteed to end up working on the wrong tasks at the wrong time.

This to-do list system is imperfect in many ways. In fact, it has major flaws. But it’s better than the massive, all-inclusive list described in the previous section.

3 - The To-Do List Twosome: Master Task List + Daily Task List

This approach is the one-two punch of to-do list creation. It involves keeping two distinct lists: your master list and your daily list. As with the two previous systems we profiled, it leaves a lot to be desired. However, the fact that it makes a distinction between your “brain dump” list and your daily list makes it worthy of mention.

Here’s a summary of how this system works:

Your master list is a rolling repository of every task you think of. It’s where you record every item, regardless of its priority, deadline, the time required to complete it, and the project with which it’s associated.

Do you intend to call a roofing contractor to get an estimate on a new roof for your home? Write it down on your master list. Need to have your truck’s transmission replaced? This is where you record the task. Do you plan to research the hot biotech stock your investment advisor mentioned to you? Write it down.

You’ll never get through your master list. In fact, it will probably grow with time. That’s fine, according to folks who use this system. The purpose of this list is to capture the myriad tasks swimming around in your head, saving you the effort of having to remember them.

What about the daily list? As its name implies, this is the list you work from throughout the day. It’s the one you keep near your side and review periodically to gauge your progress. Its scope is limited to the tasks you intend to complete by the end of the day.

Here’s how the two lists work together:

Each evening, you would review your master list. You’d look for tasks due in the near future or those that need to be addressed in order to move other tasks forward. Once you identify these to-do items, you’d choose several and transfer them to the following day’s daily list, assuming your schedule allows adequate time to address them.

Alternatively, you might review your master list every few days rather than nightly. This would entail planning your daily to-do lists a few days in advance.

This approach to task management can be effective. The key is that each task is assigned a deadline, along with notes detailing its priority, context, and the time required to complete it.

Unfortunately, few people using this to-do list system go to those lengths. They cut corners and end up dealing with the same problems seen with other systems: lists that grow to the point of becoming overwhelming; to-do items that must be carried forward day after day; and valuable time wasted on low-priority tasks.

4 - The “3+2” Strategy

This to-do list system follows a simple formula: three big tasks and two small tasks.

Each day, you select the five items you’ll work on. (Or better yet, select them the night before.) The big items should take between one and two hours to complete. The small items should take 30 minutes or less.

You’ve probably already noticed one of the main strengths of the “3+2” strategy. It limits the number of tasks on your daily to-do list. There are five. No more. No less.

Another strength is that it defines the scope of each task with respect to the time allotted to complete it. The big ones can be finished in under two hours while the small ones should take less than 30 minutes. (Tasks that take longer than two hours to complete can usually be broken down into smaller tasks.)

This feature of the “3+2” strategy makes it compatible with popular time management strategies like the Pomodoro Technique and timeboxing.

For example, schedule four pomodoros - each composed of a 25-minute work segment and 5-minute break - to complete one of your big tasks. Allocate time boxes that give you the time you need to complete your smaller tasks.

The “3+2” strategy improves your focus by limiting the scope of your task list. With only five items to work on, you’re less susceptible to distractions. You’ll also less likely to suffer paralysis by analysis, a state in which you’re unable to make decisions because you’re overanalyzing a situation.

This approach also minimizes task switching. Because your to-do list will carry fewer tasks to focus on, you’ll be less inclined to switch back and forth between them. Instead, you’ll focus on one task until you’ve completed it or you’re unable to take it further. This reduces switching costs, the loss in productivity that results from jumping between unrelated tasks.

The “3+2” strategy isn’t without inherent flaws. For example, no mention is made of assigning context to each to-do item. It may seem as if context isn’t important given that your to-do list carries so few options. But context is still useful to ensure your most important work gets done as early as possible.

Also, no mention is made regarding the origin of each day’s five tasks. From where do they spring? How are they identified? Are they selected from a master task list or do you brainstorm them at the beginning of each day?

These questions have no concrete answers.

Another downside of this system is its lack of flexibility. It’s rigid. It doesn’t adapt.

