There are two things I hate, inefficiency and forgetting to do something. Despite (I think) being pretty productive, one of my biggest weaknesses is saying “I’ll do it later” just after I do something else quickly. With this strategy, I inevitably forget to do it later, leading to the accumulation of small tasks. An example of this is putting my clothes away, which usually takes no time at all, piles up to be a big task. This is very inefficient because it takes a lot more time than it would have, and requires a lot more effort to do so. In the context of clothes and housework type tasks, it also affects my productivity as well because everything is messy, which is well known to disrupt focus.
This was all until I discovered the two-minute rule.
The two-minute rule is simply, if a task takes less than two minutes to complete, do it immediately. It’s so simple but so effective. This has helped me not procrastinate on those small tasks that we all put off doing.
Whilst the two-minute rule isn’t not the most complex, just having it among the back of my mind makes has made such a difference.
Whilst forgetting to hang your clothes up isnt the end of the world, the two minute rule also applies to many other areas of life. Often I think about messaging my girlfriend something she asked me to do, or send an email I have to send, but say to myself “I’ll do it in a sec.”
Famous. Last. Words.
I almost never remember to do it, because, thinking about doing it makes me feel like I’ve done it. This is another area the two minute rule comes in clutch and you just send the email there and then.
What if I’m in the middle of something? What if it takes more than two minutes?
Write it down.
If the task is more than 2 minutes or you really dont have time, make sure you write it down. This safeguards against our poor short term memory and means you wont forget to come back to it later. Often I have been riding my bike and remember I have to do something, or come up with an idea, and rather than stop and type it up, I just say “Hey Siri, make a note…” and speak whatever it is that I have to do.
Whilst this isn’t anything groundbreaking on the surface, it can be so helpful to just keep in the back of your mind the next time a small task comes your way. I’ve found it just gives me a lot of clarity and helps me overcome the minuscule activation energy it takes to do the small task. This not only helps me get more done, but it makes life more efficient because things don’t get messy, and it also helps me not forget things which pop into my head.
This all helps make life just that little bit more productive.
Harrison Hansford 