With my crazy schedule of classes, I have reverted to daily lists to keep myself organized. Today I created a new list form, after a few days of totally random lists–the items on most of which got done eventually, but not in any order of priority.
The most important thing about this list is that it is not a “to do today” list. It is a “before thursday” list. Some items (not marked, because I know which they are) which don’t really come due for a month or more. Instead of focusing on what I need to get done today, I try to get all of my priorities written down so that I can plan my schedule. On the left hand of the page is a list of things I have to do for each of my classes, by class title. On the right are non-academic things I need to do. Right now my only categories are “email,” “call,” “misc,” and “house” (reads: clean bathroom, cook chili, wait for furniture, fix Elize’s printer, fix Elize’s bike, clean dish-drying rack, and do laundry). Tomorrow I will add one for “work” and “organizations.”
I am hoping lists like this one will help me keep all of my juggling balls in the air while I figure out how to handle my schedule. Like Dumbledore’s pensive, I use my lists to empty my mind of the worries and ideas which crowd it during long school days. Knowing I can trust my todo list to remember for me, I don’t spend time thinking about what I need to do tonight for Arabic while in sitting in Global Justice. I know that, come evening, all of my obligations will be sitting on that day’s aggregated todo list.
And if I decide to read Wired’s awesome article about the highly aspie-friendly inner workings of Craigslist, I know exactly what I am blowing off. Let’s hear it for conscientious irresponsibility!
Inspirational Quote:
The long-running tech-industry war between engineers and marketers has been ended at craigslist by the simple expedient of having no marketers. Only programmers, customer service reps, and accounting staff work at craigslist. There is no business development, no human resources, no sales. As a result, there are no meetings. The staff communicates by email and IM. This is a nice environment for employees of a certain temperament. “Not that we’re a Shangri-La or anything,” Buckmaster says, “but no technical people have ever left the company of their own accord.” Wired cover article, “The Tragedy of. Craigslist” by Gary Wolf.
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