Final Version (FV) time management system

http://web.archive.org/web/20190219200605/http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs004/1100358239599/archive/1109511856508.html

Here are the long-awaited instructions for the Final Version (FV) time management system. I don’t know if it’s the best time management system ever devised. What I do know is that it is the best time management system that I have ever used myself. It’s shown itself to be resilient, responsive and very quick.

FV is based on my earlier time management systems, particularly the extensive range of AutoFocus and SuperFocus systems developed over the last three years. These were unique in that they were constantly developing with the assistance of a large band of commenters on my web-site. Anyone who has tried one or more of these systems will recognize the strong family resemblance that they have with FV. The most striking resemblance is that they are all based on one long list (either paper or electronic) which can be used to capture just about every possible action that springs into one’s mind. There is a minimum of special markings or annotations.

Such a list depends on an effective algorithm to process it. There are three main requirements which have to be kept in balance. These are urgency, importance and psychological readiness. Traditional time management systems have tended to concentrate on the first two of these. The neglect of psychological readiness is probably the reason that most people don’t find time management systems particularly effective or congenial.

The most distinctive feature of FV is the way that its algorithm is primarily based on psychological readiness - this then opens the way to keeping urgency and importance in the best achievable balance.

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Wow, I really like this. I am going to try that on my list right now!

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@tim what do you write your list on?

@maiki are you still using your command line task program? have you tried FV?

i gotta try this on my very red habitica todo list. (they turn red the older they get, like … what is something else that turns red besides lobsters cooking? i wanted to make a joke but now it’s a complaint that the only joke i can think of involves death)

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Yeah, #taskwarrior, and I don’t have to use any method because I only have four things to do! Ahhhg! I may need work soon! :slight_smile:

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Whoops, just seeing this.

My list is just a text file named TODO.md.

Edit:

Actually that’s not entirely true.

For lists that I’m sharing with people, (mostly my partner, like grocery lists) then I use http://www.taskshare.org because your lists have their own unique url, and you don’t need to log in. We can both easily add to it whenever, which has value.

For lists that are more my personal errand/chore things, I use Trello. The big reason why is I can have a shortcut on my phone that immediately takes me to a “create card”, which is very handy.

For work / project tasks I use TODO.md files in the project. :slight_smile:

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5 posts were split to a new topic: Chatter chatter taskshare

Re-aquainting myself with the FV method, I think I basically do that. I use taskwarrior for all todo items, and I have a daily reminder called “papers”, where I process my notes taken since I last processed papers (sometimes I don’t for a few days, for instance). I turn them into tasks, often breaking them down into smaller items in this step.

I don’t go through lists the way FV prescribes, but I do nested questions to myself, which I then answer at a different time, as more information has been processed. I use notation as described at maiki-notation.

I use contexts in taskwarrior (Morning routine steps - #2 by maiki) and my main three contexts are:

  • morning
  • work
  • notwork

After that I just break down tasks into smaller bits, and whenever it is blocked by another task I mark it as such in taskwarrior, which hides it from my view by increases the urgency of the task it “depends” on. After that I just do the top item of each of my contexts, and if I don’t feel like doing something I ask myself why, and I either do it, change it, or put it off until a reasonable time (like awaiting a reply, or busy this week). Because I ask myself why I am not doing the thing I told myself to do, I don’t lose myself in loops; I’m honest about when I’m doing something, and use my list to check-in with myself about which tasks and why. :slight_smile:

Anyhow, the way I think of this is me having a bunch of conversations with myself. Actually, all of this is! :exploding_head:

  • I talk to myself on paper, with a temporary cache; if I lose this it is a minimal amount of disruption
  • I transfer conclusions of the “paper” conversation to my personal computing platform, which is redundant and actionable, but still very private and personal
  • In acting on my self-determined tasks and documenting the ephemera via talkgroup and other platforms, I broadcast my ideas into the most open and free communication system available to me, (hopefully) separating my ego from them to make them useful
  • As I read and interact with people online I make notes in my papers, as new ideas and influences converge and bloom forward into the cycle

Also, sometimes I just see a question to me from years ago and have a lot to say about it. :sunglasses:

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