Ask HN: How do you manage your daily non-work related tasks? - yotamoron
======
mbrock
I let them pile up into a big anxious horror too repulsive to even approach
until absolutely necessary, at which point I sloppily and with great
frustration do the very least I can to somehow postpone the ever-escalating
disaster that will be my personal undoing.

You mean you think there's another way?

~~~
senectus1
oh good, its not just me then...

------
Xcelerate
Trello. My wife uses it as well. It sounds silly at first to use something so
engineering/workplace minded in a relationship, but it actually works really
well for us because my wife and I have two very different styles of task
management (and as newlyweds, we needed to quickly figure out a workable
system!)

Her strategy is to break all tasks into little manageable chunks and complete
them over a period of weeks. My strategy is to sort all tasks into a giant
priority queue and then complete each task in one non-stop session as late as
possible but early enough that is still gets done. For those who are deadline-
averse, my strategy is clearly anxiety inducing, so Trello allows to us pick
dates for each other that we would like tasks to be completed by. So far, this
has eliminated all difficulties and confusion involved in getting stuff done.

The next step is establishing a shared calendar so we can track events, but I
haven't found one I like yet.

~~~
spenuke
Very similar story here. We got married a month ago. We did everything
ourselves (plus friends & family), and we started too late.

We started using Asana so that we could stop having nervous breakdowns every
week. It worked. Now we use it for stuff like coordinating anything that
doesn't fit on a notecard. Shopping lists generally are just on a kitchen
whiteboard and you take a pic before you leave.

~~~
pspeter3
That's awesome! Do you use any of the premium features as well?

~~~
spenuke
No, that hasn't really become necessary yet. We'll see once we do a house
remodel. :)

------
ellius
I recently started using GTD. It's a system with three main principles:

1\. You need to get all "open loops"—anything you think you need to do or want
to do—out of your head and written down. You naturally get rid of these
whenever you find yourself mulling over them and distracting from your main
task.

2\. They should be put in a trusted system that is both complete and has no
duplication. Usually this should be separated by context (things to do at
work, at home, etc). You should have just this one system, and not jump around
between several ad hoc systems (an email inbox here, a list on the fridge
there).

3\. Each item needs a defined next _physical_ action. So you can't just have
something like "plan vacation." You need that to have an attached next action,
such as "google hotels in Miami and make a list of options." And then when
that's done you replace it with the next physical action and so on, until
"plan vacation" is done.

I combine this with a homespun version of pomodoro (where I both work on tasks
in 25 minute chunks and block my internet access with apps like Freedom and
Stayfocusd for that amount of time). I also review my lists during break
periods to get confident I'm doing the right thing. In just a few months I've
cleared out a lot of my backlog and removed a lot of the background anxiety
that had been plaguing my free time.

------
smilesnd
I work from home and do the 60 work 15 no work. For those that never heard of
this practice you spend a certain amount of time doing work then take a short
break. I spend at least 60 min working no matter the pain and suffering or any
other distractions that may come my way. Then I spend 15 min doing something
else that doesn't involve sitting at my computer. Those 15 min are typically
spent on cleaning something around the house like throwing in a load of
laundry, vacuuming the floor, and such. You be surprise how more productive
you are taking a short break from time to time, and how much you can get done
in a short break.

------
agitator
I keep a physical compact notebook and add tasks for the following day from
the previous day. I make sure to only add tasks that I feel I am capable of
completing the next day, taking into account tasks I didn't have time to
finish the current day. I also use it for general ideas, thoughts, etc. It
keeps me from cycling everything in my mind and building anxiety. The book
remembers for me, so when I run out of stuff to do, I flip it open and see
what else I thought I should finish that day. The completion of small tasks
and checking them off is a psychological reward system for me and keeps me
completing things and using the book. In the past, I would generalize and just
remember that I had to work on some grand task or concept, and I would always
be disappointed and frustrated. But by breaking them down into little daily
tasks, I get a lot more done and I feel positive about it.

------
5_minutes
I'm using Things 3 for the moment. It's nice because it integrates also with
Gmail Calendar and iCal.

Truth is, I'm cycling between to-do list productivity tools every few months.
OmniFocus could do anything you want, but can get quite complicated too.
Things and Todoist are simple and straightforward, but are missing some
essential (advanced) things. I can't seem to find the tool with that right
sweet spot. I guess I love procrastinating with fiddling for the best tool
configuration.

That said, I also often fallback to using pen&paper, and writing in the
morning the 5 things that really should be completed today, and that seems to
work very well too.