For example, suppose that tomorrow is a perfect day to complete a long list of small tasks. Each item will only take a few minutes to address. You need to pay bills, mail your Netflix DVDs, schedule a dentist appointment, email a friend, clean the toilet in your master bathroom, etc. The “3+2” strategy doesn’t allow for this type of day. You can only pick two small tasks to work on.

Personally, if I were to use the “3+2” strategy, here’s how I would do it: I’d maintain a master list of every to-do item that comes to mind. I’d make certain each item was specific in scope and attached to a goal. I’d assign deadlines and add contextual details. Each evening, I’d pick my three large tasks and two small tasks for the following day.

It’s nowhere near perfect. But that’s how I’d approach it.

5 - The 1-3-5 Rule

The “1-3-5 rule” is an extrapolation of the “3+2 strategy” described in the previous section. Here, you choose one big task, three medium-sized tasks, and five small tasks to complete during the day.

While the “3+2 strategy” limits your focus to five tasks, the “1-3-5 rule” expands the number to nine.

The first advantage to this approach is that it gives you more flexibility than the “3+2 strategy.” Not only does it allow you to choose more items to get done each day (nine vs. five), but it also presents three categories rather than just two. The inclusion of “medium-sized” tasks is useful because it helps you to better manage your calendar.

For example, suppose you have a task you know will require 45 minutes to complete. With the “3+2 strategy,” it falls outside the definition of a big task (one that takes between one and two hours). It also falls outside the definition of a small task (one that takes 30 minutes or less). The “1-3-5 rule” offers a place for such items.

Another advantage of this system is that it encourages you to focus on high-value tasks. In that, it has a lot in common with the “3+2 strategy.” Because you’re limited in the number of items you can include on your list, you’ll be more inclined to include those that have a high priority.

A third advantage is that you won’t fall prey to overoptimism. It’s common to think we can accomplish more than is actually possible during any given day. So we pack our to-do lists with a large number of tasks, many of which invariably never get done. By limiting the number of tasks to nine, the “1-3-5 rule” solves that problem.

As you’ve probably guessed, the “1-3-5 rule” suffers from the same imperfections as the “3+2 strategy.” First, no mention is made of giving context to the to-do items. Second, no mention is made of a master list from which the nine daily tasks are chosen. And third, this approach doesn’t allow for the use of a batch task list.

We’ll talk more batch task lists in an upcoming section. For now, it’s enough to know that they’re an important part of a sound task management strategy.

The “1-3-5 rule” can be an effective to-do list system with a few modifications. But there is an even better approach, which I’ll show you later in this action guide.

For now, remember the basics of this strategy. You may want to incorporate a few of its features into your system.

6 - The Project-Based System

This system entails categorizing your to-do items based on the projects with which they’re associated. In the end, you’re left with multiple lists, one per project.

For example, suppose you want to remodel your kitchen. You’d create a list for this particular project with the following tasks:

Plan the layout of your new kitchen Pick the types of cabinets you want Select your preferred countertop material Choose light fixtures Explore your backsplash options List the appliances you want to replace Look for a new refrigerator to match the design of your new kitchen Call three contractors to solicit bids

You’d create a separate list for a different project you’d like to complete, such as buying a new car. This list might have the following tasks:

Determine how much money you can spend Compile a list of makes and models you like Narrow down the list to three options Visit the car dealership Test drive the cars Negotiate the price Find the best form of financing Get approved for a loan Sign the paperwork to take ownership

Task-level context is inherent in this system as your lists are organized according to project. Any item on a particular list is there because it’s directly related to the project for which the list was created.

Another advantage of this system is that it gives you a bird’s-eye view of your multiple projects in progress. You can select tasks to work on depending on which project you want to move forward.

One of the drawbacks to a project-based system is that it offers very little structure with regard to how you spend your day. Rather than working from a single to-do list that has been created to maximize your productivity, you pick and choose tasks from multiple lists. This feature creates too much variability. There are too many options, which opens the door to task switching and its attendant costs.

Another flaw is the limited context given to each task. I mentioned above that task-level context was inherent in this system. But it is defined solely by project. Tasks are not given context related to the time required to complete them, their respective priorities, or the energy needed to work on them.

