A powerful tool for thinking about importance is the Eisenhower Matrix. It helps you categorize tasks based on two dimensions: urgency and importance.
- Urgent tasks demand your immediate attention. They are the “fires” you have to put out right now.
- Important tasks contribute to your long-term goals and values. They are the things that truly matter.
This creates four quadrants:
| Not Important | Important | |
|---|---|---|
| Not Urgent | 4. Delete Eliminate distractions and time-wasters. |
2. Schedule Focus on long-term goals and planning. |
| Urgent | 3. Delegate Handle interruptions efficiently. |
1. Do Now Address crises and immediate deadlines. |
How Task Compass Helps
Most people spend their days stuck in Quadrants 1 and 3, reacting to what’s urgent. This is stressful and unsatisfying. The goal is to spend more time in Quadrant 2, working on what’s truly important.
Task Compass helps you do this in two ways:
- It separates urgency from importance. By forcing you to compare tasks, it helps you see that just because something is “due now” (urgent) doesn’t mean it’s more important than a task that will help you achieve a long-term goal.
- It helps you schedule Quadrant 2. When Task Compass detects that you are avoiding an important but not urgent task, it can prompt you to schedule it, ensuring that you make time for what truly matters.
By using Task Compass, you’re not just creating a to-do list; you’re building a system that automatically guides you away from the “tyranny of the urgent” and towards the work that will have the most impact on your life.