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| -rw-r--r-- | index.mdwn | 2 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | waiting-for.mdwn | 54 |
2 files changed, 55 insertions, 1 deletions
@@ -66,7 +66,7 @@ Outline * [[Keeping track of files|files]] * [[Calendars and reminders|calendars]] * [[Stuff you maybe want to do someday|someday-maybe]] -* Waiting for things to happen +* [[Waiting for things to happen|waiting-for]] * Journalling and other ways of keeping track of things that have happened * The daily routine - things you do every day diff --git a/waiting-for.mdwn b/waiting-for.mdwn new file mode 100644 index 0000000..f476302 --- /dev/null +++ b/waiting-for.mdwn @@ -0,0 +1,54 @@ +Waiting for things to happen +============================ + +After delegating something, you usually want to keep track of the issue +to make sure it gets done. Minions are often lazy, and +you don't want to be the kind of overlord who forgets orders he's given. +So you need another list: a list of things you're waiting for to happen. + +This list is not just for delegations. It's also for other events you're +waiting for. For example: + +* you've ordered something online, and are waiting for it to arrive +* you've started a week-long benchmark run, and are waiting for it to finish +* you're short of cash right now, so you're waiting for your bonus, and + after it arrives, there's a bunch of things you'll need to do, or you'd + like to do + +Lars uses a "waiting for" list of the following format: + + * End-of-year bonus arrives. + - since 2009-09-01 + - then buy a new disco ball + - then pay off credit card debt + +This format makes it easy to keep track of what you're waiting for, +how long you've waited already, and what to do after the event happens. + +You could keep track of the reactions to an event elsewhere. For example, +they might be in the project list, and the project would be marked +"blocked" in some manner. However, there's no direct link from the +"waiting for" list to the project list, and you'd need to remember +that there are blocked actions, so you'd at least need to write down +pointers to the blocked projects. + +Lars also keeps another kind of "waiting for" list, for things that will +need to be finished the same day. He calls this the "in progress" list. +It usually contains things that automation is doing for him, but he needs +to remember to check up on when they're finished. For example: + +* a half-hour test run for some software he's writing (it's so easy to + start one, then lose the window under a dozen others, and only notice + it a week later: this seriously slows down development speed) +* Roomba is vacuuming in another room +* the washing machine is running; when it's done, it needs to be emptied + and possibly another load started +* a co-worker is looking up some information and promised to have something + by lunchtime + +The "in progress" list is otherwise like the "waiting for" one, but he +keeps it at the top of the "next actions" list, so it's always in his +face. This makes it harder to forget stuff that is currently happening. +The crucial difference, for Lars, is that "in progress" needs to be +finished the same day, whereas "waiting for" may usually wait until the +next weekly review. |