You probably also noticed the absence of a batch task list. (Again, we’ll talk about batch lists in an upcoming section.)

As with the other to-do list strategies we’ve covered thus far, this system can be effective. But it suffers from major weaknesses.

We can do better.

7 - The 3-MIT Approach

This strategy may be familiar to you. It was popularized by Leo Babauta of ZenHabits.net, although he openly admits it originated elsewhere.

MIT is an acronym. It stands for “most important task.” It’s the highest-priority item on your to-do list. It’s the one thing you must complete during the course of a given day.

The original strategy called for identifying a single MIT, and focusing on its completion to the exclusion of everything else. Only after completing this item would you turn your attention to other items.

The “3-MIT” approach is a common variant. In fact, it’s probably more common than the single-MIT approach because it’s more practical for a greater number of people.

As its name implies, you select three high-priority tasks to focus on during your day. Whatever else happens, you must get these three items done.

Depending on how much time you need to complete your three MITs, there will be days when you get through your to-do list early. You’ll have plenty of time remaining to work on other to-do tasks. There may also be days during which you have to work late in order to complete your three MITs.

As with any task management system, the effectiveness of the “3-MIT” approach is in its execution. The details are left to the user to define.

For example, how do you choose your three MITs? Do you link them to specific goals and give them context accordingly? Do you estimate in advance how much time each one will take to complete so you can avoid overextending yourself given your schedule and availability? How do you integrate your MITs with your calendar to ensure they receive the time and attention they need? How do you make certain small, but important tasks get done in a timely fashion?

You can see that this system is open-ended. It defines a few guidelines, but offers considerable flexibility in terms of their application. Unfortunately, this latitude can be a liability if you’re currently struggling with your to-do lists. It poses too much freedom.

If you struggle with procrastination, are regularly waylaid by distractions, and suffer a lack of motivation, an open-ended task management strategy isn’t a good solution. A structured system with well-defined rules and less latitude is likely to be more useful.

Having said that, the idea of focusing on just a few MITs each day is a practical one. It’s a feature you may decide to incorporate as part of the strategy you design for yourself. So it’s worth keeping in mind as we explore how to create the perfect to-do list.

Let’s quickly cover the final three task management systems commonly used today. Up next: the Kanban method.

8 - The Kanban Method

The Kanban method is a more visual approach to task management than the systems we’ve covered thus far. It’s a great to-do list strategy if you enjoy seeing your projects and tasks in various stages of completion.

Here’s how it works:

Grab a cork board and a stack of Post-It notes. Make three columns on your board. Title the left column “To Do.” Title the middle column “Doing.” Title the right column “Done.”

You can probably see where this is going.

The Kanban method involves writing down each new task on a Post-It note, one task per note, and sticking it in the “To Do” column. There it remains until you’re ready to address it. When you start working on a task, you move its associated Post-It note to the “Doing” column. When you’ve completed the task, you move its Post-It note to the “Done” column.

This strategy of managing to-do items has a few notable advantages over other strategies. First, it provides a visual representation of your projects and tasks. This makes it easy to identify high-value items that need your immediate attention. It also makes it easy to prioritize items according to their respective due dates.

Second, the Kanban method allows you to track the progress of individual tasks. You can tell at a glance whether a task is yet to be started, is currently under way, or has been completed.

A third advantage of the Kanban system is that tasks can be easily associated with larger projects. This provides valuable task-level context. You can arrange the Post-It notes so that it’s easy to see how individual tasks flow within a larger construct.

Fourth, you can use different colored Post-It notes to represent varying levels of priority. For example, use red for high-priority items, yellow for medium-priority items, and blue for low-priority items. The Kanban method’s biggest strength is its visual presentation.

You don’t have to use a cork board. You can use a dry erase board to the same effect. Keep in mind, this will limit your ability to rearrange tasks based on their changing priorities and your availability.

In the last few years, a number of options have surfaced that make it possible to use the Kanban method online. You no longer need to hang a cork board on your wall or set up a dry erase board. You can use apps like Trello, KanbanFlow, LeanKit, and Kanbanote.

