Try to complete new tasks on the day you receive them

By tackling tasks immediately, you prevent them from piling up and getting in your way later. This is similar to the idea that a task is a debt you have to pay off in the future. While it can sometimes be useful to postpone things, it is usually better to handle them quickly. This keeps your task list short and allows you to make progress faster and adapt more easily to changes.

Working quickly and efficiently is often praised by successful people like Sam Altman and Tyler Cowen. They emphasize that acting quickly and adapting swiftly to new information is important for success. This means not only responding quickly to emails and meeting deadlines but also making decisions quickly and adjusting them if necessary. This approach ensures that you keep moving and don’t get stuck in long decision-making processes.

A short task list helps you focus on what really matters and prevents you from being overwhelmed by a lot of unfinished tasks. By handling new tasks immediately, you reduce stress and make room for new challenges and opportunities. This not only increases your productivity but also your ability to remain flexible and resilient in a changing work environment.

Jeroen Sangers @jeroensangers