Making prioritising priorities a priority
I was thinking to myself the other night about how my priorities had kinda slipped away from me over time. Ever since I stopped working to self-isolate with my housemates I've had various growing lists of things I want to do, but rarely get around to doing. I was thinking to myself that when I was working I was so much better about these things - if I wanted (or needed) to do something I'd find time before or after work to do it, and then actually do it! I was really proud of myself for that, and disappointed that it wasn't a habit I managed to carry with me. My thinking brought me to the conclusion that because when I was working I had regular blocks of time where I had to be doing a specific thing, everything else felt a little more urgent since there wouldn't be a lot of "later" to do them in. Now I have a lot of "later" and it's presenting as a hurdle for me!
I'm thinking planning my weeks in advance could help me overcome this. Like sitting down and writing down something like "Monday: Gardening 10am - 3pm, Tuesday: Game dev 10am - 4pm" etc. And then I'll have that starting point to fit everything else around 
I'm thinking I'd like to get a journal or planner for this, but I'm not going out of the house to get little things like that at the moment so it'd have to wait about a week, when we get the groceries delivered again. I could also do it digitally instead and not have to wait. I'm thinking even though Trello is made for other purposes it could suit me well right now! Does anyone have something they use for things like this?
I'd be interested to hear anyone else's experiences with juggling priorities too! I'm sure I'm not the only one to have my head done in by them sometimes
Comments
@squiggly It sounds like you're on your way to getting your priorities done
I use Microsoft's To Do app on my phone to help me set reminders, due dates, make a list of the things I need to do and allocate how much time I will spend on my tasks for the day
@squiggly I think you've shown a lot of insight into what you need, which is great! 🙂
Like you, I also have trouble getting around to certain things. I actually have a diary where I write out all my family's appointments and non-productive things and a planner just for my stuff where I plan in advance when I will do certain things. We also have a digital family calendar where we can see our appointments and meetings and I've used apps for to-do lists, notes, events, you name it. I know it sounds like a lot but it's working for the time being.
Something that has personally helped me is writing down a list of what I want in a planner. This can help when you're shopping around for something that will meet your needs. I also have a few ring-bound planners (you could also use a binder) and have added lots of things in them myself and taken out the pages I am no longer using based on this list. In regard to prioritising things, you could use a system where you rank the importance of something, write the date that something has to be done or change things around in terms of how urgent they are.
I've used Trello too! I think it's useful if you need something visual to look at or want to collaborate with other people. I don't use it at the moment because I just make do with colour-coding tasks as a visual aid. Another thing you could try is using sticky notes in columns or categories like Trello or another tool called Kanbanflow, which is like Trello but has some features like colour coding and Pomodoro timers.
We actually have a thread with some diary and planner tips here if you need some more ideas. 🙂
I did actually end up going with Trello for now, mostly because I'm familiar with it already. Oh, and I can have camellias in the background, that's important too! I took note of what you said about keeping things flexible @drpenguin , I'm glad you mentioned that. Sometimes to me it feels like one thing will happen and suddenly alllll my plans are up in the air again but hey, maybe I can make sense of it by just dragging my cards to other days 
I've had a few peeks at that thread you mentioned @WheresMySquishy , I've felt a little shy about actually using that thread so far since I feel so new to it all! I gotta say though that there's so much cool stuff in there, like the QR codes and the secret alphabets. Maybe I should post about a few of my early-days experiences in there...
Thank you both for all of your tips!! It's making started with journalling/planning feels a lot less intimidating
I myself prefer planning things out digitally though simply through the Reminders app on my phone since I can readily access the app most of the time wherever I go. In high school I would also use Evernote to do plan things to do, make notes, and set reminders, so that could also be a possible digital app you could try out! I also try to be lenient with the planning and keep the time scheduling simple so I can be flexible in case anything else pops up! :smile:
Good luck with your planning and completing your priorities! ~