------
mezod
I have my own set of tools to try to help me in that regard. I keep iterating
on it to try to find a flexible solution that covers as much as possible, long
term goals, short term goals, projects, etc. I use
[https://everydaycheck.com](https://everydaycheck.com) to list all the things
I want to work on every day, and
[https://multikanban.com](https://multikanban.com) to manage my multiple
personal projects. In the end, one divides to conquer, while the other helps
me sure I conquer at least one task a day!

~~~
purvis
I've been doing something similar to your everydaycheck app, but manually
using google sheets for about a year now. Works great for me too. Your app
looks pretty neat!

Does it get much interest from others, or are you the main user?

------
flatfilefan
A rule of piles - pile up things you don't know how to sort in one place but
keep the rest of the space clean. This can be applied to room cleaning but
also to your tasks. There a todo list can serve as a 'mental' pile for tasks.
This helps immensely to keep your mind from multitasking between actually
doing some work or resting and self-reflection on the things you haven't
sorted yet.

------
Tade0
I outsource them to my spouse. I pay with her rage.

But seriously: I routinize. Saturday is cleaning day, every four days I go get
groceries(our fridge is rather small).

------
dguo
Combination of Todoist [1] and Google Calendar. To make up for my poor memory,
I've started to put everything I have to do in them.

For example, I have annually recurring tasks in Todoist to get
Father's/Mother's Day gifts two weeks before the actual days and then separate
tasks to call my parents on the actual days.

While it has been very effective for me, it might be leading to a Google-like
effect [2] where my memory seems to be getting worse because I know I have a
crutch.

I am also trying to maintain a daily routine (to make sure I do important
things like exercise) and to finish unpleasant tasks in the morning before all
the fun stuff.

[1] [https://todoist.com/](https://todoist.com/)

[2] [http://www.yalescientific.org/2013/05/is-google-ruining-
your...](http://www.yalescientific.org/2013/05/is-google-ruining-your-memory-
the-science-of-memory-in-the-digital-age/)

~~~
5_minutes
There was an article last week out there about people with bad memory, for it
not being bad, but rather a sign that they focus and find alot of things - not
important enough to remember.

I can't find it right now, the Google results show alot of well-ranked SEO-
optimised sites instead about Alzheimer.

------
erikb
I can't do any of the todo-list stuff after work, for the basic reason that it
also feels like work when done this way. Also I usually spend too much energy
at work so afterwards I don't have any left to motivate myself etc. Ergo: Zero
effort or it won't be done.

So the first thing I do is I put reminders where I see them. For instance
there's a contract for a telephone provider I need to quit. The box connected
to the provider is laying right there next to the computer I'm typing this on.
This way it gets into my head and if I don't have higher priority tasks I will
think about it regularly, without ever actually pushing myself to it.

Then instead of already resolving the issue (which in itself would cost
energy) I procrastinate by planning or doing simple steps toward the goal. In
this case it may be checking out on the website of the company how their
quitting process works. After that I feel like I achieved something and
successfully avoided doing actual work at the same time. That's the best
reward for doing part of the job, feeling like you cheated your boss (in this
case your inner moral guard).

And when there's really not anything left it most often means that the last
step really isn't any effort anymore. So when I have everything prepared I
just need to write a short text, and send it to the company, and be done with
it. Because everything was planned out and prepped already.

Last but not least, if I really can't convince myself to even do a small step
like googling the website of the company, then it probably means I'm too
exhausted and instead of doing any serious tasks I really should take a walk
and a nap, which I then also have motivation for since it also avoids doing
the painful highest prio task.

Yeah, it's a slow process, but it actually hacks your brain into doing real
work while it thinks it's procastinating, instead of the other way around.

------
ccozan
A real whiteboard! Easy to edit and organize. With colors too!

------
RBerenguel
I use an app called 2Do (obviously, a task manager). It's where I centralise
my work and non-work tasks (for work tasks I create specific projects and
tasks out of the user stories I'm working on). Also I "outsource" tasks to my
partner, when I can (and she does the same) :)

------
onion2k
I don't manage them. Managing tasks doesn't change the likelihood of them
being done; it only changes the order in which they'll get done, if they get
done at all. Changing the way you plan won't magically motivate you to do
stuff.

The way I get tasks done is by doing them immediately I see that they need
doing. If you can develop that habit then tasks won't even need managing, you
won't need to set time aside to do things, and you'll always be on top of
things. Sometimes it's _really_ hard work to keep at it but your future self
will thank you.

~~~
danellis
> Changing the way you plan won't magically motivate you to do stuff.

Don't assume that the way something is for you is the way it is for everyone.
People's brains work very differently.

------
mikehollinger
For one off items with no clear date, "People that I owe something" and
"People who owe me something" lists, managed in apple's todo apps.

For things that have a clear deadline - calendar entries blocking time to go
work on whatever it is (i.e. "Research deals for fall vacation").

I've found that writing things into either of those categories clarifies
things a bit. Personal tasks end up being in the "I owe" lists, with my own
name next to them.

------
someSven
taskwarrior on Linux shell, but also for work. I'm kind of meditating every
day over it for a while, doing some adjustments, until I get myself to do
something.

