Are you facing a large and complex task? Sometimes it’s hard to even get started, right?
A natural response would be to start analyzing the task searching for the most efficient way to deal with it. But it’s easy to over engineer a solution, and for me this is never the most efficient approach. I simply don’t (yet) know enough about the task to do this kind of thinking up front.
This is why I prefer to start with the smaller tasks that I actually do know how to deal with – without giving the bigger picture much though. I move on, one (sub)task at the time. This seems to work magic. I now naturally know the next natural step, and can create more (sub)tasks. All of a sudden, the large and complex task seems manageable.
I know this sounds trivial, but it’s really about the mindset. Of course, you have to put some thought into it, but over analyzing a task before you start working on it is waste. Instead, start with what you do know, and make it a habit to split tasks early if it’s too big. It’s better to do this early than late.
Every now and then you will get stuck in a task, because you made wrong assumptions. When this happens it’s hard to take a step back and start over (the right way). This is a muscle you have to train, so make sure you reward yourself whenever you manage to do so.
Related:
How to boost your personal productivity? (English version)
Disclaimer: This blogpost was originally published on a different platform. Formatting may be incorrect, links may be out of date.
Jørn Hunskaar 