Big tasks do not get started, because you cannot see where to begin. Breaking them down is the single most useful skill in this course, and it works on anything.
Keep splitting until every task is something you could start this morning. "Organise the stockroom" is not startable. "Count what is on the top three shelves" is.
Then find the ones that block others. If you cannot buy shelves until the budget is approved, budget approval goes first, and it goes first today, because it depends on someone else.
Which task list is more useful?
What happens: There is no first step, so it sits on the list for two weeks while you do easier things. Nobody can help you either, because nobody knows what to take.
What happens: You can start item one in the next five minutes, and item three can be sent to someone right now so it is not waiting on you.
How small is small enough?
If you can picture yourself doing it, and it takes less than about half a day, it is small enough. If you look at it and feel unsure where to begin, it is still too big and needs one more split.
What if I do not know all the steps yet?
That is normal and expected. Write the ones you know and add a task called "work out what comes after this". Plans are meant to change. A plan that admits what it does not know is far more useful than one that pretends.
Before you move on
- Split until every task is startable today
- Identify what blocks other work
- Start anything that depends on other people first
Check what you know
3 questions. Have a look at what this lesson asks.
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