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[Jamie Phelps]

While reading Stephen's post about what you'd do with an extra four hours in the day, I got to thinking about most important tasks and what that means. I think this phrase waffles between two disparate conceptual meanings.

1) Most important tasks are the items on your lists (including someday) that have the most intrinsic value to you. This is likely a subjective judgment. But my impression is that the things that we have mentioned in the responses to Stephen's post would fall into this definition of most important tasks.

2) Most important tasks are the items that you are going to get in the most trouble if you don't do. Go to work. Pay the bills. Call your mother. Whatever.

I would submit to you that while a task might be a high priority according to 2) but a truly most important task is one that adheres to definition 1). I'm going to make every effort to start labeling my tasks according to 1) and 2). The idea is to get 2) out of the way as fast as possible so that 1) actually gets some attention.

[Jason Echols]

well said...makes sense.

[Matt Wood]

That's what I meant when I was talking about clearing the decks. Writing is my #1 set, by your definition. So I get all the #2 stuff out of the way to get to it.

[Patrick Rhone]

This is a nice little nugget of wisdom. After a while, I am betting we will get a lot of these on the forum and we should see about putting them together somewhere. For now, I am going to copy it and put it in Yojimbo.

[Rachel Murphy]

I really like this idea of two types of MITs. Not something I'd considered before.

My Someday/Maybe list continues to get longer but in the time I've been keeping it (about 8 months) nothing has ever been crossed off. Each week I review the list but nothing ever changes. And yet everything on there is important to me.

I'm feeling quite inspired by what I've read on various threads here to do something about this. I'm not quite sure how yet though. That's going to need a bit more thought...

[Jamie Phelps]

Rachel, I can make three recommendations here:

1) Stop calling it a someday/maybe list. I think it was Stephen that made this point a while back. It's a someday list for projects you can't tackle yet.

2) At each review, review that list and see if you're still honestly committed to doing it. Sometimes you're in love with the idea of being able to do something but not necessarily with the process of getting there. I would love to be able to dunk a basketball, but I am not going to do the work it would take to get my sub-six-foot frame above the rim. Off the list.

3) At each review, ask yourself if there is anything, no matter how small, that you can do to move one of those items forward. Can you research books on learning that new language? Can you make a phone call about getting involved in that volunteer organization? Can you buy a book about bird watching? Whatever is on your someday list can probably be moved at least one step forward with a simple action. And once you've taken action on it, it's now no longer a someday but an eventually.

[Patrick Rhone]

Wow, Jamie. Good stuff.

Sounds remarkably similar to my "Getting Real" post of a month or so ago.

Find it here.

[Rachel Murphy]

Jamie, good points, especially number 3.

One of the items on my list is "Get better at photography". I've got the books, I've bookmarked the websites. But I never get round to doing anything about it. There's always something "more important". But if, as you say, I just made a tiny move forward at least I would have started. So tomorrow I shall the read the first chapter of my latest photography book.

And then I can move "Get better at photography" from Someday to Projects. Woohoo!

[Stephen Smith]

That is a great start Rachel, good for you.

I suppose that I had not defined the MIT clearly enough, because I "knew" what it was in my head (I don't know what art is, but I know it when I see it!)
In a larger context, going to work and paying the bills are important, but I would submit that list items such as these are really ongoing projects rather than MITs. What I call an MIT is definitely "... the items on your lists (including someday) that have the most intrinsic value to you." Which means that I work hard at doing the tasks that contribute to achieving one of the goals, whether the goal is getting the bills paid or learning a new skill.

[pstanoch]

One of the items on my list is "Get better at photography". I've got the books, I've bookmarked the websites. But I never get round to doing anything about it. There's always something "more important". But if, as you say, I just made a tiny move forward at least I would have started. So tomorrow I shall the read the first chapter of my latest photography book.

And then I can move "Get better at photography" from Someday to Projects. Woohoo!

Rachel, good luck in pursuit in getting better at photography.  I have had this on my Someday/Maybe list for a couple of years now, but have not done much with it either. I, too, will be moving it from my Someday list to Project list.

[Rachel Murphy]

Thanks pstanoch. I've taken lots of pictures today of our new 7 week old puppy but it's a case of quantity not quality! I've clearly a lot to learn.

[Tim Glinatsis]

I knew it was going to happen, eventually. I disagree with something on these forums!

First, as an MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) graduate, this thread's acronyms have particular appeal for me.

Okay, now down to business. I fundamentally disagree with the notion that the Someday/Maybe list is a series of commitments that needs to be pruned. Honestly, I have no qualms whatsoever about letting that list grow. Sure, I review it every week, but it doesn't bother me one little teeny bit whenever I scan through it with no updates. I've had items on that list for over two years...and it's far and away my biggest list.

DA talks about cleaning the garage, and how when a person wants to clean the garage it shouts out at him/her every time they walk by it. It's taking up mental RAM. On the other hand, if you want to clean the garage - but it's not IMPORTANT to you, or you're not COMMITTED to it - it belongs on the Someday/Maybe list. Once on that list, the garage cleaning party is out of mental RAM; it's on a list that, by definition, is filled with things that you MIGHT do SOMEDAY; you've not committed to do anything more with it than review it once a week, and consider whether or not it's something you still want to do.

You've let yourself off the hook about it.

You're not committing to yourself through the Someday/Maybe list. It's the exact opposite. If you start removing things from the Someday/Maybe list because you haven't done them, but you still retain some desire to do them, you're throwing those items back into mental RAM.

BAD! BAD! BAD!

I think this discussion is an issue of perspective surrounding the Someday/Maybe list. If you view it as something that you're supposed to be acting on, then it's not a Someday/Maybe list. The list is your freebie, catch-all, every-little-crazy-thought list.

There are only three reasons something should come off of Someday/Maybe:

1. You've done it.
2. You no longer have any desire to do it, any time.
3. You've decided that you are going to do it, and it moves into the appropriate context.

* Tim Glinatsis descends from the soapbox.

PS: If you ever get a chance to listen to DA's "Getting Things Done - Fast!" seminar, do it. You won't be able to buy it anymore, but I've heard that there are certain locations on "the internet" who might have it available for download (I'm not a lawyer, so I can't comment on the legality of such locations). He does an absolutely brilliant job of explaining the Someday/Maybe....and just about every thing else under the GTD sun.

[Rachel Murphy]

If you start removing things from the Someday/Maybe list because you haven't done them, but you still retain some desire to do them, you're throwing those items back into mental RAM.

I don't want to remove things from the list, I want to do them!
 
The point I was making earlier is that whenever I reviewed my someday/maybe list items just sat there and never seemed to get moved to my projects list. It's all to easy to look at the list and think you've reviewed it without really thinking "Can I make a start on this?".

All the items on my list are fun things I'd like to do one day if I ever get the time. Hobbies I'd like to develop. One of the major reasons for me trying to be more productive is to enable me to have time to do these activities. I usually get so wrapped up in all the other things I have to do that I forget the real point is I want to do the items on my someday/maybe list.

But I have made a start. "Get better at photography" is now on my projects list. New camera is ordered (I do like it when I *have* to buy new gadgets!) and should be here today. Look out Flickr...

[Tim Glinatsis]

Booyall. You've got it.

I want a new camera...

[Jamie Phelps]

I didn't mean to turn this into a discussion about the someday/maybe list. I was just pointing out that there are two different definitions of "most important tasks." You have to do the one kind in order to get to do the other kind.