Get the most out of your schedule with 2 simple questions
These two questions will completely change the way you use your calendar: It’s all about reflecting and refining
Build your values into your calendar
How much time in each domain would allow you to be consistent with your values? Start by creating a weekly calendar template for your perfect week. You’ll find a blank template using my free online calendar tool atNirAndFar.com/schedule-maker.
Next, book fifteen minutes on your schedule every week to reflect and refine your calendar by asking two questions:
Question 1 (Reflect): “When in my schedule did I do what I said I would do and when did I get distracted?”
Answering this question requires you to look back at the past week. I recommend using thisDistraction Trackerto note when and why you become distracted.
If aninternal triggerdistracted you, what strategies will you use to cope the next time it arises? Did an external trigger, like a phone call or a talkative colleague, prompt you to stop doing what you wanted to do? Or was a planning problem the reason you gave in to distraction? If so, you can look back through your Distraction Tracker to help answer the next question.
Question 2 (Refine): “Are there changes I can make to my calendar that will give me the time I need to better live out my values?”
Maybe something unexpected came up, or perhaps there was a problem with how you planned your day.Timeboxingenables us to think of each week as a mini-experiment.
The goal is to figure out where your schedule didn’t work out in the prior week so you can make it easier to follow the next time around. The idea is to commit to a practice that improves your schedule over time by helping you know the difference between traction and distraction for every moment of the day.
Before moving on, consider what your schedule currently looks like. I’m not asking about the things you did, but rather the things you committed to doing in writing. Is your schedule filled with carefully timeboxed plans, or is it mostly empty? Does it reflect who you are? Are you letting others steal your time or do you guard it as the limited and precious resource it is?
When our lives change, our schedules can too. But once our schedule is set, the idea is to stick with it until we decide to improve it on the next go-round. Approaching the exercise of making a schedule as a curious scientist, rather than a drill sergeant, gives us the freedom to get better with each iteration.
Protect your most previous resource
By turning our values into time, we make sure we have time for traction. If we don’t plan ahead, we shouldn’t point fingers, nor should we be surprised when everything becomes a distraction. Beingindistractableis largely about making sure you make time for traction each day and eliminating the distraction that keeps you from living the life you want—one that involves taking care of yourself, your relationships, and your work.
Thisarticleoriginally appeared onNir & Far. Nir Eyal is the bestselling author ofHooked: How to Build Habit-Forming ProductsandIndistractable: How to Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life. Nir blogs atNirAndFar.com. Get a complimentary Indistractable workbookhere.
Story byNir Eyal
Nir Eyal is the author of Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products and blogs about the psychology of products at NirAndFar.com. For more(show all)Nir Eyal is the author ofHooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Productsand blogs about the psychology of products atNirAndFar.com. For more insights on using psychology to change customer behavior,join his free newsletterand receive a free workbook.
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