Each app poses its own set of strengths and weaknesses. If you’re interested in playing with the Kanban method online, I recommend Trello. It’s free and user-friendly.

One of the downsides to using the Kanban method is that it’s easy to lose track of small tasks. For instance, suppose your master to-do list contains more than 100 items that have yet to be worked on. Those items would encompass a lot of Post-It notes organized in a single, linear format (presumably, in the “To Do” column). There’s a fair chance your eyes will gloss over some of them, and you’ll miss a few considered to be high-value.

Color-coding can be an effective solution; different colors can be used to indicate task-level priority. But even then, your ability to monitor a large volume of to-do items will be limited.

There’s a lot to like about the Kanban method. But it’s imperfect. Note its basic features and think about how you might incorporate some of them into your personal to-do list system.

9 - The Matrix System

The Matrix system was popularized by the late Stephen Covey, author of the acclaimed book The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. It is also known as the “Eisenhower Box.” The same principles apply to both. It’s a tool used to decide how to allocate one’s time among competing tasks.

A matrix is made up of four quadrants titled as follows:

Important - Urgent Important - Not Urgent Not Important - Urgent Not Important - Not Urgent

Tasks are assigned to the quadrants according to their respective priorities. Those placed in the first quadrant should be addressed immediately. Those in the second quadrant are less dire, but should be scheduled to ensure they’re addressed at some point in the near future. Tasks in the third quadrant can be delegated to others while tasks in the fourth quadrant can be abandoned.

This system provides an easy way to see which to-do items warrant your attention and which can be ignored. You’ll be able to easily identify items associated with your most important work. They’ll be found in Quadrants I and II. You’ll also be able to disregard those that will have minimal impact. These will be found in Quadrant IV.

For example, a project with an impending deadline (e.g. 4:00 p.m. today) should be placed in Quadrant I. It needs your immediate attention.

Your weekly review can be placed in Quadrant II. It’s important, but can wait until later. Schedule it so that it doesn’t fall through the cracks.

Select meetings might be well-suited for Quadrant III. They’re urgent in the sense that they occur at scheduled times. But some are likely to have minor value to you. Try to have someone attend the meetings in your place.

Returning unsolicited calls from salespeople should be relegated to Quadrant IV. The activity is unimportant and non-urgent. You won’t suffer a major consequence if it is never addressed.

The upside of the Matrix system is that it encourages you to focus on tasks that are consistent with your goals. You’ll find yourself constantly asking “Is this task necessary?” as you review your matrix. Unnecessary tasks can be discarded without guilt. You’ll end up spending more time on high-value items and wasting less time on low-value ones.

One of the drawbacks of this approach is that it doesn’t require you to provide context for the tasks in the matrix’s four quadrants. No mention is made concerning how long each task will take to complete, nor its connection with other tasks and projects.

Another problem is that the matrix may grow to the point that it presents too many options. That is, you may find a large number of tasks in Quadrant II, and have difficulty choosing which ones to work on given your limited availability.

As with the Kanban method, there’s a lot to like about the Matrix system (or Eisenhower Box) despite its flaws. You may find that some of its features are well suited to the way you work.

In a few moments, we’re going to create a personal to-do list system that will help you to get the important stuff done. First, let’s take a look at the final - and arguably the most popular - task management system used today: Getting Things Done (GTD).

10 - Getting Things Done (GTD)

David Allen’s Getting Things Done is one of the most celebrated task management systems in use today. Interestingly, it has as many detractors as it has advocates (for reasons we’ll get to in a moment).

Here are the basics:

You have a lot of stuff swimming around in your head. Most of it remains uncategorized in terms of context, priority, and intended outcomes.

For example, you may be thinking of your brother’s birthday, the shortage of paper towels in your kitchen, and your daughter’s upcoming piano recital. You might be spending mental energy on the fact that you need to put gas in your car, mow the lawn, and buy bug spray to deal with the ants in your bathroom.

Meanwhile, your tooth hurts, suggesting it’s time to see the dentist. Your back hurts, indicated a doctor’s visit might be in order. And a little voice in your head whispers that you should make exercise a bigger priority.