~~~
thsowers
+1 for taskwarrior on Linux shell for work and personal tasks

+1 for daily meditation (and task list reflection)

------
_jal
I use Omnifocus and a physical notebook.

Omnifocus: I throw everything that comes to mind to the inbox, whenever it
occurs to me. Usually on weekends or whenever I panic about feeling things are
spinning out of control, I'll go through and organize it, grouping things and
adding dates. In the morning while waking up, I browse a bit, deciding what
needs to happen.

Two things that work well for me about it:

\- the geolocation context stuff is a godsend for remembering random things I
need to pick up.

\- The fact that uncompleted tasks don't automatically roll forward means I
don't constantly have 647 overdue items, and makes me think about what I'm
actually, really going to get done.

Notebook: Paper still works best for me for a lot of things. I still make
lists there, sketch box diagrams when thinking through things, sketch ideas
for stuff to make, collect random info, things that amuse me, etc. Also, it
serves as a binder for loose paper/receipts/etc that are still in-flight. I
trained myself to write the date and location on every page, and to write out
sufficient context for even throwaway notes to actually remember what a given
thing is later. This makes them very useful after they're full - I have years
of full notebooks on my shelf and reference them more than you might think.

Some not-strictly-related things that reduce the cognitive load of existence
for me:

\- Once I got to a financial place where I could, I forced myself to start
paying every bill the minute it came in. Not having to mentally keep track of
due dates and all of that leaves room for worrying about a bunch of other
stuff. Nobody gets auto-withdrawl permission, but doing things this way offers
the same effect and is trivially easy now that everything is online.

\- I scan any paper artifact that doesn't need to be paper. Organizing it is
still tedious, but the payoff of _actually being able to find_ something when
I need it seems magic. Things tend to build up until I spend a couple hours on
it, and then in to the shredder they go. Make sure your backup regimen is
solid.

\- A little, slightly hokey thing that nonetheless is useful for me: I started
writing my (nonwork) goals on a whiteboard in my home office. Just whatever is
important right now. Having it physically on the wall seems to provide a
little bit of focus, something I frequently need.

------
shotgungg
I recently wrote about how I handle pretty much everything related with work
here[1]. It can easily be applied outside of work. hope it helps

I personally just use evernote and list everything there.

[1] [https://medium.com/@jmrocela/an-organized-
chaos-5c844f8a9c82](https://medium.com/@jmrocela/an-organized-
chaos-5c844f8a9c82)

------
accnt
I like to keep track of all things: shopping list, payments, projects,
appointments and so on. In doing so I know when I'm way behind as there is a
pile of items in "pending".

So I use Trello (most tasks, projects) integrated with Calendar (appointments,
due dates) and Google Sheets (all payments, due dates).

------
j45
I put it on a calendar app that allows floating tasks that can automatically
move/carry over to the next day. Helps when I have to get something done over
a week.

Currently using pocket informant, I'm sure there's others too.

~~~
jiaweihli
This is neat, it looks similar to Fantastical. Have you used that before, and
how does it compare if so?

------
nvr219
Calendar for time-sensitive tasks, reminders for everything else including
location-sensitive tasks. I also meet with my wife every Sunday night to
review everything four weeks out, so we know who's doing what.

------
qrbLPHiKpiux
Pen and paper.

------
Akarnani
I try to routine-ize as many of them as possible so it's on autopilot. Sunday
afternoons get time scheduled in the calendar to take care of one off items.

------
thegoldenboy
3 biggest things rule.

[https://blog.codinghorror.com/todont/](https://blog.codinghorror.com/todont/)

------
UnoriginalGuy
Same way I managed my work related tasks, KanBan board.

------
mojoe
Google Keep -- when I think of something that needs done, I write it down and
set a reminder for the next available non-work time.

------
chrishn
Reminders app.

~~~
since85
This, Mac OS Reminders app.

------
alexilliamson
GTD 4 life

------
wheelerwj
work and "non-work" are the same thing to me. it all goes into trello or jira,
then synced with a time management tool. so i track the amount of time i spend
doing everything.

------
binaryanomaly
Todoist and Calendar. Mostly on mac and ios but also win/lin.

------
graycateyes
Piece of paper, and a pen, and tackle them on the weekends.....

------
girzel
Org in Emacs, synced to my phone's calendar with Radicale.

------
alexpetralia
Google Keep runs my life.

------
insulanian
Trello + Google Calendar

