The "uniformity principle" is a term that I've coined, which would otherwise be an unnecessary invention if I were not writing this book, and somehow having to explain a workflow of mine. I had to copy the definition from a previous chapter, because I couldn't remember it off the top of my head, and I wanted to be consistent:
Whatever I do with most tasks, I'll do with all the rest, for the sake of uniformity.
Doing something uniform with all tasks simplifies your life immeasurably. You don't have to figure out a different workflow for different items. It requires less thinking and decision making.
I like to set up as few rules as possible. I used to have a mini checklist to maintain my system and to keep things humming. It didn't feel like a good fit… and so I created a system that distilled everything down to a simple directive:
Push everything to the next logical, reasonable or opportune time.
This created a unified protocol. I didn't have to run through a handful of steps to maintain my system.
In this chapter, I specifically wanted to focus in on what we do with tasks that are completed. What is the "uniformity principle" that tells me what to do with all items that I've completed?
Well, the vast majority of my items get recycled: they get pushed to the next logical, reasonable or opportune time in my calendar. I'm hoping to start a cult around this phrase.
But how about items that don't continue to live on the timeline, because they've been completed and have come to the end of their life cycle? Here's what I do:
I delete them.
That's my uniformity principle for everything I've completed that doesn't get recycled on my timeline. I delete them. "But, but, but…" people protest, "… don't you archive and keep a record of those items?"
A third workflow for all tasks
Curiously, I keep a record of everything. I record more details about my day than most people do. So how is it that I keep a record of everything, if I'm deleting those items? Simple:
Every couple of hours or so, I jump into my journal and log everything I've done since I last wrote in my journal. I find it cathartic… and it covers everything.
Logging and journaling kills two birds with one stone:
1. Not only do I log all items that have been deleted…
2. … but I also log all items that have not been deleted – those that have been recycled back into the timeline by pushing them to the next logical, reasonable or opportune date.
This is the third use case where the uniformity principle comes into play. I don't log some tasks and not others. So my journaling takes care of everything. It's a record of everything… and to me, it doesn't feel like a chore.
Some people don't like to delete items… and so they have an archive where they drop all completed items into. Additionally, they might duplicate tasks that get recycled back into the timeline—and pushing the duplicate to an archive—for the sake of having a record of what was done on a particular day. That's another way of doing it. Personally, it seems like a lot of tinkering to me.
Whatever you do, find a way that creates as little friction for you as possible. To me, journaling and logging feels like more of a flow than an obstacle or an extra thing to do.
Yes and no…
Yes: I delete any project-related tasks that have been mirrored into my timeline. I delete just the mirror.
No: The original gets archived within an "archive" or "done" stage, within the project outline itself. That way, all project-related tasks, no matter their status, remain connected.
Depending on the project, this workflow might include tasks and events. Remember that I keep all my coaching session events in a coaching project outline – and I mirror them out into my timeline. When I delete them from my timeline, the original events remain in the coaching project outline.
The following 3 points cover what I do with all tasks in my system:
1. Repeating items get pushed to the next logical, reasonable or opportune time on my timeline.
2. I delete all completed tasks from my timeline. This includes standalone items, and items that have been mirrored from project outlines.
3. A couple of times a day I jump into my journaling outline and log all that I've been up to.
The three workflows above point right back to the uniformity principle:
Whatever I do with most tasks, I'll do with all the rest, for the sake of uniformity.
And what uniformity does, is it simplifies things. I don't have to do different things with different items that have been completed, and which don't get recycled. There's a lot less mental overhead that way.
Looking forward: iterative scheduling →Workflowy is a minimalist note taking app that helps you organize your life. Simple enough to hold your grocery list, powerful enough to hold your entire life.
by Frank Degenaar