Listener Stacy writes in:
How do you track something going forward? For example, “next time I go for an oil change make sure to ask about discounts on a lifetime supply of paisley-colored motor oil.” I don’t have an exact date for the event nor do I have a “to ask mechanic” page in my planner. How would I track an irregular event like that?
Stacy, memory is hard! Sure, ancient Greeks memorized 6-hour poems word for word. But we’re more advanced than that. We recognize the superiority of staring comatose at a screen, blankly scrolling a Facebook feed, and letting our devices do all the work.
You want to remember irregular events. A second semester quantum mechanics student would have some proof for why you can’t both identify an event and know what you need when you get there. But I’ve never taken Quantum Mechanics, so I’ll tell you how to control the uncontrollable.
It’s all about triggers. Find what will trigger your future action, and connect your reminders and reference material to that trigger.
For Tasks, Connect Notes to To-Do Items
Some things you do because they’re on your task list. Whether you use one master system to organize your life, whether you use a paper system—my favorite!—or an online task management system like Todoist—my other favorite!—at some point you’ll select a task from your task list as The Thing You Will Do Next. (Side note: my favorite way to scan and select tasks from your to-do list is the Autofocus 4 task management system by Mark Forster. There are links to all of these at http://ift.tt/2q0r72R)
If you use an electronic task management system like ToDoist, you can add attachments and notes to a task. You’re reading a magazine and find a fascinating advertisement for a new product. Some young nerd with no social skills has created the perfect robotic shmoopie, powered by artificial intelligence. And there’s a limited-time coupon in the ad for 30% off!
Eager to solve your relationship woes for life, you would add the task “Order backup shmoopie” to your task list. When you add it, also add the URL of Shmoopie Incorporated in the notes field of the task. Take a screen shot of the coupon and attach that to the task.
For Paper Triggers, Keep a “Details” File
If you keep your task list on paper, like I do, you can’t do electronic attachments. So create a place in your computer to hold the electronic attachments. Create one, single folder on your computer called “Details.” Inside that folder, create a subfolder. Name it “1.” Put all the electronic attachments related to a given task in one subfolder. When you write your task in your paper task list, write the number 1 and put a square around it. That tells you to look in your online Details Folder 1 for the supporting material for that task. When you have another task that needs details, call the subfolder “2”, and so on.
Also create a real-life Details folder. When a task has physical papers, like the copy of your psychiatric release that was approved by the staff, put it in the details folder. Just like the electronic details folder, number the items. Write the sequence number directly on the papers, or on a sticky note that you attach to the papers. All the items related to a single to-do item get the same sequence number. Then in my task list, I write the sequence number and circle it, so I know it’s in my paper Details file.
For Dates, Use Follow-Up Email
Some things get triggered by date, not by task list. That’s easy, use your calendar! As with tasks, you can attach files and URLs to an event, so when that event comes up, the materials you need are at your fingertips. You can also use your Details folders if necessary, adding the subfolder number in a square or circle directly to the event description in your calendar.
For calendar events, you can also email attachments to yourself to arrive on a specific date. Check out my episode on how to use deferred email for details, or services like www.FollowUpThen.com.
Plastic surgery scheduled for May 9th? Just snap some pictures of the noses you find inspirational. Send them to yourself for delivery on May 8th. Then you can share them with your surgeon right before you go under, secure in the knowledge that you’ll come out looking like Betty Boop, Barbra Streisand, Sylvester Stallone, or a glorious combination of all three.
If you have paper items that are relevant to an appointment, use your paper Details file exactly as you would with a task list. Put the paper items in the Details file, number them, and then write the number with a little circle in your calendar next to the relevant appointment.
For Untimed Events, Use Location Alerts
Stacy, you want to remind yourself to investigate paisley motor oil at your next oil change. It’s unscheduled, so you can’t use the calendar technique. And you probably won’t add it to your task list until you see smoke, at which point you’ll have more important things to remember than your desire for fashionable motor oil.
But you do know where your oil change place is. Under many smartphone reminder apps, you can set a reminder that triggers when you arrive at a certain location. Use the task reminder we’ve already discussed, but have it trigger based on location. Even if your task list is on paper, like mine, you can put the reminders on your smartphone. Plus, using location reminders makes you keep GPS turned on, making it easier and less expensive for the NSA to track you, and thus helping keep your taxes low, low, low.
For Unknowable Events, Make Your Own Trigger
If you have a completely paper system, or you always choose a different oil change shop (so they can’t track your movements), then you need to identify something you’ll access when you’ll actually go in for an oil change. I have a windshield sticker that reminds me when my next oil change is due. I’ll always take that sticker off when it’s time. So it’s the trigger. I write a little checkbox using a Sharpie. When I see the checkbox, it reminds me to open the glove compartment, where the “mechanic’s to-do list” tucked inside my car owner’s manual.
You’ll see it pop up and if the time isn’t yet right, you can reschedule it for a few weeks in the future.
For Unknowable, Untimed, Untriggered Events, Pray
If something isn’t on your task list, isn’t on your calendar, isn’t location-based, and has no trigger you can identify in advance, you can set up a calendar-based reminder for the rough timeframe you think the event will occur. Put a reminder in your calendar on that date of your paisley motor oil to-do item, and where supporting materials can be found. You’ll see it pop up and if the time isn’t yet right, you can reschedule it for a few weeks in the future. Here, instead of getting what you need, when you need it, you’re giving yourself a rough reminder so you’ll remember what you need, when you need it.
Stacy, we don’t have to become like the ancient Greek barbarians, memorizing, using our brains, and exhibiting actual skill and abilities! We can reclaim our humanity by identifying the trigger of a given task. Then we attach what we’ll need for the task to that trigger. The trigger can be a task from your task list, a calendar date, a location alert, or an invented trigger. Or, as a last resort, we can use our technology to remind us occasionally, so when the unknowable finally arrives, our brains have the one single fact we need to cope, freeing up the rest of our intellect to watch, admire, and aspire to be like Kim Kardashian.
This is Stever Robbins. Follow GetItDoneGuy on Twitter and Facebook. I run programs to help you develop the skills you need to create an extraordinary life. If you want to know more, visit http://ift.tt/1l2uWN6.
Work Less, Do More, and have a Great Life!
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