I’m sure you’ve heard the old story about the man who dropped his keys in the parking lot, and then went looking for them in the street “because there’s better light there”.
That guy might be very efficient at searching the ground around the streetlights quickly. But it won’t help him find the keys.
Similarly, we all sometimes get so caught up in doing something that we completely forget the reason why we’re doing it. You might be the best in the world at knitting socks for orangutans, but you just won’t make much of an impact that way. (If anything, at least knit gloves for them 
.)
That’s where the weekly review comes in!
What’s a weekly review
Take one day off each week, and spend it thinking about the big picture stuff. Make sure you’re looking for your keys where you dropped them, instead of where there’s the most light.
Figure out what’s important, not just urgent.
Returning a library book on time or finishing that homework? Probably not that important in the long term. Trying that new hobby, talking to new people, trying a crazy experiment? Potentially very important.
Get the important stuff in. For time-independent tasks, schedule them early in the week, to make sure you get them done.
It’s surprisingly easy to get stuck in the rat race, constantly being busy, never pausing to think what impact you’re making.
Perspective rocks (but not all the time)
A weekly review lets you pull back and consider your weekly actions in perspective.
Sure, it’s nice to just stick your nose to the grindstone and get working. You don’t want to be worrying about big-picture consequences all the time. But you don’t want to get stuck in that state all the time, because you might very well end up being busy but not effective.
That’s why I like to-do lists.
When I generate my to-do list, I’m firmly in big-picture thinking mode. Then, during the day, when I’m knocking tasks off the list, I can let myself slide into nose-to-grindstone ground-level thinking. And I don’t need to worry, because I know I’m going to accomplish all the important stuff.
That’s also why I never add tasks to a to-do list, even if I finish early for the day. Because it lets me just relax and feel good about doing nothing for the rest of the day. It really cuts down on low-level background stress.
You won’t believe it if you haven’t tried it.
(Mind you, if I think of a good action I’d like to take, I write it down somewhere. I just don’t put it on my must-definitely-accomplish-today list.)
How to organize a weekly review
Take a day off each week, and spend it just thinking. Sunday works great for me.
It might sound crazy to take one day off a week. Hey, that’s one day’s productivity wasted, right?
Wrong.
The day you take off and spend thinking about big-picture strategies will make you SO much more productive! It’s like you take one day off, and add three, in the productivity gains you achieve in the other 6 days. (Plus it’s fun to spend a whole day thinking too!)
Think about the following things:
- your long-term goals and dreams
- the most important things going on in your life right now
- review your values, and make sure your actions align with them
- only THEN consider specific “most important tasks” you want to accomplish in the week ahead
And that’s all there is to a weekly review.
Other people who swear by the weekly review include Scott H. Young, Leo Babauta and David Allen (the author of Getting Things Done). They use slight variations, but all the versions boil down to taking time off and considering the big picture of your life.
Try it just once, and you’ll be a convert forever.
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{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
Sounds really interesting! I’ve never done a weekly review. I’m always thinking ahead to the next week, but this sounds like a great idea!
Positively Present’s last blog post..stop judging: 4 reasons, 5 things, 6 ways
Good stuff. Yesterday I found out I didnt’ get a job I was interviewing for, and this really helps put it in perspective. I actually have that habit of constantly trying to add stuff to my to-do list, and learning how to do nothing is something that takes practice as funny as that sounds
Srinivas Rao’s last blog post..The impact of perception insight #3
@PP:
Ya, I also think ahead to next week. But when I started deliberately taking a day off, and spending a ton of time just thinking… well, just try it for yourself! You’ll love the results.
@Srinvas:
Ya, it’s surprisingly hard to do nothing
It’s something I’m struggling with myself. I sometimes end up wasting hours on useless websites because I’m afraid to turn of the computer… because then I’d have NOTHING to do! (Which is of course nonsense. I have a few good books here, I could take a nap and then do something useful, I could go for a walk…)
I think your review recommendation is very smart. Taking a step back to look at where you’re going and what you’re doing to get there is really important. It’s just hard to take the time to do it when you think you should be doing something more tangible. You’re right to reserve a day; if you don’t, you could be a month into work only to find out you’re going the wrong way!
@Laurie:
Right on!
That was a very well done post on weekly reviews. Have you consider the link between the concept of honoring a Sabbath and the benefits that you listed?
Thanks
@Hugh:
I never thought of that. I’m repeatedly surprised by how some religious traditions turn out to be very useful for deep psychological reasons. Too bad most religions simply say “This is what we do, don’t ask any questions” instead of pointing out how their traditions are useful.