These items float around in your mind. There’s no plan to take action on them, which leaves open loops. We want to get these things done, but we haven’t committed ourselves to their completion. Open loops cause us stress.

GTD seeks to get this stuff out of your head and onto a list. It makes each item actionable, thereby closing the open loops. Once items are on a master list, you spend time organizing them according to context. Part of this process entails creating multiple lists and placing items where they belong. A weekly review is performed to stay on top of things.

That’s a simplified explanation of GTD (entire books have been written about it). It will suffice for our purposes.

This strategy offers several important features. First, it forces you to add context to each task. This is inherent in the process of “dumping” everything onto a master list and then moving tasks to other, more refined lists.

Second, it separates tasks based on importance. Part of GTD involves creating a “next actions” list and a “someday/maybe” list. Both are useful. The former encourages you to keep your important work moving forward. The latter allows you to capture ideas that may have value, but need further consideration before that value can be determined.

Third, GTD advises performing a weekly review. This review is not an afterthought. Allen refers to it as one of the keys to being successful using GTD.

Fourth, it’s as flexible as you need it to be. While GTD provides structure, it doesn’t force you to adhere to specific tactics. It offers a framework that gives you enough flexibility to create your own personalized approach.

Having said the above, there are a few challenges with using GTD. First, it focuses more on processing the ideas in your head than actually getting them done.

Second, not enough attention is given to how each item captured on the “brain dump” list relates to your goals. While you’re forced to give the items context and place them on more refined lists, you’re not required to link them to specific objectives.

Third, the flexibility inherent in GTD can prove to be detrimental to some users. Oftentimes, people who struggle with task management need more constraints on their freedom, not less. Such constraints can help them to rein in bad habits and improve their focus.

Fourth, it’s easy to get overwhelmed while using GTD. This system is effective for getting stuff out of your head and onto paper (or into an online note-taking app). But not everything in your head deserves a place on your to-do lists. Much of it will be irrelevant to your goals. Much of it will waste your time. Recording every item can make you feel as if you’re getting buried under a mountain of minutiae.

Getting Things Done is popular as a strategy for organizing tasks and creating to-do lists. There’s no doubt about that. But the more you research it, the more you’ll find that many people have tried and abandoned it.

It’s worth asking “Is GTD actually effective?” We’ll take a closer look at this question in the next section. Getting Things Done: Is It Effective?

Getting Things Done is a system that seems highly effective when you first adopt it. You spend a lot of time getting stuff out of your head and organizing it according to context. These are crucial steps toward identifying your most important work. The fact that they reduce your stress - trying to remember everything is stressful! - is another signal of the system’s effectiveness.

As time passes, however, you may become disenchanted with GTD. It’s a common experience. The system’s rigorous focus on “next actions” detracts from project-level focus. You begin to feel like a short-order cook, pumping out “next actions” without stopping to consider the bigger picture.

Another problem is that using GTD doesn’t provide a method for choosing among competing tasks. There’s no workflow management system in place to ensure the important work gets done and the less important work remains on the back burner.

GTD is also weak with regard to attaching tasks to specific goals. The link to goals is severed at the outset due to the system’s hard focus on “next actions” rather than projects. Without an emphasis on projects, GTD lacks a meaningful framework for goal setting and goal achievement.

Some people claim that setting goals is not only unnecessary and useless, but harmful in the long run when it comes to task management. I disagree. Goals provide vision, focus, and motivation. They also give us a gauge by which to measure our progress.

In my opinion, one of the biggest downfalls of GTD is that it doesn’t distinguish between high-value and low-value tasks. The priority is to get things done while little attention is given to whether the right things are getting done.

Have people used GTD to effectively create to-do lists and successfully manage their task workflow? Yes. But just as many have found that GTD is insufficient in many ways, including some of the ways I described above.

GTD isn’t without practical, beneficial features. I encourage you to look for those that might prove useful in your own strategy.

In the next section, I’ll show you how to create to-do lists that work. Roll up your sleeves because we’re going to build them from scratch.